Building the perfect brand guidelines in 2023

Brand guidelines help organisations to maintain consistency across all channels, from print to web and everything in between. Brand guidelines will usually cover all forms of communication, including visual (including design, layout, font), verbal (speech style), and written communication (such as tone of voice and prose style).

Why are brand guidelines important?

In 2019, CharityComms’ report, ‘Branding Inside Out’, found that effective charity branding actively improves the number of donations a charitable organisation can receive for a campaign.

A consistent tone of voice, style, and design all positively impacts brand reputation. Sticking to your guidelines will ensure your charity feels reliable and legitimate to your audience and prospective donors. This is particularly important for new and smaller charities who do not have a well-known name or reputation to fall back on.

In this guide, we explore how you can build the perfect brand guidelines that will stand the test of time, throughout 2023 and beyond.  

Step one: the mission statement

A mission statement should concisely describe your charity’s fundamental and unique purpose. It should outline your vision and values, what you stand for, who you represent, and what you are trying to achieve. In essence what do you do and how do you do it?

The mission statement will form the basis of your brand guidelines and inform everything from your tone of voice to your brand colours.

Step two: the logo (what, when, where, how)       

What

An organisation’s logo is a signpost. As your brand reputation grows, it can also serve as a stamp of authority, and where appropriate, an endorsement. A charity logo should be memorable, easily recognisable, and speak to your overall vision and values. Colour, font, shape, and size are all important factors to consider.

When

Consider when it is necessary to use your logo. For example, including a logo in the corner of flyers, leaflets, posters, and press releases is a good idea as it will give readers a quick and easy way to recognise your charity. Keeping your logo as your profile picture on social media will help to ensure legitimacy, too. But your logo is not your entire brand. Over usage can become distracting, or at worst, make your content appear overly branded and conceited.

Where and how

Decide where your logo should usually feature on your communications. Top-left, bottom-right, centre stage? The possibilities are endless, but it is generally good practice to keep your logo in the same position across all print and web channels. For example, if your logo features in the top-right hand side of your website, it should remain top-right for your posters, too. 

Step three: colours

Colour is a powerful emotive. When used effectively, colour can strengthen brand recognition, awareness, and influence decision-making. 

When picking a brand colour pallet, consider your target audiences. Colour perceptions and impressions can change with age, social class, gender, culture, and religion. Your feeling towards a certain hue may not be the same as your target audience. For example, if your target audience is predominantly international, you should conduct research around what potential colours signify in different cultures.

This excellent guide from Allies 4 Good looks at different colours and how they impact non-profit branding.

Step four: fonts

Font is a key component of visual branding. It contributes to brand recognition, influences decision-making, it can be used to convey certain emotions, or evoke certain reactions. For example, comic sans might be an appropriate font for a children’s charity, but it’s unlikely to have the same impact for charities dedicated to conservation. 

When selecting your brand fonts, look for fonts that are legible, clear, and visually appealing to the reader. Remember to consider readability and accessibility (for example, is the font compatible with popular and up-to-date screen-readers/inclusive technologies?).

Step five: tone of voice and house style

A brand tone of voice encompasses your organisation’s writing style, the words you use, and the emotions or feeling you want to convey through your messages. It’s an integral part of your identity as a charity and it can have a powerful impact on your donor conversion rate.

Your tone of voice should be consistent and relatable. You should avoid jargon and overly complex language. Remember, a tone of voice sets the basis for the types of conversations you want to have with your audience and donors. Writing a tone of voice document can help, or check out how these five charities convey purpose through tone of voice, including examples from Macmillan, Mind, and Battersea Cats and Dogs Home.