To start I would like to warn you this isn’t a blog about how to; i am not under the assumption that after doing one set of brand guidelines, that I am now a master in everything brand-related. This blog is simply about how I tackled a rebrand and my learnings so far…
The brief was a rebrand and launch for a yoga company in Melbourne Australia, named Slowlane Yoga. It’s not every day you get to work with a client from the opposite side of the globe, but it was a fun experience and an interesting one, trying to make sure I don’t create something which in their words is ‘daggy’??!!
Getting started with branding
As this was one my first brand guidelines, I started by researching companies that have made impressive working guidelines which would help me understand what I may need to think about and elements I will need to include for my own.
One thing I tried not to jump straight into was designing hundreds of logo concepts, but instead figuring out what kind of brand this was and the story behind them. It would be easy to create a generic yoga logo, however I wanted to make sure it had meaning behind it and was relatable to them.
Making the brand relevant
What did make things slightly easier was it wasn’t a brand that needed consideration for everything. It’s a smaller yoga company whose primary focus is to stand out and feel unique with something that was ownable to them.
That said, there was still so much to think about. A logo that can be useable across all platforms and media, a tone of voice which expresses the type of people they are, a colour scheme that can carry across everything and so much more.
The Brand is only the Beginning
I found my overall experience on this brief was a really enjoyable and beneficial one. I believe we have created something new that can hopefully help Slowlane grow into an exciting brand. It has given me a good understanding of what it takes to create a brand’s guideline and hopefully help me be prepared for similar projects in the future.
- Understand the brand and its story before creating anything. Try not to jump straight into concepts
- Good communication with the client helps things go a lot smoother and easier to
create something that both parties are happy with
- Be aware of how the brand is being used and where:
- Logo adaptations (Sizes and media)
- Fonts that can work for digital and print
- Typefaces that are accessible for the client to use
- Think ahead. Try to create a brand that will be able to adapt and keep up with trends for the future. Easier said than done… Not everyone will like what you end up with