Good Brand Guidelines Are a Springboard, Not a Straightjacket

Today's smartest companies are led by their brand values and beliefs. A strong brand identity leads and reflects the company's values and reinforces these qualities through brand guidelines. But guidelines do more than mark out rules and regulations; they tell a brand's story, focusing everyone together in the same direction.

Brands are becoming more open and expressive. This means guidelines also are becoming more emotional, less rigid, and more flexible, enabling brands to adapt their tone and to address multiple audiences. Good guidelines strike a balance between emotional engagement and continuity and avoid drawing the brand too far from its focus.

Old Brands, New Tricks

In the past guidelines tended to stamp their brand onto the marketplace, believing that presenting a consistent image would eventually lead to becoming a trusted partner of choice. This worked at the time, because consistency became familiarity, familiarity became trust and from trust came acceptance and allegiance.