Brand Guidelines
Brand consistency for your business
Brand guidelines bring all your brand details together in one document,
so you can find everything you need quickly and easily – every time
Do you want to feel more confident as your business grows?
Do you want to make it easy for your team to stay on brand, but right now you don’t feel like you have any coherence?
Does this sound familiar?
Everything’s all over the place. There’s no consistency.
You’ve tried putting it all together yourself in files, folders and documents, but you’re in a muddle.
You’ve tried doing it yourself, but it’s a mess. You’re not sure if you’ve got all the most up-to-date information. You might have missed something. Now you’re feeling overwhelmed – you don’t have the time or expertise to put it right and you feel that the lack of organisation is holding you back.
Do you want to know what all the big businesses have in common?
How they deal with all the ‘stuff’?
Brand guidelines!
A clear, concise set of guidelines that let their team members, customers and clients really know their brand.
All the big businesses have them.
Do you want to rely on folders full of stuff
or
Do you want a sleek, comprehensive guide that frees up your space and time?
I can help you by creating a go-to brand book, full of guidelines specific to your brand.
With a set of brand guidelines you’ll have all you need in one place (no more hunting around for that brand colour you can’t remember the code for, or the font you know you use but can’t remember its name or where you got it).
You’ll have all your branding information in one document to give you peace of mind – no more embarrassed silences when a copywriter asks for your brand voice guidelines, or your printer asks for your main colour CMYK breakdown.
This one document will make you and your team more productive.
You’ll feel super confident that you can quickly and easily give your team what they need. Even if you’re a solopreneur, a comprehensive set of guidelines will help you feel more professional, more confident and more in control. You’ll save time by having your own brand bible – a living, breathing PDF reference to your business brand, created by a professional.
Don’t be embarrassed if you don’t know what a brand book is – loads of really clued up business people don’t either
A brand bible, brand book, brand style guide, brand identity guide or brand guidelines document is an essential tool to help you establish your brand preferences and your brand identity.
It acts as a key document to help you communicate a consistent brand message to your audience, and acts as a go-to reference for all your communications team, from your social media manager to your content creators and designers.
Inconsistent branding can damage the reputation of your business and create confusion.
Louise needed a little consistency, I helped her and created brand guidelines for her business, here’s what she thought:
“This is AMAZING! It’s everything I need for the site, in one place. Do you KNOW how many post-it notes I can shred now?!”
Louise (PriestessTarot)
Show everyone you mean business.
Take the hassle out of organising your brand identity.
Your pdf brand book will be designed for your needs, but can include:
✔ Logo – details of your logo type, size, versions, alternate colourways and usage, so you and your team know what should be used, and what shouldn’t. Helping your customers identify your brand immediately.
✔ Typography – the typefaces and fonts your brand uses, along with their weights. It’s really important to stay consistent, not just to look pretty.
✔ Colour palette – a detailed visual guide to the colours used across your brand. Know exactly which colours you are using across all aspects of your communication
✔ Tone of voice – brand voice is just as important as visual identity. Help your content creators set the right tone every time.
✔ Social media – help your media managers and creators by setting out do and don’ts, give them guidelines to make their lives (and yours) easier.
✔ Image use – if you have specific overlays, colourways or presets, it’s vital to stay on brand by making sure your team have the details to hand.
✔ Website design – do you have a certain ‘feel’ to your website? Have your details to hand for whenever you need them.
You’ll finally be in control of your brand identity.
Enjoy the peace of mind that you and your team are building a brand your customers will recognise and trust.
Being organised needn’t be boring.
It’s an investment in your business. A reference point for years to come.
❌ No more scrabbling for up-to-date information.
❌ No more pretending you know what font your headlines use.
❌ No more ‘I’ll get back to you’ when a team member asks for your brand guidelines.
❌ No more ‘it’s medium green’ when your new designer asks for your main logo colour.
‘Our brand book pulled all our design elements together so that we could better understand where we were being consistent with our brand (and where we were not). Sara also provided useful feedback on our brand “voice”, something which we would only otherwise have been able to achieve through extensive market testing.’
Helen, Spiritual Orkney
So why bother with a brand book when you can do it yourself – after all you already have your logo designed and know your colours?
By commissioning a professional brand book:
✔ You’ll save time – go do what you’re best at.
✔ You’ll relieve the pressure – no more rooting around for information your team needs asap.
✔ You’ll have all your vital brand identity notes together – logo, fonts, colour palettes, tone of voice, image use and social media preferences.
✔ You’ll be able to provide a comprehensive brand identity to designers, managers and anyone working with your company.
Whether you’re a microcompany or a huge corporation (just starting out or a hundred years old), a brand guidelines book will help you feel more confident, more professional and help you stay in control.
Why don’t you have prices or packages? I don’t want to email – I hate feeling pressured!
Because each set of brand guidelines is tailored to your business I need to ask you a few questions first. A brand book for a microbusiness is going to be different to an all-in set of guidelines for a big multi-national.
When you email me there is absolutely no pressure. None at all.
Will you design my logo?
Nope. I’ll pull together all your brand details, but you’re best to get a designer to create your logo.
Won’t my designer create a brand guidelines book?
Perhaps. Some designers don’t offer this service at all, some will automatically offer you a basic set of visual brand guidelines, and others may charge extra for a more comprehensive visual set.
A professional set of brand guidelines will tie in with your needs – they might only include visual guidelines, or incorporate both visual and brand voice.
I’ve already got my logo, isn’t that all I need?
Do you know your colour codes, font families and brand voice? A set of brand guidelines goes much deeper than a simple logo.
I’ve got too much stuff, it’s going to be a hassle!
Well, it might take a bit of digging to get all your information together, but once you’ve found it, leave the rest to me. I’m experienced at gathering information and bringing it all together. If there’s anything missing, we’ll work through it together. At the end you’ll have a document that will serve you for years to come.
It’s going to be too expensive / it’s a waste of money
When you run a business, sometimes you have to spend money to make money. By commissioning a bespoke set of brand guidelines you’re investing in professionalism, time saved and the most excellent feeling of having everything in order.
I haven’t got a clue what you need from me. I don’t want to look stupid.
Don’t worry. There’s no such thing as a stupid question. I probably wouldn’t be able to do your job. I can guide you through everything.
Is it right for me?
If you’re a microbusiness, a brand book will keep you on track and be there for when you need to grow. If you’re an SME it will allow your teams to work to the same set of standards, and if you’re a large corporate business a set of brand guidelines is a vital asset to your company. I work with small to medium independent businesses who care about their history – if that’s you then we’re a good fit.
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