What should a brand identity package include? A buyer’s checklist

“Brand identity package” is a description to investigate. One proposal may cover a logo and basic usage notes; another may include research, messaging, templates and implementation. Either can fit a brief. The useful comparison is what your business needs against what each provider agrees to deliver.

The Design Business Association’s proposal guidance asks buyers to look for the approach, timetable, costs and deliverables. Use that as a starting point, then ask for clarification where a line such as “brand rollout” leaves the finished work unclear.

Branding Tatva provides brand strategy and identity services, so this guide reflects a provider’s perspective. The checklist and examples below are practical suggestions. They are not findings from a survey of agencies or claims that a particular price predicts quality.

The scope and handover checklist can inform briefs in different markets. The copyright examples below describe UK guidance. For work involving other countries, ask a qualified adviser to review the rights your agreement needs to cover.

Start with the priority buyer, the offer and the reason someone would choose it. Share your current positioning, customer questions and examples of how the business explains itself. The provider can then identify which decisions are settled and which need investigation.

An identity project can use an existing strategy. New positioning, naming, interviews, a message hierarchy and a full tone of voice guide are separate tasks to discuss. A visual identity fee does not establish that all of them are included.

Illustrative UK consultancy brief: the founder already has an agreed audience and service proposition, but proposals and website pages look unrelated. The initial need might be a coherent visual system and proposal template. If interviews instead reveal that buyers misunderstand the offer, the team can discuss a messaging scope before committing to design. This is an example, not a client result.

Ask the designer to show how the proposed logo works at the sizes and on the backgrounds you use. A presentation mockup alone does not show whether the mark remains legible in a small website header or an email signature. Request the variations needed for those uses.

Colour and typography instructions should explain practical choices: text on a light background, a reversed mark on a dark surface, document headings and fallback fonts. Ask which combinations have been checked in the applications you are commissioning.

For digital text, WCAG 2.2’s AA contrast criterion generally requires 4.5:1, or 3:1 for qualifying large text. Text within a logo is exempt from that criterion; the exception does not cover ordinary branded page copy. Contrast is one accessibility check, not proof that a whole website meets WCAG. The W3C explanation below gives the conditions and exceptions.

Choose applications around your work. A consultancy might prioritise proposals and presentation slides; a clinic might need appointment information and signage. These are illustrative priorities. Record the number and purpose of the templates, the software used and who supplies the text.

Keep design, production and implementation distinct in the quote. A website visual does not include development unless agreed. An email signature design may still need setup. Printing, photography, copywriting and migration of existing material can each involve additional work.

Agree a handover task before final approval: a colleague opens a supplied template, replaces a heading and image, adds a page and exports a usable PDF. Check the result together. This gives you a practical way to identify missing instructions, software access or assets before the engagement closes.

A lower fee can reflect a narrower brief, supplied assets or less implementation. A higher fee does not establish that every item below is included. Ask each provider the same questions and decide which exclusions matter to your team.

Phasing can be useful. You might agree the core identity and a proposal template first, then add social templates when the team has a content plan. Record what later work depends on and how it will be quoted.

For UK commissioned work, the Intellectual Property Office explains that the creator generally owns copyright initially unless otherwise agreed in writing. Commissioning a design, paying an invoice or receiving its files does not by itself establish that you own its copyright.

A licence gives permission to use work on agreed terms; an assignment transfers copyright ownership. GOV.UK explains that a copyright transfer requires a written agreement signed by the owner. Ask the provider to identify the arrangement for original work and the rights available for any third party material.

For fonts, photographs and other licensed assets, request the applicable terms and ask who needs to hold the licence for your intended use. Do not assume that every font file can be passed to another supplier. A qualified adviser can review uncertain contract terms, particularly where the parties work in different countries.

Write a short brief describing the business, priority audience, materials that need changing and what your team already has. Add your desired launch date and the person responsible for approvals. Ask for a response that separates essential work from optional additions.

Ask the provider to name the billing currency, applicable taxes, payment stages, licence costs and expenses. Record meeting times with their time zones, feedback deadlines and who maintains the current files. If the identity will appear in several countries or languages, list those uses in the brief and ask which adaptations and rights are covered.

Bring the same checklist to Branding Tatva when comparing our engagement formats. A 30 minute conversation can establish which questions need resolving; the written scope confirms the work and fee. Choose based on the proposal, relevant project evidence and the responsibilities your team can take on.