# Brand identity Human Guide

## What This Is For
Provides senior-level guidance for brand identity strategist and creative director. It gives the agent a clearer input/output frame for brand and messaging: what context to ask for, what decisions to make, and what usable artifact to return.

Use this as a human-readable version of the Brand identity agent skill. It is meant for marketers, operators, founders, and other non-coders who want the workflow without reading agent-specific implementation instructions.

## When To Use This
- Use this when you need a repeatable process for brand identity.
- Use this when the task needs judgment, examples, constraints, or a clear output format rather than a one-off prompt.
- Use this when you want to hand an AI assistant enough context to produce a usable marketing artifact.

## When Not To Use This
- Do not use this when you only need a quick factual answer.
- Do not use this when the work depends on private data you cannot share with the assistant.
- Do not use this as a replacement for legal, compliance, financial, or medical review.

## What You Need Before Starting
- The goal or business outcome you want.
- The audience, customer segment, or market context.
- Any source material the assistant should respect, such as notes, briefs, examples, URLs, or brand guidance.
- Constraints such as tone, length, channel, deadline, region, or approval requirements.
- A clear definition of what a good final answer should look like.

## Step-By-Step Workflow
1. State the job clearly: "Use the Brand identity guide to help me with..."
2. Add context: audience, goal, offer, channel, source material, and constraints.
3. Ask the assistant to identify missing inputs before producing the final output.
4. Have the assistant follow the skill-specific guidance below.
5. Review the result against the final checklist and ask for revisions where needed.

## Skill-Specific Guidance
- **Brand name and category** — what is it, what does it do?
- **Brand personality** — 3–5 words that describe the brand's character
- **Audience** — who are they? What aesthetic speaks to them?
- **Positioning** — premium, accessible, niche, mass?
- **Tone** — formal or casual? Playful or serious?
- **References** — any brands, logos, or visual styles they admire?
- **Avoid** — anything that must not appear in the identity?
- **Use case** — where will the identity live? (digital, print, packaging, signage)
- 2 sentences on what this means in practice for this brand's visual decisions
- Social media profiles and posts
- Write for a designer who hasn't seen the brand yet
- Be specific — "clean and modern" means nothing. "Helvetica-weight, tight kerning, no decorative elements" means something

## Decision Points And Nuance
The original skill emphasizes: Before You Start, Information to Gather, Output: Visual Identity Brief, 01 — IDENTITY STRATEGY STATEMENT, 02 — LOGO DIRECTION, 03 — COLOR PALETTE, 04 — TYPOGRAPHY, 05 — IMAGERY & PHOTOGRAPHY STYLE, 06 — ICONOGRAPHY & ILLUSTRATION, 07 — DESIGN PRINCIPLES.

Use these questions to steer the work:
- What is the intended audience or buyer?
- What source material must be preserved?
- What should the assistant optimize for: clarity, persuasion, accuracy, speed, creativity, or conversion?
- What examples represent the desired quality bar?
- What should the assistant avoid?

## Common Mistakes
- **Avoid** — anything that must not appear in the identity?
- **What to avoid** — specific styles, shapes, or clichés this brand should not use
- **Usage rules** — primary use cases and any combinations to avoid
- **Avoid** — any typeface categories or styles that conflict with the brand
- **What to avoid** — stock photo clichés, over-produced aesthetics, styles that feel off-brand

## Copy-And-Paste Prompt
```text
Use the Brand identity human guide.

My goal:
[Describe the business outcome]

Audience:
[Describe who this is for]

Context and source material:
[Paste notes, examples, links, or existing copy]

Constraints:
[Tone, length, channel, timeline, must-include items, must-avoid items]

Before producing the final output, ask me for any missing information that would materially improve the result.
```

## Final Checklist
- [ ] The output matches the original goal.
- [ ] The audience and context are reflected in the answer.
- [ ] Important constraints and source material were preserved.
- [ ] The assistant made the relevant decisions explicit.
- [ ] The final artifact is ready to use, review, or hand to the next person.

## Source
This guide was generated from the arnabbagxd/brand-building-skills skill entry for `brand-identity`.

## Source Skill Notes
These notes preserve the nuance from the original skill. Use them as supporting reference when the workflow above feels too generic.

# Brand Identity

You are a senior brand identity strategist and creative director. Your job is to translate brand strategy into a clear, actionable visual identity brief that a designer can execute from.

## Before You Start

Check if `.agents/brand-context.md` exists. If it does, read it before asking questions. Use that context and only ask for information not already covered.

---

## Information to Gather

If brand context is missing, ask:

1. **Brand name and category** — what is it, what does it do?
2. **Brand personality** — 3–5 words that describe the brand's character
3. **Audience** — who are they? What aesthetic speaks to them?
4. **Positioning** — premium, accessible, niche, mass?
5. **Tone** — formal or casual? Playful or serious?
6. **References** — any brands, logos, or visual styles they admire?
7. **Avoid** — anything that must not appear in the identity?
8. **Use case** — where will the identity live? (digital, print, packaging, signage)

---

## Output: Visual Identity Brief

Generate the brief in this order:

---

### 01 — IDENTITY STRATEGY STATEMENT

One paragraph (3–4 sentences) that translates the brand's positioning and personality into a design intention. This is the "why" behind every visual decision that follows. Write it like a creative director briefing a design team — confident, not vague.

---

### 02 — LOGO DIRECTION

**Primary direction** — describe the style and approach (wordmark, lettermark, symbol + wordmark, etc.)

**Character** — what feeling should the mark convey?

**Style notes** — geometric or organic? Hand-drawn or constructed? Minimal or expressive?

**What to avoid** — specific styles, shapes, or clichés this brand should not use

**3 Logo References** — describe 3 real logos (by name) that share qualities the brand should draw from, and explain which specific quality to borrow from each

---

### 03 — COLOR PALETTE

**Primary color** — name, hex code (suggest one), and rationale. What does this color say about the brand?

**Secondary colors** — 2–3 complementary colors with hex codes and roles (accent, background, text)

**Color personality** — what emotional territory does this palette occupy?

**Usage rules** — primary use cases and any combinations to avoid

**Palette type** — monochromatic, analogous, complementary, triadic?

---

### 04 — TYPOGRAPHY

**Primary typeface** — suggest a specific free or paid font. Describe its character.

**Secondary typeface** — pairing recommendation with rationale

**Type personality** — what does this typographic system say about the brand?

**Usage hierarchy** — Headlines / Subheads / Body / Labels

**Avoid** — any typeface categories or styles that conflict with the brand

---

### 05 — IMAGERY & PHOTOGRAPHY STYLE