Marketing

Aug 1, 2024

When I get on a discovery call and we start talking about brand strategies, one of the most-asked questions is “what does a brand strategy look like?”

Which makes a lot of sense.

Frankly, the term ‘brand strategy’ is too often used as a kind of umbrella term for any documents or resources talking about your brand.

So before I answer your question, here are the basics on brand resource terms.

(Also, if you already have a brand strategy but want to utilize it better, read my blog on the 4-step brand positioning framework!)

The Brand Strategy Basics

What IS a Brand?

Your ‘brand’ is how you differentiate your business from other companies. It consists of your unique message, services, voice, approach, values, audience, and visuals (colors, fonts, images, logos, icons).

Think of a clean, simple, esthetic brand of computers. Did you think of Apple? I didn’t have to describe much more than that for you to guess correctly. That is the power of branding.

Brand Style Guide

A ‘brand style guide’ (or brand guidelines) is a document, typically a PDF deck, that outlines the visual elements of your brand.

Typically, a brand style guide will include:

Your logos and logo variations
How to properly use the logos in marketing
Brand colors and color palettes
Brand fonts, sizes, and font alternates
Brand imagery or accepted image examples
Specific icons or graphics for your brand
Examples of branding on merchandise or business cards

Sometimes your brand style guide will also include things like your target audience, mission statement, core values, etc.

Brand Strategy

Your brand strategy is a document that helps you…

Clarify your brand (for team members, clients, and partners)
Position your business uniquely in your target market
Connect with the right people for your brand
Show up consistently across your communications and marketing

Simply put, it’s the resource that outlines EVERYTHING about your brand, from your mission to your taglines to your target audience.

What a Brand Strategy Looks Like

I’ve seen brand strategies across the board. Sometimes they are a beautiful, designed PDF deck and sometimes they are a simple Google Doc.

Don’t get caught up in aesthetics when it comes to a useful, well-crafted brand strategy. The design of this document does not equal its effectiveness.

Instead, we want a brand strategy that is STRATEGIC, easy to use, and easy to update.

Strategic

Your brand strategy should look like… A strategy. You’ll want to start with audience research, competitor analysis, and deep understanding of your business goals.

This is a resource that will help you position and grow your business, not just a simple document to check off a box.

Easy to use

A brand strategy should be easy to understand and apply. I’ve had clients say they use their strategy as a guiding light in their company marketing, decision-making, sales, and business development. You don’t want a hard-to-decipher strategy.

A tool you can update

I’ve seen businesses invest huge money into a brand strategy and then as soon as one thing changes in their brand, they have to re-engage with the same agency or freelancer to make small updates.

Your brand strategy should have a saved PDF copy for daily reference and a copy that can be easily edited as needed in quarterly meetings or after annual reviews.

Here are some examples of what a brand strategy looks like:

CANVA PDF DECK: This is an example of a pre-built deck template from Canva. These are great for customizing for your brand and easy to edit. You will need to add extra sections as they don’t include all of the brand strategy pages I’d recommend.

CUSTOM PDF DECK: If you work with a brand strategist, you may get a designed deck similar to the above that you can reference and use in your business. Keep in mind that it is helpful to get one PDF version and one edit-able version for long-term use.

GOOGLE DOC: This is an example of a brand strategy in a Google Doc. This style of strategy is super helpful if you reference your brand info often. They are easy to edit when needed, add sections, and share with your team.

As you can see from the above two examples, it’s less about how your brand strategy looks and more about how strategic and useful it is for your business.

What I Include In My Brand Strategies

Ending this blog post about what a brand strategy looks like with the best part! Here is a list of SOME of what I include brand strategy documents I create for clients.