Creative Brand Strategy Task2
CREATIVE BRAND STRATEGY – TASK 2
BRAND GUIDELINE / BRAND BOOK
WANG JIHENG 0378904
Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media
MKT63904 Creative Brand Strategy
Task 2: Brand Guideline / Brand Book
Submission Date: 23 June 2026
LIST
- MIB
- LECTURE
- PROCESS
- FINAL SUBMISSION
- FEEDBACK
- REFLECTION
MIB
LECTURE
During the Task 2 briefing, I learned that a brand guideline is not only a collection of attractive visuals. It is the official reference document that explains how the brand works. It should show the relationship between the campaign message, target audience, logo, colour palette, typography, icons, visual elements, and brand applications.
The lecturer also explained that campaign applications should not be developed randomly. They must be based on a clear visual identity system first. Therefore, I focused on defining the Unfiltered brand system before moving forward with posters, stickers, social media content, and other campaign touchpoints.
PROCESS
Logo Development
I explored several logo directions before selecting the final Unfiltered logo system. The final logo is built from three flowing waves and one central dot.
The three waves represent Emotion, Body, and Action. The central dot represents awareness, pressure point, and self-check-in. Together, the symbol communicates emotional awareness in motion and reflects the transition from feeling overwhelmed to taking one gentle action.
I developed the logo into different versions, including a primary logo, black logo, white reversed logo, horizontal lockup, and symbol-only version. This allowed the identity to work across both light and dark backgrounds, campaign materials, and small digital spaces.
100 Symbol Exploration
To build a stronger visual language, I collected and analysed 100 symbol references related to mental health awareness, emotional pressure, body signals, acupressure, release, student studio life, and campaign touchpoints.
Each symbol was reviewed according to its relevance to the Unfiltered concept, its connection to the wave-and-dot logo system, its potential use in campaign design, and its suitability for students under deadline pressure.
This research helped me move beyond generic mental health visuals. Instead of relying only on hearts, smiley faces, or medical symbols, I explored visual metaphors that connect emotion to the body and action.
Fig. 7: 100 Symbol Exploration research document for Unfiltered.
Tutor Feedback and Final Icon Direction
After reviewing the 100 symbol references, Max advised me to stop collecting more symbols and begin refining a smaller set into one consistent icon family. The final icon system should use the same stroke weight, rounded line quality, soft wave language, and calm but practical tone.
Based on the feedback, I selected the strongest symbols that connect directly to the Unfiltered campaign concept. The selected directions include:
- Wave / Emotional Flow
- Spiral / Anxiety Loop
- Knot / Held Stress
- Scribble / Emotional Noise
- Eye + Central Dot / Awareness
- Shoulder / Tension Signal
- Neck / Studio Posture Tension
- Chest / Pressure and Breathing Awareness
- Wrist / Pulse Point
- Lungs / Inhale-Exhale
- Fingertip + Pressure Point
- Pressing Circle / Dotted Point
- One-Minute Timer
- Body Map
- Calm Ripple / Release
The icons are not intended to be copied directly from Pinterest. They are redesigned as a unified Unfiltered visual system that can be used across posters, stickers, body maps, one-minute reset guides, social media content, and future campaign applications.
Fig. 9: Final visual icon direction for Unfiltered.
Colour Palette Development
The colour palette was developed to create a calm, supportive, and contemporary visual identity for Unfiltered. Instead of using a heavy, clinical, or overly serious mental-health aesthetic, the campaign uses soft lavender and mist blue to create a gentler and more approachable emotional atmosphere.
Soft Lavender represents reflection, emotional awareness, and quiet reassurance. Mist Blue brings clarity, openness, and a sense of breathing space. Together, these colours create a soft digital mood that feels calming without becoming too childish or overly decorative.
The main colours are supported by Deep Charcoal for text, contrast, and visual stability. Soft Gray, Warm Light Gray, and White are used as neutral background tones to keep the layouts clear, spacious, and easy to read.
Soft Lavender — #7A78C8
Mist Blue — #8DAFD7
Deep Charcoal — #3A3A42
Soft Gray — #D8D6DB
Warm Light Gray — #ECE9EC
White — #FFFFFF
The final colour direction also uses soft lavender-to-blue gradients and subtle glassmorphism-inspired effects. These help Unfiltered feel modern, digital-friendly, and emotionally gentle, supporting the campaign’s aim of making emotional awareness feel accessible and safe for students and young adults.
Typography Development
The typography system balances clear communication with emotional softness. I selected Avenir Next as the primary typeface because it is clean, modern, and highly legible. It is used for headings, body text, navigation, captions, and information design.
I selected Cormorant Garamond as the secondary typeface for emotional emphasis, reflective phrases, and campaign statements. This creates contrast between practical guidance and the softer emotional tone of the campaign.
The typography hierarchy was designed to make campaign information easy to scan. Strong headings capture attention, while simple body text provides practical and supportive instructions.
Brand Guideline Layout Development
I used the Corporate Brand Guideline template provided by the lecturer as the structural base for my document. The template was adapted to fit the Unfiltered identity through the use of soft gradients, wave forms, central-dot details, rounded shapes, and a calm visual rhythm.
The first section of the brand guideline includes the cover page, introduction, table of contents, brand overview, logo system, colour palette, typography, visual elements, brand pattern, and icon system. Each page is designed to explain not only what the visual element is, but why it supports the campaign message.
During the layout development, I focused on making the logo more visible, improving text hierarchy, increasing breathing space, and ensuring that the visual system looked consistent across every page.
FINAL SUBMISSION
FEEDBACK
The most important feedback I received was to develop a smaller number of stronger symbols instead of continuing to collect more references. Max suggested that I select around 10–15 final visual elements and redesign them into one consistent icon family.
The final icons should share the same visual logic: consistent stroke weight, rounded line quality, soft wave language, central-dot details, and a calm but practical tone. This feedback helped me make the icon system more focused and directly connected to the Unfiltered logo and campaign message.
I also learned that the brand guideline should not only contain visuals. It must clearly explain the logic behind the design decisions, including why the colours, typography, logo, icons, and applications are suitable for the target audience and mental health awareness direction.
REFLECTION
This task helped me understand that a brand guideline is much more than a document showing a logo and colour palette. It is a system that explains how every visual decision connects to the campaign message, target audience, and intended emotional experience.
Through the development of Unfiltered, I learned how to move from a broad mental health topic into a more focused campaign idea. The Emotion → Body → Action framework gave the project a clear structure. It helped me connect emotional pressure to physical body signals and then to simple actions such as breathing, pressing a pressure point, or taking a one-minute reset.
The 100 Symbol Exploration was especially useful because it showed me that strong visual communication requires research and selection. I learned that not every interesting symbol belongs in the final system. The most effective visual elements are the ones that connect directly to the brand idea and can work together consistently.
Moving forward, I will use this brand guideline as the foundation for my campaign applications. The next stage will focus on applying the Unfiltered identity across practical student touchpoints while maintaining the same calm, clear, and supportive visual language.
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