A brand guidelines template sounds corporate — but even a five-page version stops your business looking messy. Here is exactly what goes inside.
Guidelines are simply the answers to questions people keep asking: which logo file do I use? What are our colours? Can I stretch the logo? (No.) Without written answers, every designer, printer and staff member guesses — and the guesses differ. A short guidelines document ends the guessing forever. Here is what a practical one contains.
Your Brand Guidelines Template: What Goes Inside
Logo rules
Which version to use where, minimum sizes, clear space around it, and what never to do — no stretching, no recolouring, no shadows.
Colour codes
Exact values for print and screen, plus which colour leads. This one page saves endless back-and-forth with suppliers.
Typography
Which fonts, for headings versus body, and acceptable fallbacks when the brand font is unavailable.
Usage examples
Do and do not examples — a van mockup, a social post, a quote template. Pictures beat paragraphs for this.
Making Guidelines People Actually Use
Step 1: Keep it short
Five to ten pages beats fifty. Nobody reads a brand bible; everyone uses a brand cheat-sheet. Aim for the cheat-sheet.
Step 2: Make it visual
Show, do not just tell. Screenshots of correct and incorrect usage teach faster than any written rule.
Step 3: Share it widely
Send it to every designer, printer, signwriter and staff member who touches your brand. Guidelines only work if people have them.
Key takeaway: Guidelines are not bureaucracy — they are freedom. With rules written down, anyone can create on-brand materials without asking permission.
Do I need guidelines for a tiny business?
Yes — even two pages. The smaller the team, the more each inconsistent piece of marketing stands out.
Should guidelines be a PDF?
A PDF works, but a simple shared web page is easier to keep current. Either beats nothing.
Ready to grow?
Want a brand guidelines template built around your business? We will create it properly — at a firm fixed price once we understand your project.
