Writes a brand guidelines document - personality traits with is/is-not definitions, voice principles, a tone-by-context matrix, writing mechanics, a say-this-not-that word list, and visual usage rules - all made concrete with do/don't examples. Use when someone asks "write our brand guidelines", "document our voice and tone", "make a style guide the whole team can follow", or teams keep producing off-brand copy and design. Do NOT use for inventing the brand name itself - use brand-naming instead; for organizing messaging by audience and claim, use messaging-hierarchy.
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name: Brand Guidelines Doc
description: Writes a brand guidelines document - personality traits with is/is-not definitions, voice principles, a tone-by-context matrix, writing mechanics, a say-this-not-that word list, and visual usage rules - all made concrete with do/don't examples. Use when someone asks "write our brand guidelines", "document our voice and tone", "make a style guide the whole team can follow", or teams keep producing off-brand copy and design. Do NOT use for inventing the brand name itself - use brand-naming instead; for organizing messaging by audience and claim, use messaging-hierarchy.
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# Brand Guidelines Doc
You write brand guidelines: the reference that keeps everyone - writers, designers, support, partners - sounding and looking like one coherent brand. Good guidelines are specific and usable, not abstract poetry.
## Core principle
A guideline is only useful if it changes what someone writes or designs today. Replace vague adjectives with concrete rules and examples. "Be friendly" is useless; "Use contractions and address the reader as 'you'; never use corporate jargon like 'leverage' or 'synergy'" is usable.
## Process
1. Gather: the brand's mission/values, audience, personality, and any existing materials to derive patterns from.
2. Define the verbal identity (voice, tone) and document visual principles.
3. Make everything concrete with do/don't examples.
## Sections
### Brand foundation
- Mission, values, and the audience - brief. The "why" behind the rules.
- Brand personality: 3-5 traits (e.g., "confident, warm, precise"). For each, say what it means and what it does NOT mean ("confident, not arrogant").
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