Let’s outline why brand guidelines are only useful if people use them.
- The real point of brand guidelines.
- Why most brand guidelines get ignored.
- Too much detail, too soon.
- Built for designers, not for teams.
- No training, no adoption.
- What good guidelines look like.
- Closing thoughts.
The real point of brand guidelines.
Brand guidelines are supposed to bring consistency. They help people use the brand in a way that feels joined-up, clear and confident. But in too many companies, they sit in a PDF that no one opens.
“Brand guidelines don’t fail because people don’t care – they fail because they don’t help.”
If your brand guidelines aren’t being used, they’re not doing their job. Consistency becomes guesswork. And the value of the brand starts to erode; bit by bit, email signature by email signature.
Why most brand guidelines get ignored.
It’s not because people don’t care. It’s because the guidelines don’t help.
Most brand guidelines are built to impress, not to be used. They focus on the rules without explaining the reasons. Or they assume too much design knowledge from the people they are supposed to follow.
When people don’t understand why something matters, they cut corners. When they don’t know how to use a resource, they just don’t.
Too much detail, too soon.
We’ve seen brand guidelines that start with brand architecture, visual identity systems and personality matrices before they even show the logo. Pages of tone-of-voice theory. Graphs. Models. Psychology.
And then nothing on how to write a job ad. Or format a LinkedIn banner. Or how the tone shifts between a brochure and a customer email.
If the people using your brand guidelines can’t find what they need in the first few minutes, they’ll stop looking.
“If your guidelines require a design degree to use, they won’t get used.”
Built for designers, not for teams.
Design teams need detailed specifications. But they’re not the only audience.
Marketing managers, salespeople, operations leads, they all play a part in shaping how the brand shows up. They need simple guidance, clear examples and easy-to-use templates. Not hex codes, kerning rules and grids.
Too many guidelines assume everyone has a design degree. They don’t. And they shouldn’t need one.
No training, no adoption.
You wouldn’t expect someone to use a new piece of software with no demo or support. Yet we regularly see rebrands launched with a single internal email and a link to a SharePoint folder.
Brand guidelines only work when people are shown how to use them and why they matter.
“No training. No adoption. No consistency.”
Training matters. Champions matter. Support and reminders matter. Internal comms is part of branding, not an afterthought.
What good guidelines look like.
The best brand guidelines are built around use, not theory.
They’re modular, so people can find what they need quickly. They give examples for real-world tasks. They provide assets, not just instructions. And they explain the why behind every rule, because understanding builds buy-in.
They’re also maintained. Not just launched and forgotten. A living brand needs living documents.
“A PDF is not a brand system. It’s a starting point.”
We’ve helped organisations roll out brand systems that actually get used, because they’re shaped around the people doing the work. The language is clear. The tools are accessible. And the whole thing is driven by one goal: to make the brand easier to apply, not harder.
Closing thoughts.
If your brand guidelines are being ignored, don’t blame the users. Ask what the guidelines are doing, or not doing, to help them.
Don’t assume a single PDF is enough. Don’t mistake theory for clarity. And don’t treat internal teams as an afterthought in your brand rollout.
A brand only works when everyone uses it well. And for that to happen, the tools have to work too.
