“It’s amazing, but I used to sell only 20-30 pieces per weekend, and after you fixed the brandbook, we’re selling 200!”
Any new business starts… not from a logo. But with answering the questions – what are we selling and who is the buyer of our product. A corporate identity is developed for a specific target group. Before you go to market, someone has to make sure that your product is recognisable and attractive, The buyer must unmistakably associate your product with you.
A customer’s trust is built on their first impression of a company. Just as you form your impression of the person who walks into a room, your customer makes an impression of you within the first few seconds when they receive an email, business card or visit your website.
Try not to miss this brief moment.
Many people think that creating a logo is enough and it’s a done deal. But a company’s image is more than that.
You will need to build a style of communication with the customer, a uniform style of mail messages, a common appearance of your products. Even the design of the shop window should not be out of the general style.
To ensure that all employees (including the owner) are aware of the general behaviour of the company, a common standard called a brandbook is drawn up.
A brandbook is necessary to maintain a unified image of your brand, regardless of who is working on it. It will make it easier to delegate tasks to designers, marketers and copywriters, to be sure that the logo in advertising is the right colour and blog articles are written in your style.
By following brand guidelines, you’ll soon realise how much easier they make the job of bringing new products and services to market.
But it was one of our old clients who best revealed the meaning of the brandbook: “It’s amazing, but I used to sell only 20-30 pieces per weekend, and after you fixed the brandbook, we’re selling 200!”
Explore our collection of brandbooks from famous companies such as Coca-Cola, Dove, Johnnie Walker, Pepsi, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and other famous trademark owners. We will be guided by the latest design trends when developing your style.
Corporate identity is the graphic techniques that make a brand meaningful and attractive in the eyes of the public. Graphics forms the image of the company, which is called in different ways: identity, corporate identity, corporate style, corporate identity and others. These are synonym words that describe the visual image of a company or brand.
What is the difference between a brandbook and a guideline? First of all, in the content: a brandbook contains a full description of the brand, while a guideline contains only its visual identity.
However, despite the differences between a brandbook and a guideline, they have some common features. Firstly, both documents allow structuring and unifying everything related to the brand, developing uniform rules for all employees and contractors of the company. Secondly, both documents work towards a common goal: to create a single, coherent, recognisable image of a strong brand, which ultimately leads to an expanded target audience and increased sales.
We have prepared for you a selection of several examples of what brandbooks of well-known companies look like in terms of their corporate identity.
Audi brandbook – the most modern way to develop a brandbook online. It is easier to design it as a landing page. It explains the brand guidelines interactively. From here you can also download the information you need for your partners.
Before such a page can be developed, a developed corporate identity is required. Audi sets a clear statement of Vorsprung. Our attitude towards progressive premiumisation is conveyed through a high degree of flexibility and the bold use of the basic elements that form our brand.
The Audi CI portal is a direct and easy way to creatively address this brand. It offers a wealth of examples that inspire and convey the essentials, and is structured so that you can get started straight away. A living style guide that is constantly expanding across all touchpoints.
The book outlines a brief history of the brand, key brand values and standards. It then focuses on the brand identity and the basic principles of how a graphic designer uses the style.
Coca-Cola’s core brand message is enjoy life and be happy. Join to be happy like us. The centrepiece of the brand book is, of course, the drink itself.
The key elements of the brand are the Spencer font on which the logo is based, the contoured bottle, the dynamic ribbon and the signature colours in the Pantone scale. The globally recognisable brand assets form a visual core that is consistently present on packaging, advertising and communications. In 1969, the Coca-Cola trademark was complemented by a white wave. But in 2017, after rebranding, it disappeared.
Some details indicate that this is not the original brandbook. Most likely, it was created by fans of the brand or one of the regional dealers. But it is made very decently.
In line with the Real Beauty Promise, the Dove brand is committed to showcasing only real women, not digitally altering their appearance and helping the next generation develop a positive relationship with beauty.
The Dove brand book defines the core brand characteristics and benefits that differentiate the brand in a competitive environment and help drive the brand. The brand book explains how critical intangible assets help build a strong connection with audiences and win the hearts of women.
Dove’s brand essence is evidenced by the photographic style of the brand book. The document is illustrated with “real” women, devoid of digital retouching. The brand argues that consumers increasingly trust the authentic and real, rather than “unadvertised” people, institutions and brands.
In Google’s new guideline, let’s say “a brand identity guide”, the company outlines how the new logo can be used, using the Google Trends web app as an example.
The corporate identity guide provides guidance on how to use the Trends name, logo, and language in materials without having contractors call the company’s marketing department. The document includes several examples of usage, as well as links to resources that can be downloaded and used.
Jamie Oliver is not just a cook. He is a colorful personality who can inspire not only with his recipes, but also with his charisma and wit. He has written several recipe books and is the owner of the Fifteen restaurant chain. He has been cooking since he was eight years old and has won the love of millions of ordinary people who want to learn how to cook.
The brandbook of the famous chef consists of 2 big parts. The first one is dedicated to mass market and simple “Jamie”, the second one is dedicated to the chef Jamie Oliver. The brandbook introduces the personality of the hero and the personality of the brand. This document contains the most comprehensive information about the Jamie Oliver brand. Developers are asked to use the brandbook in packaging design, marketing support and point of sale, ensuring consistency of style across all brand identity media. As usual, emphasis is placed on the proper use of the Jamie brand, so are asked to refer to and adhere to the guide.
The first sketch of Johnnie Walker’s Striding Man was made in 1908 by artist Tom Brown on the back of a restaurant menu. “Colored” Johnnie appeared in 1927, thanks to Doris Zinkeisen. The artist chose his red tailcoat and painted him a light-colored cylinder.
The main sections of a real brandbook are: history, brand character, mission, manifesto and brand wheel. Design is our past, present and future. There is no date on the brandbook, but you can check the time by “walking man”. In 2015, the brand and a simple drawing of the ‘walking man’ was finalized by London agency Bloom in collaboration with illustrator Gary Redford, so the brandbook is before the redesign.
Johnnie Walker is now the world’s largest whisky brand and its motto, as a joyful expression of optimism and as the best advice for you, is “keep going”.
Heineken’s corporate identity plays a crucial role in maintaining and strengthening its number one position among international beer brands. The brand book presents a number of new rules and additional elements that have been added to the core elements of the identity, as well as additional style guidelines for photography.
The book defines the key brand assets: the Heineken brand emblem, logo, star, star with “H” sign and the signature green color.
A large space in the book is devoted to the Heineken emblem. It consists of a green ring, a ribbon with the Heineken logo and a red star. The emblem is a key asset and conveys the authenticity and heritage of the Heineken brand.
The Heineken brand sponsors concerts, supports cultural events and promotes community events of all levels and sizes. That’s why you can see the bright green color and red star anywhere on the planet. Know that these are the main identifiers of the Heineken brand identity.