Brand guidelines and project management: how to run a branding project
Brand guidelines are built like any other project: deliverables, deadlines, several people signing off. Here is how to run it without chaos, using the FluidOps brand manual as an example.
A branding project is a real project
Precise deliverables
Logo and variants, palette, typography, tone of voice, templates: each piece is delivered, reviewed and corrected.
Several decision-makers
Leadership, marketing, partners: without clarity on who decides what, feedback contradicts itself and versions pile up.
Deadlines that chain together
An identity comes before the website, which comes before the campaign. A delay on the brand pushes everything back.
What good brand guidelines contain
- The mission and principles of the brand (at FluidOps: Clarity, Autonomy, Trust)
- Tone of voice: what we say, what we avoid, with examples
- The logo: versions, clear space, uses to avoid
- Colors, with their accessibility contrast checked
- Typography: fonts, sizes, hierarchy
- Templates and downloadable resources
A concrete example
The FluidOps brand manual is public: logo, palette, contrast, tone and a downloadable kit.
Five steps to run the project
- 1
Scope
To doWrite in one sentence why the brand exists, for whom, and what must change. List every deliverable.
What it changesEveryone aims at the same thing before anything is drawn.
- 2
Explore
To doGather references, competitors and keywords. Propose two or three directions, not ten.
What it changesComparable options, easier to decide between.
- 3
Build
To doDesign the logo, set the palette while checking contrast, choose the fonts, write the tone of voice.
What it changesA coherent system instead of a collection of files.
- 4
Approve
To doSet review dates and name who decides. Keep a single up-to-date version.
What it changesNo more “logo_v7_final_final.png”.
- 5
Roll out
To doPublish the manual, deliver the kit (logos, colors, fonts) and explain the rules to the teams.
What it changesThe brand stays the same everywhere, even without you.
Which tool for which step
Kanban
A board to follow each deliverable: to do, in progress, in review, done, blocked.
Gantt
A timeline to place the approvals and see at once what a delay pushes back.
Scrum
Short sprints to deliver the variants (social, print, web) in small batches.
Brand guidelines: the questions we get
What are brand guidelines?
A document that sets how a brand expresses itself: logo, colors, typography, tone of voice and usage. It is the shared reference for everyone who makes the brand live.
Why manage a branding project like a project?
Because it has deliverables, deadlines, several people signing off and several versions. Without tracking, delays and contradictions set in.
How long should I plan for?
It depends on the scale of the brand. What matters most is setting the approval dates at the scoping stage.
Which tool should I use to track the project?
A Kanban board is enough to start. Add a Gantt as soon as approvals depend on one another. FluidOps combines both, free to start.
A brand project to run?
Try FluidOps for free to track your deliverables, or write to contact@fluidops.app to talk it through.