You make your Logo. Then we'll make everything match.
The Ties That Bind:
Creating Brand Standards for Your Small Business
By John Williams, president of LogoYes.com
Copyright 2007, John Williams
One key way to build
brand equity is to create a set of design "rules" that tie together the look
and feel of all your marketing materials. These rules are often referred to
as "brand standards." Ideally, brand standards do the double-duty of
creating awareness of your brand and differentiating your brand from your
competition's. It is recommended that even the smallest companies develop
and maintain brand standards.
The breadth and depth of brand
standards can vary greatly, depending on your needs. Keep in mind that if
you are too strict, you may hem yourself in creatively, while if you are too
loose, design chaos can result. Focus on
strategy and
consistency
in the following five areas:
- Logo – There is perhaps no single more important element to your
brand standards than the consistent use of your logo. First, you should
never alter or re-draw your logo. Second, its placement and sizing
should remain consistent within each communication vehicle (e.g.,
letterhead, brochures, postcards, etc.). Rules can vary by type of
material, but not drastically.
If you want to look like a large company, remember this irony: the
bigger the company, the smaller the logo.
- Graphics – Use distinctive symbols and shapes in a consistent way.
Choosing the same basic graphic elements helps your customers remember
your brand faster. Also, stay consistent with borders and/or backgrounds
– or show a pattern of consistency that complies with your brand
standards. For example, choose a cupid-themed border for a Valentine's
Day ad, and a clover-themed border for a St. Patty's Day ad. In both
cases, your border should be consistent in size and/or weight (the
amount of emphasis it receives relative to the other elements on the
page).
- Colors – Color is one of the most important components in brand
identity. It makes an immediate impression on your audience, and plays a
large role in memory retrieval. Therefore color can significantly impact
someone's perception of your brand. For example, gold, silver and
burgundy are perceived to be upscale, while green is viewed as fresh and
healthy. I highly recommend you research and/or test-market certain
colors before you commit to a palette. One easy (if not scientific) way
to do this is create a brochure or ad in 3 or 4 different color
palettes, then survey various people for feedback. Remember that colors
have different meanings in different cultures.
- Fonts – Choose a handful of fonts for use on all your materials,
selecting at least 1 serif font and 1 san serif font. Serif fonts have
"feet" at the bottom of the font to guide the reader's eye, while san
serif fonts don't. (Times is an example of a serif font; Helvetica is an
example of a san serif font.) Serif fonts work well in paragraphs ("body
copy") because they give the eye something to "hang on" to. San-serif
fonts should be reserved for headlines, numbers in charts, very small
text, and/or text that is reversed out of a color. As a general rule,
you should use no more than two fonts in a document, although a third
decorative font can be used sparingly.
- Illustrative and/or Photographic Style – Consider what type of
visuals (pictures) you want to feature on your marketing materials. Will
your visuals consist of illustration or photography? Try to stick with
one or the other. Regardless of your choice, your visuals should be
similar in style and color usage - black and white, 4-color, 2-color,
etc.
When you have identified rules for the above, write them down and distribute
them to any employee or vendor (like a designer or printer) who may need to
reference them. Brand standards go a long way toward building brand equity.
It's worth the time and effort to do it right.
John Williams is president and founder of LogoYes.com, the world's
first and largest DIY logo website. In his 25 years in advertising, he has
created brand standards for Fortune 100 companies like Mitsubishi and won
numerous international awards for his design work.
