One key way to develop your brand 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. Think you're not big enough to
worry about your brand? It's recommended that even the smallest
companies develop and maintain brand standards from the very
beginning.
The breadth and depth of your brand standards can vary greatly,
depending on your needs. Keep in mind that if you're too
strict, you may hem yourself in creatively, while if you're too
loose, design chaos can result. Focus on strategy and consistency
in the following five areas:
1. Logo. There's perhaps no single more important
element to your brand standards than the consistent use of your
logo. First, you should never alter or redraw your logo. Second,
its placement and sizing should remain consistent within each
communication vehicle (for example, your letterhead, brochures,
postcards, fliers, etc.). Rules can vary according the type of
material you're using your logo in, but they shouldn't vary
drastically.
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And if you want to look like a large company, remember this
irony: The bigger the company, the smaller the logo.
2. Graphics. Use distinctive symbols and shapes in a
consistent way. Choosing the same basic graphic elements will help
customers remember your brand faster. Also, be consistent when
using borders and/or backgrounds--or show a pattern of consistency
that complies with your brand standards. For example, you could
choose a cupid-themed border for a Valentine's Day ad and a
clover-themed border for a St. Patrick'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).
3. Colors. Color is one of the most important components
when it comes to brand identity. The colors you choose will make an
immediate impression on your audience, and play 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 to create a brochure or
ad in three or four different color palettes, then survey various
people for feedback. And remember that colors have different
meanings in different cultures.
4. Fonts. Choose just a handful of fonts for use on all
your materials, selecting at least one serif font and one 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 or 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 or text
that's 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 could be used sparingly.
5. Illustrative or photographic style. Consider what type
of visuals-pictures--you want to feature on your marketing
materials. Will your visuals consist of illustrations or photos?
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, four-color, two-color, etc.
When you've identified rules for the above areas, write them
down and distribute them to any employee or vendor--such as a
designer or printer--who may need to reference them. Your brand
standards will go a long way toward building your brand equity.
It's worth the time and effort to do it right.
John Williams is Entrepreneur.com's "Image
& Branding" columnist and the founder and president of
LogoYes.com,
the world's first do-it-yourself logo design website. During
John's 25 years in advertising, he's created brand
standards for Fortune 100 companies like Mitsubishi and won
numerous awards for his design work.