A brand refresh should start with a reason. Perhaps the business has changed, the material is inconsistent, or the current identity is difficult to use. Before commissioning another logo, gather what you already have and work out which problem needs solving. There may be useful recognition worth keeping.
Find the useful parts before changing them.
Look at the logo, colours, photography, documents and language customers already encounter. Which parts belong to the business? Which are practical to reproduce? Where does the presentation contradict the quality or nature of the work? Your own familiarity with an identity is a different question from whether customers recognise it.
Professor Jenni Romaniuk argues for protecting usable brand assets and requiring evidence before replacing them. That is a useful challenge to a redesign brief. It does not mean every old choice must stay.
Reading behind this section: Professor Jenni Romaniuk, Ehrenberg-Bass Institute
Agree the decisions that sit behind the design.
Write down who the business helps, what it offers and the evidence behind its strengths. Keep the description specific enough to guide a service page or capability statement. A list of words such as professional, innovative and trusted leaves most of the decisions unresolved.
Then give the visual choices clear jobs: which logo version to use, how headings and body text work together, where colour provides emphasis, and what makes a suitable image. Include examples people can follow.
Test the foundation on everyday material.
Apply it to something the business actually needs: a mobile service page, an editable proposal or a short project sheet. A direction that only works on a presentation board may need more thought before it becomes an everyday tool.
The pieces should feel related while serving their own purpose. A quote needs clear scope and next steps. A website needs navigation and readable layouts. Consistency comes from deliberate shared choices, with enough flexibility for the information each piece carries.
Check colour and type on the actual asset. W3C's contrast guidance provides a useful reference for readable web text; a palette on a brand board does not establish that every use of it will be accessible.
Reading behind this section: W3C Web Accessibility Initiative
Leave a usable source for the next update.
Keep approved artwork, font and image permissions, colour details, example layouts and voice guidance together. Identify the editable masters and the files intended for sending or printing. Make the current version easy to find.
Give someone responsibility for changes. If the service offer or identity changes, update the agreed source before the next supplier produces another variation. The useful deliverable is a set of decisions the business can keep applying, with a clear place to resolve questions.
Put it to use
A useful check for your business.
- What problem would a change solve?
- What should customers still recognise?
- Can someone use the guidance on a real page or document?
- Who maintains the approved source files?
The thinking behind this guide
Sources & further reading.
Our practical interpretation, with the references below for the specific principles and further detail.
- The Four Commandments: future proofing a brand's identity
The case for preserving usable identity assets and requiring a considered reason to change them. This is guidance from the researcher, rather than evidence that a particular business has measured brand recognition.
- Understanding Contrast (Minimum)
Contrast criteria for web text and its background; this reference is not an audit or compliance claim for a particular brand asset.
