This is something which i have always been slightly confused with, but now i seem to understand why it is so important.

If someone hands you out with their business card, and you take a look at their website, do you ever notice that they aren’t the same?…what i mean is there business card and website don’t match, which don’t really give a good first impression.

When it comes to creating a business whatever it is, i think visual identity is important, because its the trust and confidence customers put into buying a brand or using the services.

The logo, stationary, website, advertising and correspondence you give to your customers has to be consistent and be similar throughout, which is were brand guidelines come in. It basically is a set of rules and guides into how your brand works.

So this is what i have learnt that needs to be included in brand guidelines:

1. Brand message and statement (what your brand is, tagline)

2. Brands aims and visions (what you want your brand to acheive)

3. Why the brand works, compared to others (competitive, brands uniqueness)

4. Brands personality (manner and tone of company)

4. Logo usage (how and were to use the logo, sizes and spacing)

5. Colors (color breakdowns, what colors you use for what publications)

6. Fonts (what typography is used for which publications)

7. Photography/imagery (how and why you use particular imagery)

8. Real life examples of were and how the brand is communicated

Ive been looking at some examples of brand guidelines, but every company is different, depending on how big the company is and how successful they are and who designed it, but most include the 8 factors above, which will help me in the future if ever i need to create a brand and their guidelines for a business, or even my own!