The 7 parts of a brand strategy, what to write in each, and an example of each one filled in. The examples come from AXEL and Meadow: example brands we built on Playbook, not clients, read live from their own brand books.
Copy these headings into your own document, in this order. Purpose comes first because everything else is checked against it; essence and tagline come last because they are the strategy compressed, and you cannot compress what is not written yet.
What to write here. Why the brand exists beyond selling, and what it does every day to get there. One sentence each. If it takes a paragraph, it has not been decided yet.
In the example books, this sits in the chapter called Brand foundation.
What to write here. The one person the brand is built for, described by what they do and what annoys them, then the wider group around them. An age bracket on its own is not an audience.
In the example books, this sits in the chapter called Audience.
What to write here. What the category gets wrong, and where the brand stands instead. Positioning only means something against the alternatives a customer would otherwise choose, so name them.
In the example books, this sits in the chapter called Brand foundation.
What to write here. What a customer can hold the brand to, followed by the facts that make it believable. A proof point is something you could show a sceptic: a material, a method, a place.
In the example books, this sits in the chapter called Brand foundation.
What to write here. Where the brand sits between pairs of opposites: serious or playful, authority or friend. Pick a side for each. “A bit of both” gives the writer nothing to work with.
The example books do not print this as its own chapter. It is set during strategy and shapes the voice.
What to write here. Tone rules short enough to test a sentence against, and the words the brand never uses. Personality says who the brand is; voice says how that sounds on a label.
In the example books, this sits in the chapter called Tone & impact.
What to write here. The whole strategy, compressed: an essence for the team and a tagline for the outside world. Write these last, once everything above is settled.
In the example books, this sits in the chapter called Brand foundation.
A strategy is the first chapter of a brand book, not the whole of it. The brand guidelines template covers logo, colour, type and imagery, and brand book examples shows complete books you can open page by page.
Paste your website and see what your brand already says about itself.
Rather talk first? Thirty minutes on the brand you have or the one you are starting.