Color and font usage, logo application, tone and voice, picture styles, graphics usage, brand sentiment, and other aspects are all standardized by brand guidelines. While brand rules may appear to be restrictive at first, they might really allow for greater originality in your work. Teams can build within a framework rather than starting from scratch each time they use guidelines that define what they can and cannot accomplish

While each organization’s brand standards will differ, they often include:

• Guidance on logo usage
• Brand essence and characteristics
• Writing and copy guidelines including tone and voice and grammar rules
• Links to other brand resources and contact information for the brand team
• An overview of the visual expression and how to use visual elements
• Typography rules (e.g., fonts, type size, and line height)
• Illustration, icon, and photographic style overview
• Color palettes
• Grid templates and white space rules