In the competitive world of consumer packaged goods (CPG), your product has approximately three seconds to capture a shopper's attention. Within this fleeting moment, typography and visual hierarchy play pivotal roles in determining whether your product stands out or gets lost among countless alternatives on crowded retail shelves.
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Brand Style Guide for CPG Food and Beverage Businesses
Because your brand deserves to make a cohesive first (and second, and hundredth) impression.
Let’s be real—branding isn’t just about looking good anymore. It’s about showing up consistently, no matter where your audience finds you. On Instagram. In their inbox. On the shelf. At a trade show. And if each of those touchpoints feels like it’s coming from a different planet? You’ve got a style problem.
That’s where a brand style guide becomes your secret weapon.
At Eye Candy Design, we work with CPG brands who know that great design is only great if it works across the board. Whether you're a start-up growing fast or an established brand expanding your line-up, here’s how to build a brand style guide that keeps everything aligned—without making things rigid or robotic.
The Core Components of a Brand Style Guide
Let’s start with the basics. Your style guide should house the essential elements of your brand identity—plus direction on how to use them in context.
Logo Guidelines
Your logo needs consistency to build recognition. Your guide should include:
Primary and alternate logo variations (horizontal, stacked, icon-only)
Clearspace and minimum size
Approved usage on light/dark backgrounds
What not to do (distortions, drop shadows, or rogue colors—we see you)
Color Palette
Color is a cornerstone of brand recognition. Your guide should specify:
Primary and secondary brand colors
Accent tones for callouts or seasonal use
HEX, CMYK, RGB, and Pantone values
Color usage ratios (because less is often more)
A good rule of thumb? Think of your palette as a cast of characters. Your main colors are the leads. Accent colors? Supporting roles. And neutrals? The set designers keeping it all grounded.
Typography
Fonts do more than carry words—they carry tone. Your guide should clearly define:
Brand fonts and their hierarchy (headline, subhead, body, captions)
Line height, letter spacing, and formatting standards
Substitutions for web vs. print vs. Google-friendly fonts
Accessibility considerations (because legibility is non-negotiable)
Imagery & Iconography
Visuals make your brand feel alive. This section of the guide should cover:
Preferred photography style (editorial, lifestyle, flat lay, etc.)
Image treatments (filters, color grading, overlays)
Illustration or icon styles (line weight, fill, animation)
Stock image guidelines (what’s okay—and what’s definitely not)
Platform-Specific Style Standards
Your brand doesn’t just live in one place. It lives everywhere. So your style guide should meet your platforms where they are.
Social Media Guidelines
No, a Canva file named “final_final_really_final” doesn’t count.
A great social section should include:
Story/post ratios and layout templates
Highlight icon styles and grid spacing
Image vs. text balance
Tips for accessible design (contrast, font size, alt text)
Brand hashtag strategy and emoji tone, if relevant
Your Instagram should feel like a curated magazine. Your TikTok? An extension of your vibe. Your Pinterest? A visual love letter to your aesthetic.
Website Components
Web is often your first impression. Make it count by setting consistent styles for:
Button colors and hover states
Header and footer formats
Link styles (underline or not? Bold or subtle?)
Blog templates and image treatment
Calls to action and inline graphics
Remember: your website should feel like the digital version of your packaging.
Print Assets
Print is tactile, permanent, and wildly underestimated. Don’t wing it.
Your print section should include:
Business card templates (front/back layout, info placement)
Brochure and sell sheet dimensions and folds
Trade show materials (banners, signage, table skirts)
Label formats and dieline tips
Include links to editable design files or print-ready PDFs when possible to keep things frictionless.
Version Control & Governance
Even the best brand guide is only as good as how it’s managed. A few best practices to keep your style guide useful (and used):
Versioning
Clearly label your guide versions (v1.0, v2.3, etc.)
Track who made updates and when
Archive old versions (but don’t delete—trust us, someone will ask)
Accessibility
Host your guide somewhere accessible to your internal team and external partners (designers, writers, printers, freelancers).
Tools we love:
Dropbox or Google Drive (for easy updates and sharing)
Zoom walkthroughs (for onboarding new team members)
Governance
Designate a brand steward (internal or external) who can answer questions, keep the guide up to date, and make judgment calls when new use cases arise.
Audit & Compliance: Making Sure It’s Working
Once your guide is live, it’s time to treat it like a living document—not a dusty old PDF.
Brand Audit
Every 6–12 months, do a brand audit. Look at:
Social feeds
Product packaging
Sales materials
Email templates
Website components
Are they aligned? Are they on-brand? Are they... kind of all over the place?
Checklists & Scorecards
Create a simple brand scorecard to rate new assets before they go out the door. Ask:
Does it follow our colour and font guidelines?
Is our logo used correctly?
Is the tone aligned with our brand voice?
Does it look like us?
It’s not about nitpicking—it’s about making your brand as strong, memorable, and magnetic as possible.
Wait—What’s the Difference Between a Brand Identity Guide and a Style Guide?
Great question. The two are related, but they’re not the same.
Brand Identity Guide: This is your high-level roadmap. It outlines your brand’s visual and verbal DNA—things like your logo variations, colour palette, typography, tone of voice, and overall vibe. It’s the what and why of your brand.
Brand Style Guide: This is your tactical playbook. It’s about how to bring your brand identity to life across specific platforms. Think: How should our Instagram graphics look? What fonts are okay for web headers vs. printed brochures? What are the do’s and don’ts for email design?
In short: your identity guide sets the rules, and your style guide shows how to play the game (and win).
Final Thoughts: When Everything Clicks, Magic Happens
A strong brand style guide isn’t about limiting creativity—it’s about unlocking it. When everyone knows the rules, they can focus on telling your story in a way that’s aligned, intentional, and beautiful.
You deserve a brand that looks just as good across platforms as it does on your hero product. Whether you're building a guide from scratch or refining an existing one, we're here to help make the process clear, collaborative, and dare we say... fun!
You can check some of the brand style guides we love here!
Looking for a brand style guide that actually gets used?
We design visual systems that bring clarity, consistency, and beauty to every brand touchpoint—from shelf to screen. Let’s build something worth showing off. Get in touch →
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