Design Systems vs Brand Guidelines: What Are They and Which One Should I Use?

When it comes to building a consistent brand, especially in the digital space, two terms often pop up: Design Systems and Brand Guidelines.

They sound similar, and there's a fair bit of confusion out there on the internet. But they often play different roles.

Let's break down what each one is and when you might want to use them.

What Are Brand Guidelines?

Brand Guidelines are essentially the rulebook for your brand. You might have heard them called other names like Brand Standards, Brand Books, or Styleguides. These documents lay out the basics of how your brand should look and feel, no matter where it appears.

Key Elements of Brand Guidelines

• Logos: How your logo should be used, including different versions, sizes, and placement.
• Colors: The color palette that represents your brand, ensuring consistency whether on a website or a billboard.
• Typography: The fonts your brand uses, along with guidelines on sizes and styles.

Brand Guidelines cover everything from print to digital to video, making sure your brand identity is consistent no matter where it shows up.

Learn more about what brand guidelines are and what's included in them.

What Are Design Systems?

Now, if you're working on digital products, you'll may also want to use a Design System. These have evolved from older concepts like Style Guides, Pattern Libraries, UI Kits, or CSS Frameworks, and they're all about defining the rules for digital interfaces.

Key Elements of Design Systems

• Detailed Guidance: Design Systems go deep into specifics like color palettes, grid systems, and UI components, all tailored for digital products.
• Digital Focus: While Brand Guidelines cover everything, Design Systems are all about digital. They ensure your website, app, or software looks and feels consistent as it grows.
• Integration: Many Design Systems include code snippets and guidelines for developers, making it easier to implement designs consistently.

Design Systems are particularly useful for keeping your digital products consistent as they evolve and expand.

Key Differences Between Design Systems and Brand Guidelines

Scope and Detail

• Brand Guidelines: Broad, covering all brand elements but generally not as detailed in the nitty-gritty of digital design.
• Design Systems: Very detailed, focusing on the specifics of digital products.

Functionality

• Brand Guidelines: They're high-level, but with tools like Guidelines, they can also integrate with design and coding systems, making it easier to maintain consistency across the board.
• Design Systems: These are more about the nuts and bolts, often including code to help developers bring designs to life.

Audience

• Brand Guidelines: Used by marketers, designers, and content creators to keep the brand consistent everywhere.
• Design Systems: Primarily for product teams—designers and developers working on digital interfaces.

Evolution and Maintenance

• Brand Guidelines: Typically more static, updated occasionally to reflect brand changes.
• Design Systems: Constantly evolving as products change, requiring regular updates.

Do brand guidelines need and design systems interact?

Brand guidelines are almost always the starting point for a design system.

Think of the brand guidelines as the parent document, with the design system being a detailed implementation of the brand guidelines for digital.

When they're essential

Even though they're different, Design Systems and Brand Guidelines can both be crucial.

Brand Guidelines set the foundation for your brand's identity, and most organisations will want brand guidelines.

Design Systems ensure that identity carries through consistently in your digital products. So product-centric teams may benefit from using a design system.

When used together, they help create a unified experience for your audience, whether they're browsing your website, using your app, or seeing your ads.

When to Use a Design System vs. Brand Guidelines

• Design Systems: Best for digital product development, where you need to keep interfaces and user experiences consistent.
• Brand Guidelines: Great for marketing materials and keeping the overall brand image consistent across various platforms.

Using a tool like Guidelines can help you bridge the gap between the two, offering integrations with design tools like Sketch and development frameworks like Tailwind.

Conclusion

Most organisations will need a set of brand guidelines.

Larger digital product teams can benefit from a design system that is closely aligned to their brand guidelines.

Whether you're a designer, developer, or marketer, understanding these tools will help you maintain your brand's integrity across all platforms. So take a moment to evaluate your brand and product design strategies—your future self will thank you!