Brand Guidelines are the framework of your company brand and therefore, its personality. By creating a set of guidelines to follow in your brand representation you are solidifying who you are as a company, and how that company image can be used. Company brand guidelines are often very different, as different needs necessitate a whole different set of standards (think how a social media company may allow individual users to include logos on outside materials as opposed to other companies who may only need such guidelines internally for marketing materials etc.) however most include your company logo, typography and colour palettes and how each of these can – and cannot – be used.
These rules encompass your company ‘attitude’, the personality your company embodies and the image you want to put across to the consumer – are you all business? A bit playful? Without the guidelines you’re bound to send mixed messages, continuity without base standards is tricky.
When you meet someone new, your initial appearance that day is the beginning of their impression of you. If the next time you meet them you look completely different – a new haircut or a different style of dress, then they may not remember you or if they do, it might take a while.
Whereas if you have a solid style you instantly have a defining feature. This is how your company brand works for you – in making guidelines for company image, colours and the words used when speaking on behalf of the company, you are cementing yourself in the minds of the consumer. Maintaining a consistent image makes your brand memorable as if every time your content is viewed, it is wildly different they might not even connect the two together – in not having those guidelines in place you dilute your brand, and you also seem less trustworthy as familiarity is a key part in the trust people put in the brands they use and interact with regularly and without this you seem less reliable.
There isn’t much worse in terms of branding and marketing than being forgettable. Without these guidelines in place it is very hard to make a lasting impression, whether it be through the personality with which you interact with consumers or the defining colours your products use, and without an impression it is going to be incredibly difficult to convince people to use your service – purely because they don’t remember you’re an option.
Interested in learning more about branding and how to create a consistent brand? Send us an email to projects@damteq.co.uk or try using the live chat feature in the bottom corner!
