Corporate Identity Brief Template and Delivery Checklist

Revision rounds stretch in identity projects usually because of an incomplete brief, not the design. Work that starts with "make it modern and trustworthy" is still arguing about what isn't wanted by the third round.

Below are two lists: the brief to fill in before starting, and what to check at delivery.

Brief — to complete before starting

About the brand

• The brand name and what it stands for, if anything
• What you do — in one sentence, without listing product features
• Who you sell to: sector, scale, the person who decides
• Why customers choose you today — a known reason, not a guess
• What you don't do

Current state

• Existing logo and materials, if any
• What you think has aged — concretely
• What you think should be kept
• What customers recognise you by: a colour, a shape, only the name

That last item is the most critical. Discarding the element that carries recognition is the most common decision that makes identity work fail.

Competitors and position

• Three competitors and their addresses
• Where you differ from them — at the level that decides, not feature level
• Three brands you admire and why (they needn't be from your sector)
• One brand you definitely don't want to resemble, and why

Without the "why", references don't help: "I like that brand" conveys a feeling rather than a form.

Scope

• How many logo variants are needed
• Which applications: cards, stationery, decks, packaging, signage, vehicles, digital
• How many languages
• Is a guideline wanted
• Will source files be delivered

Process

• Who approves — one person or a committee
• How many revision rounds are expected
• Is there a fixed date, and what is it tied to (a fair, a launch, a print run)

Delivery checklist

When the work is done, check whether you hold these.

Logo

• [ ] Primary use
• [ ] Horizontal and vertical lockups
• [ ] Single colour (black and white)
• [ ] Reversed use (dark ground)
• [ ] Simplified version for small scale
• [ ] Icon/mark form
• [ ] Clear space and minimum size definitions

Colour

• [ ] Primary and secondary colours
• [ ] Screen and print equivalents
• [ ] Contrast rule: which colour on which ground

Typography

• [ ] Display and body typefaces
• [ ] The scale
• [ ] Licence status — the most skipped item; an unlicensed typeface makes the identity unusable

Application

• [ ] Every application named in the brief
• [ ] Visual language direction, with examples

Documents and files

• [ ] Brand guideline: correct and incorrect usage
• [ ] Source files
• [ ] Ready-to-use formats

Two questions

"Can my team make the right call from this guideline without the agency?" If no, the guideline is incomplete.

"Can I pick these files back up a year from now?" If no, the source file organisation is incomplete.

I've written the scope of identity work at Creative House on the corporate identity page. The difference between logo, brand identity and corporate identity is in a separate guide.