Why is a corporate identity guideline so important? There are obvious and less obvious answers.

The answers assume that your brand DNA and brand strategy is included in the corporate identity.

The obvious answer is consistency. In time, the market experiences the essence of your brand.

But the less obvious reasons are time and money.

Time.

Without a clear brand DNA guideline and corporate identity document, the parties signing off the creative agency’s work may indulge in personal preferences. The corporate identity and brand DNA documents are not discussion guides but definitive. Being clear on this saves a lot of time as subjectivity is removed from the conversation.

Money.

If the client disregards the corporate identity and brand DNA documents, it results in unnecessary reverts which eats into the budget. The creative agency may not hit the brief on the first pass, but once they’ve regrouped, they should get it on the second run. Reverts are normally built into pricing but the project can grow a messy life of its own without the framework of a corporate identity document.

So yes, the corporate identity and brand DNA document is essential to manage consistency, but it also saves heaps of time and money.

Gary Hendrickse
CEO Sherpa
gary@sherpa.co.za
sherpa.co.za

Sherpa is a brand strategy, graphic design, and digital marketing company. Established in 2006, Sherpa has served clients throughout South Africa, Namibia, South Sudan, DRC, Mozambique, UK, USA, and Australia. Industries worked include financial services, healthcare, consulting, pharmaceutical, logistics, accounting, legal, technology, commercial and retail property, and local government.