STYLE GUIDE
GOLD COAST TRANSIT DISTRICT
INTRO
ABOUT THESE GUIDELINES This Style Guide is designed to define and “guide” Gold Coast Transit District’s brand expression to better bring to life what we are visually communicating to the public. Our brand projects our identity and defines how our customers, partners and peers view our transportation services. The consistent use of these guidelines will bring a unified message and identity system that communicates clearly and uniformly.
01 LOGO ELEMENTS 02 LOGO USAGE 03 COLOR PALETTE 04 TYPOGRAPHY 05 LAYOUT & SPACING 06 EXTRAS 07 VOICE & TONE
01. VOICE & TONE
OUR BUSINESS
OUR ATTITUDE
OUR CONTRIBUTION
• • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Professional High Quality Experienced Respectful Considerate Efficient Productive Organized Accomplished Systematic Reliable Loyal Trustworthy Safe
Positive Optimistic Pleasant Genuine Energetic Upbeat Alert Ready Balanced Social Communicative Willing Cooperative Collaberative
Easy Accesibilty Environmentally Friendly CNG Fueled for Clean Air Community Involvement Supports Local Businesses Supports Community Growth On Time Independent Economical to Public Fluent in Languages Innovative in Equipment Modern in Technology Active Online & in Social Media Attentive Customer Service
OUR BRAND VALUES:
PROFESSIONAL, INNOVATIVE & ACCESSIBLE
DEFINING TERMS
Voice: Your company’s brand personality described in adjectives. Tone: A subset of voice. Tone shades your voice based on the audience and situation/content type.
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VOICE & TONE
ONE VOICE
MANY TONES
EXPRESSION OF PERSONALITY
SHOW THEM YOU CARE
Our brand’s voice is who we are and is an expression of our agency’s personality. It naturally grows over time, but it generally stays the same from day to day. If we have multiple writers, but no unifying voice, we will have a weak, unmemorable brand that our audience cannot connect with. Gather Content says it best: “Consistency is memorable -As you aim to deliver great experiences for your customers, giving them a consistent encounter can help build loyalty” (www.gathercontent.com).
When our voice and tone stay exactly the same all the time, its content comes across as insincere and automated. Our tone should be flexible. Take time to adjust your tone based on the content type and/or situation and the recipient’s likely emotional state.
OUR BRAND IDENTITY:
CONTEMPORARY, VERSATILE, & UNIVERSAL
02. LOGO ELEMENTS
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
N E RE G
While still maintaining green in the logo, GCTD transitioned to a lighter, brighter shade. This new color conveys GCTD’s commitment to energy efficiency and sustainability. Our vehicle fleet is 100% CNG fueled, we maintain our own CNG fueling station on site, and are currently working toward building an innovative green Administration and Operations building that maximizes social, economic, and environmental benefits.
MEANINGS & SYMBOLISM OF GREEN: Efficient, Clean, Calm, Growth, Renewal, Environment, Agriculture & Vegetation, Sustainable, Balance, Harmonious.
GO TRANSIT
02
Using the word “GO” in the GCTD Logo is a fun reminder to our community, riders & audience alike to “Go Green” by going transit.
LOGO ELEMENTS
REGION & ACCESSIBILITY
E U BL
GCTD included blue in its logo to add dimension and convey a message of accessibility and reliability. Additionally, the integration of blue pays homage to the beautiful blue waters that have come to identify GCTD’s service area in Western Ventura County.
MEANINGS & SYMBOLISM OF BLUE: Accessible, Stable, Reliable, Balanced, Trust, Security, Loyalty, Dependable, Acceptance, Ocean, Global, Recycled, Renewable.
CALIFORNIA GOLD COAST
LD O G
GCTD maintained gold in its logo as it has been embraced by riders and the community alike and prominently highlights its name. It also evokes the local color and character of the area, which is commonly referred to as the “Gold Coast”.
MEANINGS & SYMBOLISM OF GOLD: Quality, Value, Positive, Warmth, Sunshine, Power, Ideas, Innovation, Happiness, Logic, Alert, Victory, Success, Authentic, Optimistic.
02
LOGO ELEMENTS
IDENTIFICATION SIMPLIFIED
S U B E TH
During GCTD’s re-branding process, it was important to maintain the bus icon as it clearly represents the service GCTD provides. In contrast to the former logo, simplifying the bus will make it much easier to use across different platforms in public areas to be better identified by our diverse community. Additionally, at the request of public input, the image of a person was added behind the wheel of the bus. This not only humanizes the logo, but is symbolic of the community, passenger, and staff’s collaborative efforts to “drive” GCTD into a bright and prosperous future.
03. LOGO USAGE
CONTEMPORARY, VERSATILE & UNIVERSAL
The GCTD Logo was created for the main purpose of being fully functional and easily recognizable. It’s so versatile and comprehensive that in some cases it can be stripped all the way down to the icon itself.
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LOGO USAGE LOGO
This logo is the original concept for GCTD and is to be used most frequently. Always try to display this logo first and clearly before proceeding to other logo variations.
LOGO STACKED
This is an alternate version to the main logo. A vertical logo is necessary if the area you are working with is narrow or does not have enough space. Pay attention to the area and space you are working with to make sure it’s not too busy or crammed. The stacked logo is available should you need it.
GO TRANSIT
What’s great about this logo is that without the written name “Gold Coast Transit” it still reads, with the bus icon, “GO TRANSIT”. This version of the logo should be treated more like a decal which can be used on multiple promotional products and apparel. It’s a fun way to remind the audience familiar with GCTD to “GO TRANSIT”.
BUS ICON
An icon directly represents an idea, concept, operation or action. By seeing the bus icon in itself, one might understand the concept that it represents transportation, but not know that it is affiliated with GCTD. Only through years of exposure can a logo drop it’s written name and still be instantly recognizable. The bus icon by itself should be treated more like a graphical element. In most circumstances, the icon is not to be used in place of the logo especially if the name “Gold Coast Transit” has not been visually established to the audience.
DO NOT... • • • • • •
Stretch or Distort Apply Distracting Dropshadows Change Company Colors Rotate Pixilate Place on Distracting Backgrounds
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LOGO USAGE
04. COLOR PALETTE
GRAY Gray of different shades are welcomed as a secondary color especially in type.
BLACK 80%
BLACK 70%
BLUE
BLACK 50%
GREEN GOLD
DEFINING TERMS
RGB: Stands for Red, Blue, Green. This color model is for the display of images in electronic systems, such as televisions, computers and cell phone devices. CMYK: Refers to the four inks used in color printing; Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black. SPOT: Any color generated by an ink (pure or mixed) that is printed using a single run. PMS: Stands for Pantone Matching System. A popular color matching system used by the printing industry to print spot colors.
04
COLOR PALETTE
RGB
CMYK
SPOT COLOR
RGB
CMYK
SPOT COLOR
RGB
CMYK
SPOT COLOR
R = 251 G = 176 B = 52
R = 112 G = 186 B = 68
R=0 G = 93 B = 170
C=0 M = 35 Y = 90 K=0
C = 61 M=2 Y = 100 K=0
C = 100 M = 66 Y=0 K=2
PMS 137 C PMS 122 U
PMS 361 C PMS 368 U
PMS 286 C PMS 286 U
04
COLOR PALETTE
One Color
When the GCTD blue is being represented in the background, it’s okay to change the blues in the logo to white. 50% Tint of background In some cases, just the bus can change to white. As much as possible, include all three corporate colors. When in doubt, use white when a color logo is clashing with the background.
GOLD
BACKGROUNDS
AN ACCENT COLOR
Choosing the right background color can be tricky. Use these examples as a general guideline on how the GCTD logo should be treated. Even though the logo is flexible we still want to keep a clean cohesive look in any type of presentation.
Just as the vast ocean finely outlines the coast of California, is the same in how we use the color gold for GCTD. To ensure that our brand stays timeless, gold will act as an accent color, leaving blue and green as the main representatives for GCTD. Try to avoid using gold overbearingly. Also, when creating backgrounds or graphic elements, try to avoid too much gold and blue touching. Remember that white can be added as a barrier between the two colors to keep a clean vibrant look.
05. TYPOGRAPHY
HEADER IN ARIAL REGULAR
HEADER IN ARIAL BOLD
SANS-SERIF TYPEFACE
A sans-serif is one that does not have the small projecting features called “serifs” at the end of strokes in letters. The term comes from the French word sans, meaning “without”. Sans-serif fonts tend to have less line width variation than serif fonts.
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TYPOGRAPHY
HEADER IN CENTURY GOTHIC REGULAR
HEADERS:
HEADER IN CENTURY GOTHIC BOLD
ALL CAPS IN ARIAL OR CENTURY GOTHIC
TYPE
ALIGNING LEFT
SUB-HEADER
This is an example of the header, the sub-header and the body text all aligned left. This is a good default to go to if you do not wish to use justified paragraphs.
A bold header can be used as the main subject line, although is not always needed. In the process of publishing, the appearance is just as important as the message because it sets the tone for the recipient and/or audience. Finding a balance is key to a sucessful presentation.
You will also notice that the headers and sub-headers are in all caps. By doing this we are reinforcing a cohesive theme that came from our logo.
EXAMPLES:
HEADERS & BODY TEXT
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TYPOGRAPHY Century Gothic Bold Century Gothic Regular Arial Regular
Recommended San-Serif Typefaces for Body Text: Arial Family Helvetica Family Tahoma Family
HEADER
THIS IS A SUB-HEADER This is an example of a header in Century Gothic Bold in all caps. The sub-header is Century Gothic Regular in all caps. The body text is Arial Regular justified with the last line aligned left. A justified paragraph always looks more organized in columns; however, if you are experiencing “rivers� adjust your settings to align left. If working on a multi-page report and using one font for the full document is more convenient, it is best to use Arial Regular for all.
AVOID... • Using Upper-Lower Case for Headers & Sub-Headers • Justifing paragraphs if rivers are occuring • Headers & Body Text aligning on different sides • Widows • Serif Typefaces
SERIFS
This is Minion Pro These are examples of commonly known serif typefaces called, Times New Roman and Minion Pro. Since our brand is modern, we are only using san-serif typefaces. Did you know the reason we associate serif typefaces as classic ones is because they were the first invented? It has been said that a serif was used to help carve a letter into stone.
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TYPOGRAPHY
HEADER
H e a d e r
This is an example of the header and subheader aligned right while the body text is aligned left. It is best to align both to the left if justification is not being applied. Also try to avoid making widows. This is an example of a widow.
This is an example of what rivers are. When the body text or header is set to justify but the kerning (spacing) is too wide or too tight.
THIS IS A SUB-HEADER
This is a sub-header
06. LAYOUT & SPACING
NEGATIVE SPACE
06
White space (also called negative space) is a term used in printing for the parts of a page left free of text and illustrations.
LAYOUT & SPACING
HOW TO KNOW
WHEN YOU NEED SPACE White space is nice and is not your enemy. Try not to pack every nook and cranny of space with visuals and type. This tends to make your presentation feel overwhelmingly crowded, cause viewers to feel confused or that the presentation is disorganized.
USES OF WHITE SPACE
A visually inviting style can result from several uses of white space: Ample margins and short lines, with extra leading between lines ●● Blocks of print indented off the left margin with headings outdented ●● Short paragraphs, with space breaks between paragraphs ●● Bulleted or numbered list structures where appropriate ●●
06
LAYOUT & SPACING
TEMPLATES
THAT YOU CAN ACCESS To help GCTD stay consistant throughout all forms, documents and presentations, there are a number of templates that are available to you on the agency’s network drive. Take time to explore and familiarize yourself with these files and understand the overall theme GCTD is striving for.
DID YOU KNOW? The design and layout of your document can often have as much of an impact as the information being communicated.
07. EXTRAS
07
EXTRAS
ALWAYS
MOVING FORWARD We are excited to share our new logo and brand that evokes the agency’s vision of a more modern, clean and efficient future. Moving forward, when in doubt whether it be a file type, a typeface in a memo or a design element in your Power Point Presentation, please contact the Communications and Marketing Manager of Gold Coast Transit District for proper direction.
805.483.3959 | 301 EAST THIRD STREET OXNARD, CA 93030 | GOLDCOASTTRANSIT.ORG