Travel and lifestyle blog Brand Book

BRAND STANDARDS

CONTENTS This brand standards document explores the message, visuals, and expression of the Vibrant Nation brand.

1. Brand Message 2. Design & Visuals 3. Words & Content 4. Live Your Brand

BRAND GUIDELINES SHE’S GOING

MOODBOARD

The moldboard was curated to express the “mood” of the brand and to inspire the visual decisions. The bright flowers are like ones that you’d bring to cheer up a friend. The kitchen is where some of our deepest conversations happen with those closest to us. I also featured women who fit your target market - not just by age, but with vibrant personalities and confidence.

brand message

POSITIONCORE IDEA She’s Going is a travel & lifestyle blog that focuses on the idea of personal growth in your 20s.

OUR GOAL We want to grow an audience of women who we inspire to take risks, travel, step outside their comfort zone, and grow.

HOW WE ARE DIFFERENT Instead of focusing only on the superficial (travel destinations, fashion, etc.) we include a twist of personal development and real life into our message.

WHAT WE DELIVER The blog is going to publish at least a post of week with stories, photos, and lessons learned from travel and life.

01


Brand Message

PERSONALITY

HERO PERSONALITY ARCHETYPE

We want to motivate other women like us to step outside of their comfort zones and to grow personally & professionally. We’ll do this by sharing our own journey and experiences.

We are the driven and motivated friend who you look up to, are inspired by, and want to be more like.

When they encounter our brand, our audience FEELS: Ambitious, motivated, inspired, excited, and challenged.

We are: • Real & authentic • Direct • Living by example • Encouraging • On our own journey • Inspiring to others • Confident • Action-takers

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Brand Message

POINT OF VIEW

TRAVEL = GROWTH Every time that we travel, we discover parts of ourselves that we didn’t see before. Being exposed to different cultures, locations and simply getting out of the routine of life is key to growing yourself.

WE WON’T APOLOGIZE FOR OUR HIGH EXPECTATIONS We expect more for ourselves and we aren’t afraid to say that. If you are too afraid or too comfortable where you are at to make any changes, that’s OK - but you’re not our kind of people.

YOU NEED TO TAKE ACTION There’s always the job, money issues, and a busy schedule that can stop you from traveling or otherwise taking the time to invest in yourself. You have to find a way to just do it. Make time. Set aside money. You are too important not to.

01


Brand Message

We’re on a journey to becoming our best selves.

manifesto

design & visuals

LOGO

02

The logo is in motion, like you are. “She’s” is written in a strong and bold font, which communicates your ‘Hero’ archetype. The word “going” looks like it is in motion itself, which speaks to your travels and personal growth.

The J&S sub mark can be used as a watermark on photos or as a signature at the end of posts.


Visual Identity

PRIMARY COLORS

02

The dark grey-purple is a strong color, as is the blue. These two colors help communicate your confidence & drive.

The gold adds a sense of fun, luxury, and high standards. It should be used as an accent.

#3e214d

20% 40% 60% 80%

#005583 Gold Foil

20% 60% 20% 60%


Visual Identity

SECONDARY COLORS

02

The strong & saturated colors need to be balanced out with neutrals, so we will incorporate a cool palette of black, grey, and white as background and font colors.

#000000 #585858 #ffffff


Visual Identity

PATTERNS

02

The patterns chosen here won’t be used often, but will occasionally be used as backgrounds for graphics like social media posts. They incorporate the neutral black with your gold accent.


Visual Identity

TYPOGRAPHY

HEADLINES: RALEWAY BOLD CAPS

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 1234567890 !@#$%^&*()

02

accent: harmonie script (lower case) abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 1234567890 !@#$%^&*()

Body: Raleway Regular

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 1234567890 !@#$%^&*()

We carry the “bold, confident, driven” personality into your font choices. Raleway is used in both the headlines and the body. A script font will be used sparingly as an accent to add some variety.

Headline: #492f3e Body: #585858 Accent: #005583


Visual Identity

FONTS IN ACTION

HEADLINE LEVEL 1

This is a description paragraph. It explains the purpose of the page and describes the title to the left.

1. Example 2. Example 3. Example 4. Example

“This is a quote from a very impressive person.”

-IMPORTANT PERSON

HEADLINE LEVEL 2

This is a description paragraph. It explains the purpose of the page and describes the title to the left. This is a description paragraph. It explains the purpose of the page and describes the title to the left.

• Example • Example • Example

HEADLINE LEVEL 3

02


Visual Identity

image style

IMAGE DO’S

02

Visual Identity

To keep the brand consistent and authentic, pick images like these.

Notice that a lot of these images fall in the “cool” color scheme: blues, purples, greens, and whites. Stick to these colors as much as possible to create a consistent visual identity.


Gorgeous images of travel destinations

Photos from behind, looking over a gorgeous view

Overhead, “lay flat” images of outfits, objects, souvenirs

Actual photos of the two of you traveling & living!

IMAGE DON’TS

02

Visual Identity

To keep the brand consistent and authentic, avoid images like these.


Funky photo filters Photos that feature families - not your target market.

Fake, bad stock images Photos that are super grainy/fuzzy because of low light, movement, or bad focus

words & content

TAGLINE T H E J O U R N E Y T O B E C O M I N G O U R B E S T S E LV E S

03


Brand Communication

The tagline gives us context about the topics you talk about, and makes clear that you are not “just” a travel or lifestyle blog.

TONE OF VOICE

03

Brand Communication

Your brand needs to sound consistent. Your brand occupies the position of the “motivator” - that’s how you should sound.


Content and communication from She’s Going should be inspiring, helpful, and specific. Your people need to know that their wildest dreams and goals aren’t so weird - there are others out there who think big like they do.

Examples should include stories about how you overcame challenges to experience the things that you have. You should also share your lessons learned along the way.

You’ll sound: • Confident but not elitist • Real but not casual • Inspiring but not over-the-top • Honest

STORIESLOW TO HIGH On your “about” page, tell both of your stories about the journey you’ve taken so far. Include low points and the challenges you’ve overcome to get this far. Share your goals for the future.

WHY STORY Tell a story about why you are so motivated to share your life & travels so openly. Get your audience “on board” the dream and goal you have for this brand.

HUMAN INTEREST Share stories about real-life encounters while traveling, living in NYC, and in other locations. Let your readers get to know you and don’t be afraid to state a strong opinion. Your ideal audience will love you for it.

03


Brand Communication

live your brand

ACTION STEPS

LAUNCH THE WEBSITE I’ll be helping you by designing the homepage, but you’ll need to get the rest of the site ready for the January launch by writing your about page, pre-writing posts to launch with, and uploading those posts with images.

NETWORK WITH OTHER BLOGGERS Reach out to other bloggers who are in the travel, lifestyle, or personal development spaces. Build a relationship with them. You won’t ask for anything up front — you just need to start getting on their radar for later (perhaps as soon as your launch.)

START BUILDING SOCIAL NOW Secure & set up social media accounts on Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter and start building an audience on those platforms as soon as possible.

CREATE CONTENT Your blog articles are going to be the lifeblood of your brand, so start creating as much content as possible now.

PLAN THE LAUNCH Make a list of all of the people you’ll be telling about the site when it launches. Decide if you’ll have an in-person event to celebrate. You’ll want to get as many people ‘hooked’ on your content as soon as possible so you have an audience who is reading and sharing your work.

04


Live Your Brand

any questions?Contact me:

[email protected]

Brand Strategy & Design by Kaye Putnam

mailto:[email protected]

Marketing

Travel and lifestyle blog Brand Book