Skip to main content
Commsy creative stuff straight to your inbox

Blog

Brand guidelines: restrain and restrict or rock ‘n’ roll? 

< Blog home

Brand guidelines: restrain and restrict or rock ‘n’ roll? 

Every great brand goes back to a courageous individual who dared to say no to the status quo.’*

This inspiring quote is a call to action. It’s one that drives us to defy convention, break the rules and ask, ‘is there a better way?’

It dares us to ask ‘What if?’

Challenging the status quo is essential. Imagine how much more rock ‘n’ roll we could be if we had the elbowroom to be a little more creative…

Acting on the level

Your brand is a promise to your people that you’ll live by defined values. Those values must be shared in inspiring and imaginative ways so that your people can connect with them and have pride in them.

  • So how do we help our brands to thrive internally?
  • What stops us from having fun fun fun with our brand?
  • How can we unlock exciting opportunities to shape how it feels for our people?

Brand guidelines are a necessity

Brands are governed by guidelines to create consistency and familiarity and to help maintain the set standards. They should help to tell people how communications should sound, look and feel and should be designed for anyone to pick up and use including employees, partners and external agencies.

Guidelines should be guidelines and not the rule book. They should be a set of principles for all to follow.

Companies create brand guidelines with the best of intentions, but they tend to be disregarded and ignored by most. Why? Again and again it comes down to the fact that they’re way too rigid, perhaps outdated, confusing, not fit for purpose or people don’t even know they exist. Often, they are aimed at external audiences and are way too formal for many internal applications.

Good thinking

When done well, they create a similar tone for elements of communication, they save money because there’s an agreed formula to follow and they speed up the communication process by avoiding the need to reinvent the wheel every time.

Burning bridges

When guidelines are too restrictive, it can be hard to differentiate one communication from another. They become creatively constraining uninspiring and make the management and execution of communication impractical, leaving your audience uninspired and driftin’ away.

In the worst cases, they’re a stranglehold, leaving characterless comms feeling dull, sterile and tediously repetitive. (Which works well if your values are characterless, sterile and repetitive.)

Break the rules

It is possible to create guidelines that are engaging enough to achieve consistent communication, practical enough to prevent frustration and adaptable enough to offer flexibility and creativity. It’s never too late to reconsider your brand guidelines and give them a restorative refresh.

Here are a few points to consider…

Define your constants and variables

Establish your must-haves and the elements of your brand that can remain flexible and fluid. People need to be educated on what they can and can’t do.

Acknowledge that some constraints are necessary but give people the freedom to adapt and adjust. Consider your own brand guidelines. Are they prescriptive and uncompromising? Perhaps it’s time for a refresh. Here are 36 great brand guideline examples to take a look at.

Encourage flexibility and adaptability

In an age where we don’t all need to arrive at the office at the same time and work in the same way, why should we continue to manage our brands the same way we always did? Flexibility should be embraced and encouraged. Build in some room to manoeuvre.

Be bold – allow the opportunity to play

To maintain motivation comms must be kept fresh and interesting. Encourage creativity and play.

Consider how external brands achieve this. Take a look at how TV channels shape their brands and explore the unconventional by continually creating

fresh and stimulating idents. 

Brands like Adobe, Nike, Google, Coca Cola, Halifax, The Natural History Museum and even local authorities like Brent Council positively mess around with their brands to mix things up, have fun, prompt emotions and stand out from the crowd.

Get others involved

Audiences have the power to not only share a brand and its values but to get involved, develop them and have some creative fun too. By moderating constraints and encouraging interaction, people can connect and be inspired to join in.

Think about your internal audience

Internally, exposure to ‘the brand’ is constant so at times it needs to surprise. With an ever-increasing emphasis on building strong employer brands there are new opportunities to work on your internal identity and surprise your people with something a little different.

Remember it’s more than just a logo

We’re not just talking about logo or colour palette here – this is your brand as a whole. It’s about the essence and feel, character and style, spirit and personality. Exciting opportunities exist way beyond the obvious…

Movin’ on

Brand guidelines play a key role in helping to deliver effective brand management, sharing our narratives and supporting those promises we make to our people.

But they must provide direction that can be sufficiently adapted across channels, platforms, services and experiences. People need to understand why they exist but there must be a degree of flexibility. They shouldn’t be a stranglehold that leaves everything feeling lacklustre and limp.

Flexibility, usability and creative autonomy are central to success.

So will you be brave enough to challenge the status quo and say no?

Loosen up the shackles a little and you could have your brand rockin’ all over the world…

We enjoy the challenge of unlocking a brand and its guidelines to make comms feel, well, Alive. So have a chat with us if you’re looking for a fresh approach and something that will rock your audience.

*David Brier | Branding Specialist

“I feel like they own and care for the project as much as we do! I would not use anyone else for my creative work and think Alive is ahead of the game.”

Jo Hobbs — Communications Manager

“Thanks for all your help. We are delighted with the campaign, both in terms of the creativity and messaging but also the thought taken over the rollout of the materials. All looks absolutely fabulous!”

Sarah Crowdy — Campaign and Media Officer Communications, South East Water

“We went to ‘Alive’ for ideas on how to run a specific employee program in Europe. Alan and his team were brilliant in coming up with fresh, creative and practical approaches. The team took charge and executed brilliantly. We are pleased with the progress made so far and hope to have the same level of partnership and commitment going forward.”

Sobha Varghese — Tata Consultancy Services

“Alive helped us create a video of our response to the floods of winter 2019. Our Chief Officer received messages from all round the country praising us for it and was really pleased with both the video and the response to it.”

Alexander Mills, Communications Manager — South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue

“We had the privilege to work with the Alive team. It was our first time to be involved in creating an animation for our patients within paediatrics. The team were approachable, friendly, creative and very accommodating. Your vision for what you want to create, is at all times acknowledged, appreciated and accommodated by the team. They worked effectively and with great passion towards our project and worked not only alongside health professionals but also our patients who really enjoyed the experience of working with the Alive team. It has given our team the confidence and inspiration to do further projects in the future. We highly recommend Alive and their exceptional team.”

DR ELENI ATHANASAKOS, Lead Paediatric Clinical Scientist — NHS Barts Health

“‘The short animation developed in co-production with clinicians and young people is outstanding! Informative, developmentally appropriate, vitally fun and engaging. We are really grateful for the expertise of the Alive with Ideas team for their innovative approach in building children’s health literacy.'”

Kath Evans — Director of Children’s Nursing at Barts Health

“Our mission was to update our brand visuals to better reflect our innovative and forward-thinking organisation. After receiving numerous pitches from different branding agencies, Alive stood out with their clear passion and understanding of our identity and goals. We thoroughly enjoyed working with the Alive Team to create an engaging new brand that we are immensely proud of.”

Lianne Springer — Communications and Engagement Lead

“Alive wowed us during the pitch process and they didn’t stop wowing us throughout the whole project. Every person we worked with at Alive were so friendly, knowledgeable and clearly passionate about what they do. They have worked with us to really understand what we do and have created a new brand and website that really stands out from our competitors. Thank you!”

Louise Burnard, Head of Marketing and Communications UK — Be | Shaping the Future

“I think the team have done such a brilliant job, particularly with responding to our requests. It's one of the best mental health videos I've ever seen. Very proud to be associated with your exemplary work. Thank you so much.”

Dr Anna Batho — Clinical Psychologist – Critical Care, UCLH

“We have worked with Alan, Caroline and the wider Alive With Ideas team for many years. In that time, they have provided a dedicated service that is second to none. We appreciate their attention to detail and creative approach to bringing our brand, communications and stories to life. And would recommend them to anyone looking for creative communications support.”

Georgia Beech — Internal Communications Specialist, Ocado Group

“This is brilliant. I wanted to give my heartfelt thanks to all of the team who worked on this. You all understood exactly what we wanted to communicate and why, and then managed to do it in a way that was far better than anything I could have imagined. I’m a bit choked up to be honest!”

Sarah Wright, Head of Communications and Campaigns — NEA

“Each time I work with the team, I am always stunned at the effort and creativity that goes into each detail and am always eager for the end result. The team is extremely accommodating and always provide a fresh approach to our projects that elevates our communications materials!”

Alana Khaytin, Communications Specialist — Braskem America

“What I really appreciate about Alive is that they work with us as partners, and care as much about getting it right for our patients as we do.”

Sara Langston, Patient Engagement & Marketing Manager — italk

“Alive are unique in how much they deeply listen and invest in you and your ideas. I have not come across a company that listens as much as they do to ensure your needs are understood and met (actually - they always exceed my needs and expectations). Everyone I recommend Alive to has an equally brilliant experience. When you work with Alive, you are not only getting some genius creativity brought into your life, you are also hanging out with some of the best examples of human beings I’ve ever known.”

Steph Tranter, Hybrid Exec Coach & Psychologist — StephTranter.com

“The (Alive) team were able to creatively pull together and document (in just over 2minutes) everything our service has achieved over the last few months, from thousands of prescriptions deliveries to hundreds of phone calls made to the vulnerable. The final product was so powerful and reflective of what our service has and continues to achieve. It couldn’t have been better received within the service – thanks Alive for once again helping us to communicate our vision!’”

Emma Wright — South Yorkshire & Rescue

“We worked with the team at Alive to create our staff recognition video.
At a time like this, its never been more important to share the amazing work that our staff have done and continue to do on a daily basis under very difficult circumstances. We wanted to shout about this and recognise that when the time came, South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue stepped up to the plate. We didn’t want an ordinary thank you post on social media or a basic email sent out internally, we wanted something special. Enter Alive. ”

Emma Wright — South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue

“Our company is fun, we have great brands, but most importantly we’re all about our people – and I wanted an agency who would understand that and help us bring it to life through our website and other comms. Straight away I felt that Alive ‘got’ us and provided the creative inspiration exactly where we needed it, as well as the technical expertise to deliver a well-functioning website.”

Keren McCarron, Head of Corporate Affairs & Communications — KP Snacks

“Boom!
Thank you so much. Incredible work done at incredible speed by incredible people.
Outstanding work as ever and what a turnaround. As for the concepts – wow. These are that good it would be an insult to describe them as just good. It’s a joke, quite frankly. This is exactly the Alive effect I was after. Right now I feel like I am living in an Alive With Ideas wonderland. Thank you!”

Jack Grasby, Campaigns Manager — SYFR

“If you are looking to improve creativity and build teamwork, I highly recommend a session like this for your team. No matter where you are in your creativity journey, a workshop like this can give your team a boost of energy and ideas to invigorate their creative thinking.”

Amy Lilja, IC Manager — Hennepin Healthcare

“Alive were there to help when we were working every hour to respond to the coronavirus outbreak. They gave us the creativity, ideas and support we needed to deliver campaigns which empowered our residents in the most difficult time most of us have ever seen, personally and professionally. The team understood what we needed, worked closely with us and delivered fast without any compromise on quality. Working with Alive has been a joy in the darkest of times and I have no doubt will have helped to save lives. Thanks team x”

Julie Odams, Assistant Director of Communications & Customers — Derbyshire County Council

“We got 'Alive' involved to help us shift mindsets across our organisation and they delivered! Using simple, clear and creative ideas the team have delivered us a campaign which has seen a dramatic increase in idea sharing and development. They’ve also played a significant role in creating a culture of shared success. I wouldn’t hesitate to work with again, in fact, we already are!”

Gavin Buckle — B&Q
Alive logo