A style guide is a set of rules for the writing and design of Company materials including documents, web content, advertising signage, swag, and vehicle markings etc.
It is a document that provides direction for a Company’s branding. It indicates approved Company colours; text fonts and sizes for regular text as well as the appearance of document headings; paragraph and table arrangements; required watermarks on documents; logo types, sizing, and placement for various Company items from documents to promotional materials.
The use of consistent document formatting, logo placement, and colours will allow your clients or customers to recognize your company instantly without scanning through material for your Company name. As an example, you submit a proposal through a client’s procurement process. When they open the package, they immediately recognize the Company from the logo, or the formatting of the Company’s title page (colours, watermark, etc.).
Is it difficult to create a Style Guide?
Start with a basic word document and add all the features you want to see for branding across your Company. Work with team members or executive to finalize:
The size, type and colour of font for regular text, and whether normal paragraphs are left aligned or justified.
Decide the size, type and colour of font for document heading levels, one, two, three and four typically found in large documents.
For bulleted lists, decide if the Company prefers dots, dashes, arrows, and the colours to be used for each including any sub lists. What punctuation will they use so it’s always consistent? (Typically, a full sentence bullet uses capitalized first word and normal sentence punctuation, not semi-colons or commas. One-word bullets require no punctuation.)
Tables may be used in some documentation, so formatting for these should also be identified. Will headings be the same as regular document headings, or a unique format? What is the paragraph spacing between rows of information? Some Companies prefer alternating background colours for ease of reading multiple rows in a table. For example, light grey or white.
The graphic artist used by the Company will create the logo in various formats such as JPEG, PNG or BMP and these will be included in the style guide with appropriate sizing identified.
Once the style guide has been approved by management, forward it to all staff and indicate the importance of the document for a professional and consistent Company brand.
Need help building a Style Guide? Newbird Communications can assist with that process.
