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Why is Brand Guardianship so Important

1st August 2020
Reading time 2 min
Why is Brand Guardianship so Important

Brands invested countless hours and huge amounts of money building their brand. Therefore they must protect it as they would any asset that was extremely valuable. Brand guardianship is key to ensuring the brand remains valuable and their investment is not lost. Years of building a brand can be squandered if the use of the brand elements is not taken seriously. To do this it is crucial to be consistent with communicating the values the brand holds and what the brand stands for. An inconsistent message will make it hard for the consumer to identify with the brand properly.

”Years of building a brand can be squandered if the use of the brand elements is not taken seriously.”

Consistency is key to brand guardianship and retaining a high brand value. With this said, consistency doesn’t mean using the exact same visuals globally. It instead implies that the message is received in the same way by consumers around the world. This may mean adjusting the language and visuals according to the market it is to be displayed in.

Brands and their image are more widespread than ever and keeping a close eye on how your brand is being shown. The brand guardian is the person whose responsibility it is to maintain a consistent voice for the brand. This includes both internal and external communication. Whether they sit in-house or as part of an agency they must be extremely knowledgeable about the brand in order to spot the slightest misuse of any brand element. The brand guardian is also responsible for ensuring the brand guidelines are regularly reviewed and that brand assets are regularly audited. The brand guidelines is a document stipulating the exact uses for all brand elements known as the corporate identity and will often show good and bad use cases. This should be in the hands of all employees responsible for brand communication whether it be the CEO, press relations officer, salespeople, social media and content managers and more this should be consulted before use of any brand assets.

Why is it important:

Maintain brand value Big brands thrive on consistency. Keeping tight control over the visuals of your brand and how they are used will maintain a consistent message to your customers. The different elements of your brand are what's known as the corporate identity. This consists of the brand name, logo, font, colours, shapes, graphics and more.

Save time & money By using consistent brand elements and distributing them properly throughout your markets you save both time and money by not having to recreate elements in each market. A digital content management system can assist in easy delivery of all assets throughout all markets.The misuse of brand elements can be devastatingly expensive. These elements can be printed and distributed in the millions and it is therefore crucial to check these according to the brand guidelines before any investment into such assets are made.

Universal application The applications for which a brands logo may appear are vast and ever increasing. Therefore it is very important to ensure that your brand is understood consistently not only geographically but of all media types. Brand elements should match the Corporate Identity on all platforms whether it be an Instagram story or a TV spot.

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