What Is A Brand Guide?

Once upon a time, I started a business helping nonprofits and companies create effective brand strategies that led them to marketing success. I worked tirelessly behind the scenes, stayed up late at night, burning the candle at both ends, and succeeded in helping my clients meet their goals. Through all the challenges of entrepreneurship, the one thing that kept me going was the seemingly elusive promise that someday my business would hit a sweet spot, allowing me to experience the same ease of flow, clarity, and focus I helped others find in their businesses. 

But that day didn’t come, and I faced burnout. It finally hit me – I spent so much time coaching others on the exact steps to branding success that I had not stopped long enough to take my own advice! That’s when I took a necessary pause to create a brand guide for MY OWN business, Matchbox Women. Clarity, focus, and flow resulted, and now I’m here to show you how to avoid that same common pitfall I experienced and how to jump lightyears ahead of the competition.

So, What is a Brand Guide?

A brand guide, also known as a brand style guide or brand book, is a thorough document that acts as the blueprint for your brand’s visual and messaging identity. It serves as a reference for consistency and cohesiveness in how your brand is represented across various platforms. A brand guide provides detailed instructions for internal teams and external partners, from logo usage and color palettes to positioning statements, brand tags, and imagery styles. This guide also guarantees that everyone involved in representing your brand sticks to a set of guidelines, developing a unified and recognizable brand identity. 

Following my experience writing my own brand guide, I developed a TrueYouBrand guide to help you get started. Keep reading to find out why I think this is the key to success for your business!

Photo: {Screenshot of a sample page of the TYB brand guide}

What are the Benefits of a Brand Guide?

A well-crafted brand guide brings a variety of benefits to businesses and organizations. First, it guarantees a uniform and cohesive brand presentation across a variety of platforms, establishing a strong and recognizable brand identity. This consistency shows professionalism and makes it easier for customers to identify and remember your brand. 

Secondly, a brand guide serves as a compass for your business decisions, helping you align your actions with your core purpose, values, and overarching mission. It establishes clear parameters and boundaries based on what matters most. 

Additionally, it serves as a way to reflect on and evaluate the effectiveness of your business, identify areas that need improvement, and determine necessary changes for the future. I recommend conducting an annual review and revision so you maintain a strong connection to those attributes that make your brand strong and receptive to your ideal clients. 

Finally, it encourages creativity. Once you and your team know the exact message you want to send, you can create engaging content for your followers and clients while closely following the brand’s core elements. In summary, a brand guide is an effective tool that guides your business toward a consistent, professional, and long-lasting brand presence.

Why DIY? The Power of Personal Involvement

Writing your own brand guide instead of hiring it out can offer several advantages depending on the nature of your business, your level of involvement, and your specific goals. Here are some reasons why you might consider building your own brand guide:

1. Own Your Brand: Writing your own brand guide helps you build the muscles of messaging, copywriting, and a deep connection to your work that only comes from spending time nurturing it. Many clients tell me that developing their brand guide brings clarity and confidence to their pursuit because they are forced to think through the details and put them down on paper!

2. Understand Your Brand: As the business owner, you have a personal understanding of your brand, its values, and its unique aspects. The program I have created is designed to help you cultivate your thoughts and work to build a useful Brand Guide – one that will grow with you and that you will intimately connect to and know. 

3. Control and Customize Your Brand: Writing your own brand guide gives you direct control over the content and customization of the guidelines. You can guarantee that the guide is designed to your specific needs and can be updated as your brand evolves rather than waiting for someone to get back to you.

4. Align Your Brand: Writing your own brand guide allows you to state your brand vision and values in a way that resonates with your personal or organizational perspective. It’s a TrueYouBrand approach, and it is an investment now in your foundation so that you can reap a harvest long into the future. 

While creating an in-house brand guide has advantages, it’s important to recognize time, expertise, and resource limitations. That’s where I can help. I’d love to come alongside you as a coach to guide you through the process and be your sounding board as you consider the many facets of brand identity while creating a TrueYouBrand Guide. 

Using Your TrueYouBrand Guide 

Using your TrueYouBrand Guide extends far beyond the limits of a course or coaching session with me, serving as a compass for ongoing personal and professional development. When you regularly revisit the guide, you can engage in self-reflection. 

Similarly, when faced with decisions, the guide becomes a reliable framework, helping you make choices that reflect your values and personal brand. When you embrace your TrueYouBrand Guide as a living document, you’ll find it continues to guide and inspire your journey toward authenticity long after the coaching or course has concluded.