Using your brand elements in a consistent way, builds brand strength and recognition
As a business owner, you have to develop impactful branding strategies to connect with the consumer and create a memorable brand identity. This is where brand guidelines can help set you in the right direction and effectively boost your business’s visibility. Think of these as a ‘style guide’, which includes your logo design, colour palettes, fonts, typography, images and tone of voice.
In the brand guidelines, you give the creative department an idea of using these elements and communicating with the target audience.
These are a few reasons why they are so valuable and important for the success of your brand.
Consistent Branding
It is critical for businesses to maintain consistency in their brand messaging and use of colours, graphics and fonts across all print and digital mediums. According to a report, brand consistency can increase the overall revenue for a business by 23 percent. Take the example of any big brand like Nike, Coca-Cola or McDonald’s. You will see how they have been consistent in their branding everywhere.
The beverage company has maintained its message of positivity and happiness in its marketing online, social media and merchandise like clothes, bags or stationery. Similarly, the sportswear brand and restaurant chain have made their logos, brand colours and fonts recognizable across the world by maintaining branding consistency
When you define your brand guidelines beforehand, you can make sure that your visual brand identity and brand message are consistent on your website, social media pages, and print mediums like magazines or brochures.
Establish Rules and Standards
With brand guidelines, you can be clear about the rules you want your creative and marketing team to follow presently and in the future. The guidelines tell people about variations of the logo to use in different places, the spacing in typography, and colours for advertising.
It helps the marketing agency create a successful strategy on various channels that portrays your brand and its product or services in the best way possible. Other than that, you can also keep your employees updated on the brand message, brand identity design, colours and tone through these guidelines. This way, businesses can effectively align their internal and external branding.
Take a look at the brand guidelines for Twitter and Skype here. You will see how the brand has outlined the use of its trademarks, graphics and product design for marketing and promotions.
Create a Cohesive Brand Identity
This is actually quite important for building customer loyalty and increasing brand recognition. A cohesive brand identity means that all your marketing elements like website, content, imagery and product packaging are tied together. So the message you send out is the same and doesn’t confuse your audience.
Think of it this way. The brand colours should match products, website, logo design, and all the company’s communication. This way, the consumers begin to associate those colours with the brand and recognize them easily.
With a cohesive brand identity, you can quickly gain an edge over your competitors and establish a name in the industry.
To Sum Up
These are a few reasons why brand guidelines are precious for businesses. They can make your branding and marketing strategy more focused and engaging for the target audience. Without brand guidelines, you could face difficulty in reaching out to your consumers and spreading brand awareness.
