Brand design system

A brand design system is the set of connected decisions — mark, typography, colour, secondary elements, motion — plus the rules for how they combine. The difference between this and a bundle of files is that the system also answers questions we didn't foresee: what a new product, a new campaign or a new channel looks like. That is why we build it as a series of harmonious elements, not as a string of separate beautiful mock-ups.

The real test comes six months later, when something appears that nobody has drawn: a quote, a job ad, an investor presentation. If the person making it knows what to do without asking, the system works. If they call the designer every time, you have a collection, not a system.

That is why on projects like Arcline Architecture, where the brand has to live on screen and in the physical world at the same time, decisions are made at the level of the system, not of the individual touchpoint.

Related terms: Brand guidelines, Secondary graphic elements, Typography.