Brand Guidelines
Brand Guidelines
Ver 1.6 — 19 September 2019 This document is subject to regular revision by our Communications Team. Please check thesu.org.uk and make sure you have the latest version.
Index Our brand
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Logo
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Colours
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Typography
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Templates & standard sizes
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Copy & style
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Introduction These guidelines outline our visual identity and the application of its elements to ensure the Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union brand is represented in a consistent, inspiring and professional manner throughout all of our communications and marketing materials. Our Communications Team is here to help you with any advice or consultation you may need, including permissions for logo use and the provision of brand assets. Thank you for working with us to deliver quality communications and our brand values.
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Our brand Introduction Brand values
Brand values Falmouth and Exeter Student’s Union is a membership-led charity which represents students from Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall. It has a set of brand values that aims to enhance the student experience and enable students to confidently state “I belong; I am heard; I am realising my potential; and I am supported.”
Our Vision:
“A world-class student experience for all of our students” Our mission in pursuit of this vision is:
“To have a positive impact on every member’s personal student journey”
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Our core values & personal behaviours We will always be:
Our staff will always be:
1. Inclusive — we consider the impact of our work on and for everyone, not just those who are most visible. We strive to reach, respect and work with those who may need our help and support the most.
1. Professional — open, trusting and trustworthy in all of our dealings.
2. Collaborative — we work in partnership with our universities, other organisations, and the wider community to achieve the best student experience for our members.
3. Fun! — where appropriate, have a good time at work!
3. Empowering — we want to help our members achieve the best they can. We focus on giving enough support to help people to help themselves to succeed.
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2. Caring — always consider others’ needs and expectations.
Logo Logo Clearspace Usage Icons
Logo Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union is the only union in the UK to represent students from two Universities. We believe both groups should feel they belong to our union, and our efforts are aimed at creating a unified experience. Our logo icon is an apostrophe, which is a symbol of belonging in the English language. This signifies that all of our students belong to their Students’ Union. Apostrophes can also unite two words, as The Students’ Union unites two universities. Official logos are available on request from the Communications Team and all logos used must be approved prior to publication or use.
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Clearspace No other elements should be placed in the exclusion zone around the logo. The zone is of the size of the apostrophe. When the apostrophe is used on its own, we recommend a clearspace of at least the width of the dent.
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Standard variants The Students’ Union’s logo is provided in a few standard variants, in order to accommodate various backgrounds and uses. When possible, please use the top row as a preferred choice. The Communications Team is available to advice on appropriate logo selection. Standard
Extended
for use when clarification is needed about who we represent/our connection with the universities)
Compact
Lockups and minimum size The logo used in the lockup determines the minimum size of the Students’ Union’s logo.
Lockup at minimum size:
35 mm
50 mm
35 mm
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Misuse of the logo It is important that the appearance of the logo remains consistent in design. Our logo must not be modified, adjusted or redrawn, and should only be reproduced from the artwork provided by the Communications Team.
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Campaign-specific alternatives The apostrophe is a versatile element which can be visually adapted to creative campaigns. (Approval will be required from the Communications Team)
Your SU. Your say. Advice from the SU. Free. Impartial. Confidential.
It’s fun.
The SU Activities 17
Icon A square icon is provided for uses where the wordmark is not suitable. It should be used as an icon and not as a substitute for the full logo. Example of correct uses are: social media profile images, app icons, website icons.
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Colours Primary colours Secondary colours
Primary colours
Secondary colours
Our primary colours are inspired by Cornish heritage and have been picked to embody our core behaviours: professionalism, care and fun.
Our secondary colour has been chosen to complement the primary palette and should provide more flexibility in design. It has been inspired by our beautiful coastline and can be used to represent peacefulness and adventure.
Clotted Cream
PMS White R 255 G 255 B 255 #ffffff C 0 M 0 Y 0 K 0
Sea
PMS 2151 C / 3015 U R 26 G 116 B 158 #1a749e C 85 M 45 Y 20 K 5
Coal
PMS Black 6 C / Black 6 U R 16 G 24 B 32 #101820 C 100 M 79 Y 44 K 93
Gold
PMS 7405 C / 108 U R 246 G 201 B 0 #f6c900 C 5 M 20 Y 100 K 0
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Our limited palette allows for creative use of colour in campaigns and is not a restrictive policy.
Typography Primary font Serif font Iconography
Primary font HK Grotesk is our primary font. We use it in four weights and their respective italic versions: HK Grotesk Light HK Grotesk Light Italic HK Grotesk Regular HK Grotesk Italic HK Grotesk Medium HK Grotesk Light Medium Italic HK Grotesk Bold HK Grotesk Bold Italic Our primary font should be used in all branded communications where a campaign-specific font is not used.
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ? ! @ % £ & HK Grotesk Bold
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ? ! @ % £ & HK Grotesk Medium
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ? ! @ % £ & HK Grotesk Regular
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
HK Grotesk Light
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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ? ! @ % £ &
Serif font Cormorant Garamond is our serif font. We use it in all of its variants. Our serif font should be used to support, or even in conjunction with, our primary font in corporate or high-profile communications.
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ? ! @ % £ & Cormorant Garamond Bold
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ? ! @ % £ & Cormorant Garamond Italic
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
Cormorant Garamond Regular
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ? ! @ % £ &
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Iconography Our icons come from the Typeicons set.
Arrows
Social Media
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Contact
Lists
Templates & standard sizes Presentations Text documents Social media Website & newsletter Campus signage
Presentations Microsoft PowerPoint and Apple Keynote presentation templates are available on Sharepoint or upon request to the Communications Team. The Students’ Union logo should be featured on the first slide in the appropriate version.
Example of presentation slides following the available templates
Slide about something
Presentation Title By [Name Surname]
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Some explanation about what’s on the right of this block of text. Your copy should be set according to our brand guidelines and should preferably be complemented by a good quality image on the right.
Text documents To whom it may concern, Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit The European languages are members of the same family. Their separate existence is a myth. For science, music, sport, etc, Europe uses the same vocabulary. The languages only differ in their grammar, their pronunciation and their most common words. Everyone realizes why a new common language would be desirable: one could refuse to pay expensive translators.
Official reports and correspondence from the Students’ Union, if not specifically designed by the Communications Team, should make use of the templates (Microsoft Word and Adobe InDesign) available on Sharepoint or upon request. These documents should reach their intended destination only in non-editable formats (for example, in print or as PDF files).
To achieve this, it would be necessary to have uniform grammar, pronunciation and more common words. If several languages coalesce, the grammar of the resulting language is more simple and regular than that of the individual languages. The new common language will be more simple and regular than the existing European languages. It will be as simple as Occidental; in fact, it will be Occidental. To an English person, it will seem like simplified English, as a skeptical Cambridge friend of mine told me what Occidental is. The European languages are members of the same family. Their separate existence is a myth. For science, music, sport, etc, Europe uses the same vocabulary. The languages only differ in their grammar, their pronunciation and their most common words. Everyone realizes why a new common language would be desirable: one could refuse to pay expensive translators.
Yours faithfully, [Name Surname] [Job Title]
Example of a letter laid out on our letterhead
Report Title
Header Subtitle
Report subtitle One morning, when Gregor Samsa woke from troubled dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a horrible vermin. He lay on his armourlike back, and if he lifted his head a little he could see his brown belly, slightly domed and divided by arches into stiff sections. The bedding was hardly able to cover it and seemed ready to slide off any moment. His many legs, pitifully thin compared with the size of the rest of him, waved about helplessly as he looked. "What's happened to me? " he thought. It wasn't a dream.
By [Name Surname]
His room, a proper human room although a little too small, lay peacefully between its four familiar walls. A collection of textile samples lay spread out on the table - Samsa was a travelling salesman - and above it there hung a picture that he had recently cut out of an illustrated magazine and housed in a nice, gilded frame. It showed a lady fitted out with a fur hat and fur boa who sat upright, raising a heavy fur muff that covered the whole of her lower arm towards the viewer. Gregor then turned to look out the window at the dull weather.
Heading 1 A wonderful serenity has taken possession of my entire soul, like these sweet mornings of spring which I enjoy with my whole heart. I am alone, and feel the charm of existence in this spot, which was created for the bliss of souls like mine.
Heading 2
Example of a report laid out following the available templates
I am so happy, my dear friend, so absorbed in the exquisite sense of mere tranquil existence, that I neglect my talents. I should be incapable of drawing a single stroke at the present moment; and yet I feel that I never was a greater artist than now.
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Social media Social media post 1200 x 630 px @ 150dpi sRGB PNG file
Facebook event cover 1920 x 1005 px @ 150dpi sRGB PNG file
Facebook page cover 973 x 360 px @ 150dpi Mobile safe area: 640 px sRGB PNG file Twitter page cover 1500 x 500 px @ 150dpi sRGB PNG file
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Instagram story 1080 x 1920 px @ 300dpi sRGB JPG file
Website & newsletter Website rolling banner 1500 x 400 px @ 150dpi sRGB PNG or JPG file
Newsletter 600 px wide @ 72dpi sRGB JPG file
Website quick link 700 x 310 px @ 150dpi sRGB PNG or JPG file
Website event thumbnail 380 x 380 px @ 300dpi sRGB PNG or JPG file
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Campus signage Digital signage 1920 x 1080 px @ 72dpi sRGB JPG file Footer: 1920 x 130 px (available from our Communications Team)
thesu.org.uk
Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union is a registered charity in England and Wales No. 1145405
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Style & Copy Tone of voice Style guide Key messages
Tone of voice Our audience is varied and vast, from students to stakeholders. For this reason, we adapt our tone of voice to reflect who we are speaking to. We also communicate through various channels, each with their own flavour. What never changes is our values. Professional Being professional doesn’t mean being formal and corporate. We value our democratic structure and processes. Being professional, to us, means that everything we do has a purpose. Do: • Show, don’t tell • Only claim what is demonstrably true • Be honest, about bad things too • Be clear • Be authorative and assertive • Talk about achievements • Use correct grammar • Give credit when it’s due Don’t: • Swear • Use too many exclamation marks • Use jargon • Personally attack people • Use banter 32
Caring Our student body is as diverse as they come and it’s our duty to be inclusive for everyone. We show the way for our students, empowering them to take the best decisions for themselves. We have their wellbeing as a priority and we react to their ever-changing needs. Do: • Use someone’s name • Consider different experiences (LGBTQ+, international, BAME, disabled) • Use “we” and “you” • Be concise • Use short sentences • Signpost to internal and external services Don’t: • Overuse HE corporate speak • Oversimplify or overcomplicate concepts
Fun There’s more to university life than just studying. We are courageous, but never disrespectful. We believe in promoting the wealth of opportunities that Cornwall has to offer. Do: • Be imaginative: acknowledge the creativity of the place • Be warm and welcoming • Talk about the fun we have and pride on it Don’t: • Be too informal • Use swearwords • Use banter • Use sarcasm
Style guide It is important to keep our writing and formatting consistent across all of our materials. Here are some best practice rules to following when you are producing communications on behalf of The Students’ Union: Abbreviations of Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union Always use the full title at first, with the abbreviation in brackets after, e.g. Falmouth and Exeter Students’ Union (The Students’ Union or The SU). Addressing Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union To be addressed as “The Students’ Union” or “The SU” by members, Trustees, Falmouth University, the University of Exeter, FX Plus, and the University of Exeter Students’ Guild. To be addressed as Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union by external stakeholders. Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union will no longer be addressed as FXU. Presidents’ job titles President Falmouth not the Falmouth President.
Academic year 2019/20 not 2019-20 Numbers One to ten written in word format Numbers 11+ as figures Dates Monday 3 June 2019 (no ordinal numbers, i.e. 6th) Times 11am–4pm 2–4pm Charity number Please use this phrasing when our charity number needs to feature within text or artwork: “Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union is a registered charity in England and Wales No. 1145405”.
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Key messages The way we talk about ourselves, what we do and our achievements is informed by our strategic objectives. They help us keep the messaging consistent for all our audiences and through all our channels.
The Students’ Union is a network of communities where you begin and enrich your student life.
We maximise our members’ power to feedback and take ownership of their experience.
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We inspire students to challenge themselves, because all of our members can be change makers.
We equip students with the tools and knowledge to make the best decisions for themselves.
If you would like any further information, please contact the Communications Team at Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union 01326 255861 or marketing@thesu.org.uk
Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union thesu.org.uk Falmouth & Exeter Students’ Union is a registered charity in England and Wales No. 1145405