Style guide (CI guide)
A style guide or CI guide is the rulebook of a corporate design: it defines how logo, colours, typefaces, imagery and design elements are used.
Without a style guide, every supplier designs at their own discretion — print shop, signage maker, social media team and web agency. With a style guide, a consistent picture emerges even when many hands are involved.
A good style guide is not a thick manual but a practical tool with examples: correct and incorrect applications, templates and downloadable files.
For mySmartGarten and Wohntraum, for example, Circle created corporate designs with CI guides — from logo variants to the app icon and a colour system.
What to look out for
- Include logo variants with clear space and minimum sizes.
- Specify colour values for print and screen.
- Define typefaces and their use.
- Show examples of typical applications — business card, social post, sign.
- Provide the style guide with files centrally to everyone involved.
Common mistakes
- The style guide exists but suppliers never receive it.
- Only rules, no examples — implementation remains a matter of interpretation.
- The style guide is not updated when new media are added.
Frequently asked questions
Logo variants with clear space, colour values for print and screen, typefaces, imagery, design elements and application examples — plus the matching files.
Yes, in compact form: even a few pages prevent business card, website and vehicle from looking different.