Design Standards & Brand Guidelines Template

The Free Brand Guidelines Template Used by Hospitality Brands to Keep Every Touchpoint On-Brand. Yours, no charge.

ABOUT THIS TEMPLATE

Most independent hospitality venues don't have brand guidelines. Their logo lives on a designer's hard drive, the team uses three different fonts, and every menu, sign, and Instagram post looks slightly different. This template fixes that — giving you a complete, fillable brand guidelines document built specifically for hospitality. Use it as your team's single source of truth for how your venue looks, sounds, and feels. It's free because we want it in the hands of every operator who needs it.

What's Inside:

• A complete fillable brand guidelines template (Google Slides, Keynote, and PDF)
• Sections for logo usage, colour, typography, photography, illustration, and tone of voice
• Hospitality-specific design standards covering menus, signage, uniforms, and digital touchpoints
• Real-world examples showing how successful hospitality brands document their identity
• A simple structure your team — and any agency or freelancer you brief — can actually follow

Who This Template Is For:

• Independent restaurant, bar, and pub operators
• Boutique hotel marketers building their first brand book
• Hospitality founders launching new venues
• Marketing managers needing to align teams across multiple sites
• Any operator whose brand consistency is currently held together by hope

WHAT'S IN THE TEMPLATE

SECTION 1: BRAND FOUNDATIONS

• 1. Brand Purpose, Vision & Values
• 2. Brand Personality & Archetype
• 3. Brand Story Summary

SECTION 2: VISUAL IDENTITY

• 4. Logo Usage, Variations & Clear Space
• 5. Colour Palette: Primary, Secondary & Accent
• 6. Typography Hierarchy
• 7. Iconography & Illustration Style

SECTION 3: PHOTOGRAPHY & ART DIRECTION

• 8. Photography Style & Mood
• 9. Subject, Framing & Composition
• 10. Hero, Detail & Lifestyle Shot Examples

SECTION 4: VERBAL IDENTITY

• 11. Tone of Voice Principles
• 12. Vocabulary: Words We Use, Words We Don't
• 13. Tagline & Messaging Pillars

SECTION 5: HOSPITALITY-SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS

• 14. Menus & Print Collateral
• 15. Signage & Wayfinding
• 16. Uniforms & Service Touchpoints
• 17. Website & Digital Standards
• 18. Social Media Visual Standards

SECTION 6: GOVERNANCE

• 19. Who Owns the Brand
• 20. How to Brief Designers, Agencies & Freelancers
• 21. Approval & Sign-Off Process

WANT TO GO DEEPER?

This template gives you the structure. If you want the strategic thinking that goes into each section — purpose, positioning, archetype, tone of voice, naming, messaging architecture — see Hospitality Brand Strategy Blueprint.

FORMAT: Instant free download. Editable Google Slides and Keynote templates plus a printable PDF reference.