Stockholm. To put your company or marketing team in focus and take a clear direction requires creativity, collegial energy and framework for successful work. Today we sit down with Johan Andersson, a Swedish designer with a focus on branding, who shares the basics of succeeding with a brand book.
From Berghs to Eksell
Talking to Johan is always an engaging and immersive experience . The conversations take on different directions and new expressions as well as including music, great podcasts and the golden nuggets of parenthood. Andersson is educated at the talent factory Bergh's School of Communication in Stockholm, but is also influenced by his close work with the design legend Olle Eksell (creator of, among other things, the well-known Ögon Cacao in 1956) and the trust to manage his design legacy. Read more via olleeksell.se and feel free to check out Johan's work via holygrail.se.
- The image of a company is affected by how we communicate with the world around us. A brand book is an important tool in our communication work and it helps us to clearly show what our brand stands for, says Johan Andersson.
The point of a brand book is to clearly present how the brand should look so that it is the same in all situations.
Guidelines that speed up the direction - not limiting it
In today's conversation, we share some tools for you who want to succeed with your new or updated brand book. Johan explains how your brand's guidelines should be e a clear aid to strategic and tactical work.
- The point of a brand book is to clearly present how the brand should look so that it is the same in all situations. By having guidelines in place, employees can check what applies and use the design correctly and make sure everything visually fits in with other materials being created.
What then are the building blocks of a good brand book? Johan explains the importance of the building blocks for the different parts of the book, which is often a guide that is posted as a PDF or used as a tool with all the brand's assets.
- Logotype, typography, colours, image style and graphic elements form the building blocks of the graphic profile. The manual shouldn’t be an obstacle to a flexible design production, but instead it should primarily act as a guide for a rewarding work process.
Good design is not just aesthetics
- it's also good economics.
Good design is not just fun
- it's bloody serious.
Design = Economics, Olle Eksell, 1964
Johan's tips - 5 parts you mustn't miss in a brand book
Logotype – Which versions of the logo are available and what you can and cannot do with it.
Colours – Most brands have one or a couple of colours that belong to their graphic profile. A primary color for headers, logo or buttons on the home page and secondary colors for other purposes.
Fonts – Which fonts to use in texts on the website, in presentations or for printed advertisements.
Tone of voice – How should the company sound? Playful and youthful? Strict and professional? It affects the language in texts and how images are selected.
Example of pictures - What does the company look like? Tone of voice in an image.