Create a Guide/Template: Building a Brand Book through Team Exercises

[ExperimentsInHonesty]

Overview

We need to create a guide for Brand Book so that teams can have consistent messaging for their project

Action Items

The phases in the guide-making process are listed below. Each phase displayed in blue is linked to a wiki page with instructions on how to complete that phase. Open the wiki page in a new tab, copy the instructions for each part into the section labeled 'Tasks' at the bottom of this issue, and complete each task listed.

• Gather Examples Solo (open in a new tab)
• Gather Examples Collaboratively
• Create a Guide Draft
  • If needed, create a template
• Have your guide peer reviewed
• Present your guide for leadership review

Resources/Instructions

• wiki page where we were storing info about this process until this guide could be made https://github.com/hackforla/product-management/wiki/Branding-Exercise
• GreenEarthOS
  • All issues related to their branding exercise
  • Figma file where branding exercise is

Resources

• Draft of Branding Exercise FigJam
• Google Drive Folder for this Guide’s documents and shortcuts (to documents in other locations) 0089 Building a Brand Book through Team Exercises
• Guide Draft: - FigJam Guide Draft
  Links to relevant documents I couldn't make shortcuts to -
• Copy in this guides' folder Copy of Consent Form for interviews
  • Original in UI/UX Cop Community of Practice Consent Form for interviews
• Copy in this guides'folder Copy of Logo Voting form for UI/UX
  • Original in UI/UX Cop Community of Practice Logo Voting form for UI/UX
  • https://abbycovert.com/ia-tools/control-your-vocabulary/
• Checklist for Design Language
• Internship Brand Book

Issues templates we will copy

Branding Exercise: Themes for Brand Value: "{value word}" - {assignee name}

• Branding Exercise : Themes for Brand Value Forward Thinking - Raji GreenEarthOS#147

Title: Branding Exercise : Themes for Brand Value Forward Thinking - Raji

### Overview
We need to find common words and themes from everyone's post its in our brand value exercise on FigJam so that we can come up with the final sentence during our team meeting.

### Action Item
- [ ] Read every team member's input for the word: [Forward Thinking](https://www.figma.com/file/JImygEUnM6m6giaP9qg3y4/GreenEarthOS-Branding-Exercise?node-id=958%3A250) brand value 
- [ ] Find common themes and words and write those down in the brand value's section

### Resources
- [FigJam File Forward Thinking section](https://www.figma.com/file/JImygEUnM6m6giaP9qg3y4/GreenEarthOS-Branding-Exercise?node-id=958%3A250)

#### This issue is part of this epic
#108

CoPs to check

• UI/UX
  • https://github.com/hackforla/UI-UX/wiki/Home-%E2%80%90-UI-UX-CoP-Branding-Kit-&-Templates - Only includes visual sample templates, good example of what templates every COP might need but nothing on developing brand identity
  • UI/UX CoP Audit UI-UX#553 - including because teams should gather all the brand assets they have so far before starting their exercises, and document what they know about how those assets were developed.
  • UI/UX CoP Branding Project Research Plan UI-UX#473 - Contains UI/UX branding process including interview questions and consent forms
  • UI/UX CoP Branding Project UX Roadmap UI-UX#472 - This issue focuses more on logo selection process, not as much on working or messaging.
  • UIUX Design Systems Project: Meeting Agenda UI-UX#452 - While Brand books are mentioned, this Agenda mostly discusses logo selection and template creation for emails and power point slides. Messaging , voice and tone which would be more relevant to this issue, is not dealt with. "some guidance on colors and typography"
  • Best Practices of Design Systems within HfLA & external organizations UI-UX#423 - The practices mentioned here are focused on typography and logos.
  • UI-UX CoP Meeting Agendas 2023 (Wednesday 6PM PST) UI-UX#396 - No mentions of branding excercises or voice & tone through span of agenda
• Ops
• Product Management
• Marketing
  • Info dump from Sequoia
• Revenue
• Data Science
• Engineering

Projects to check

• 100 Automations
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• 311 Data
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• Access the Data
  • https://github.com/hackforla/access-the-data/wiki/UX-Writing-Guide#brand-voice-chart-includes-example-text - Contains chart describing different aspects of voice to emphacize (simple vs inclusive vs helpful for example) with examples.
  • Website Copy  access-the-data#87 - Example of Access the data deliberately choosing it's tone & voice and adjusting it's website copy. Contains links to articles to help with controlling vocabulary.
• BallotNav
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• Brigade Organizer's Playbook
  • BOP: Brand Book Workshop: Mission Statement civictechindex/BOP#272 - Contains plans to do a branding excercise but doesn't appear to have been complete requesting access to the figjam file on 9-12
  • Create BOP Brand Book civictechindex/BOP#270 - Issue is specifically about creating a brand book and outlines specific branding goals and steps to make one. However, most of those tasks have not been completed.
• Civic Tech Index
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• Civic Tech Jobs
  • CTJ: Design system CivicTechJobs#606 - Issue concerns establishing a design system with image assets and components, not directly related to brand book creation.
• Civic Tech Structure
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• Data Science Projects
  • https://www.figma.com/board/VgxjTXP3PJhzZxMeMURf2f/Branding-Exercise?t=3WIldHJrGKBtmUa6-0 - This is an example branding excercise for Hack 4 LA in general, last updated November 2021
• Design Systems
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• Engage
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• Expunge-Assist (formerly known as Record Clearance)
  • Expunge Assist Team Charter - Example of defining the mission, audience expectations and communication norms for this project.
• Food Oasis
  • FOLA Voice & Tone Guide - Contains examples of communication dos and donts, terminalogy and values to focus on.
  • Food Oaisis design concepts + thinking -Contains "crazy 8" sketching excercises to brainstorm design ideas, not directly related to brand book
• GreenEarthOS
  • All issues related to their branding exercise - Individual issues per person titled "branding excercise" but most just link to the Figjam underneath.
  • Figma file Bonafide super relavant figjam featuring the branding excercise

Screenshot of brand exercise

• Guides
  • We Need to do a Branding Exercise  guides#73 - Branding excercise issue, but focused on logos / aesthetics and no work appears to have been done on it as of 9-18-2025
• HomeUniteUs
  • Link to stakeholder communication presentations https://github.com/hackforla/HomeUniteUs/wiki/Key-Documents#wip-stakeholder-communication-for-pilot-kickoff)
  • Content: Create Communication Style Guide. HomeUniteUs#315 - Communication Style Guide Issue dealing with voice and tone , emphacizing accessiblity in lanuage, and microcopy examples. Lists many steps one might take to create a brand book.
  • Design: Zeroheight - Design Language HomeUniteUs#285 - Issue deals with Brand Vision/ Terminology, and Microcopy Guidlines
  • Home Unite Us Email Template HomeUniteUs#458 - Not entirely relevant, issue concerns standardizing email template
• Internship project
  • logo, color pallet , typography, branding initial work internship#68 - Initial Brand Value excercise
  • Create Brand Values internship#95 - Appears to be the 2nd Step , Epic issue where everyone involves picks the values. (term used in issue is "marry")
  • Branding Exercise: Rabia Shaikh internship#81 - Create Brand Values
  • Refine the mission statement internship#99 - Refining Mission Statement
  • [draft] Google search our brand attributes and taglines- to see results. internship#98 - Google searching Brand attributes & taglines to see results
  • Review usecases for the project internship#97 - Issue concerns usecases and clarifying target market
  • UserTesting for our two domain names for the Internship Project internship#96 - Issue concerns user testing - not neccesarily related to brand book
  • Design System: Create logo internship#28 - Logo Crreation - not brand book related
  • https://github.com/hackforla/internship/wiki/Internship-Brand-Book - Example Internship Brandbook
  • Update TWE Brand Book: add new mission statement internship#256 - Steps for creating a Mission Statement
  • TWE Brand Personality Development internship#184 - Contains examples and analysis of Brand personalities
  • Create Roadmap for Design internship#392 - Design roadmap , doesn't appear related to Brand Book Issue
  • All branding exercise issues in internship project https://github.com/hackforla/internship/issues?q=is%3Aissue%20branding%20Exercise
• Lucky Parking
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• Open Community Survey
  • Open Community Onesheet - the one sheet clearly defines the goals of this project, boils down their brand vision / mission statement
  • Create social media accounts open-community-survey#8 - While creating a social media account in itself is not related, the brand book should be an essential resource listed in the issue (if one exists)
  • Create a Communication Style Guide open-community-survey#36 - Issue involves creating a communication style guide and has links to example brand books outside of organization.
  • Redesign Get Involved page open-community-survey#55 - Issue involves redesigning "Get Involved" Page. Defining target audience directly impacts brand's voice and communication style
• TDM Calculator
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• VRMS
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• Hack for LA's Website
  No Brand Book / Identity Issues 8-22-2025
• Youth Justice Nav
  • https://www.hackforla.org/assets/pdfs/Civic-Tech-Index-Product-One-Sheet.pdf - the one sheet clearly defines the goals of this project, boils down their brand vision / mission statement

Examples from projects both inside and outside HfLA

Taglines

Feeding America- A hunger-free America
Make-A-Wish: That people everywhere will share the power of a wish
Habitat for Humanity: A world where everyone has a decent place to live
Airbnb- “Belong Anywhere.”
HfLA Internship Project: Where Learning STEMS from Doing

This guide links

• Brand Book folder
• This is where you will copy instructions from the wiki page for the step you are currently on.

Tasks

• Gathering Examples with GitHub
  Follow the instructions from the slide deck Part 1: Gathering Examples With GitHub: Wiki, Issues, Project Board, Resources Provided
  • Remove the following labels from your issue as you complete them:
    • status: needs wiki examples
    • status: needs issues examples
    • status: needs project board examples
  • Congrats you have completed Part 1: Gathering Examples With GitHub: Wiki, Issues, Project Board, Resources Provided
    • Go to Gather Examples, Use GitHub Search and copy the the text block (next steps), below this line
• Gathering Examples with Github Search
  Follow the instructions from the slide deck Part 1.5: How to Use Github Search
  • Complete the activities inside the deck
  • Congrats! You have completed part 1.5: How to Use Github Search.
    • Go to Gather Examples with Slack and copy it below
• Gathering Examples with Slack
  Follow the instructions from the slide deck Part 2: Gathering Examples With Slack
  • Remove the following labels from your issue as you complete them:
    • status: needs slack examples
    • Phase: 1 - Gather Examples Solo
  • Congrats! You have completed Part 2: Gathering Examples with Slack
    • Go to Phase 2 - Gather Examples Collaboratively and copy and copy it below
      Use this deck Part 3: Connecting with Other Teams & Moving the Conversation Forward

Remove the following labels from your issue as you complete them:

• status: needs communication with teams

Congrats you have completed Part 2: Gathering Examples with Slack

• Go to Making Example Issues + Last Check with Admin and copy the next steps, into the next comment.

[Nat-nn]

Meeting notes @sanya301 What is the best way to structure documents?

[sanya301]

@Nat-nn Add them to our Google drive and put a link in your issue

[ExperimentsInHonesty]

@Nat-nn let's talk about this at the next GreenEarthOS meeting. I think we have enough examples now to get started making this guide.

[JesseTheCleric]

Prior version of issue

Overview

We need to create a guide for Brand Book so that teams can have consistent messaging for their project

Action Items

• Gather examples of how other Hack for LA projects or volunteers have done this (if applicable), adding each example as a link in the resources section below
  • If the guidance you received from the teams that have done this practice was not sufficient, remove the "Guide: Gather Examples" label and add the "Guide: Research" label
• Research existing information about [name of item] in [relevant resources, articles, etc.]
  • Once done, evaluate if the guide requires a template. If it does then
  • if yes, remove the "Guide: Research" label and add the "Guide: Draft Template" label
    • Create a draft template
      • Once done, remove the "Guide: Draft Template" label and add the "Guide: Draft Guide" label
  • if no, remove the "Guide: Research" label and add the "Guide: Draft Guide" label
    Create a draft guide, either in markdown format in this issue or a google doc in the ux/ui google drive
  • Once done, remove the "Guide: Draft Guide" label and add the "Guide: Needs Peer Review" label
• Review the guide with UX/UI community of practice
  • Once done, remove the "Guide: Needs Peer Review" label and add the "Guide: Leadership Review" label
• Present to the Hack for LA leadership team for sign off
  • Once approved, remove the "Guide: Leadership Review" label and add the "Guide: ready publication" label

Resources

Update issue #97 with the name of item you are working on

Projects to check

• 100 Automations
• 311 Data
• Access the Data
• BallotNav
• Brigade Organizer's Playbook
• Civic Tech Index
• Civic Tech Jobs
• Civic Tech Structure
• Data Science Projects
• Design Systems
• Engage
• Expunge-Assist (formerly known as Record Clearance)
• Food Oasis
• GreenEarthOS
  • All issues related to their branding exercise
  • Figma file where branding exercise is

Screenshot of brand exercise

• Guides
• HomeUniteUs
• Internship project
  • logo, color pallet , typography, branding initial work internship#68 (started with this issue)
  • Create Brand Values internship#95 (epic for team contribution)
  • Branding Exercise: Rabia Shaikh internship#81 (sample issue that should have been broken down into multiple issues)
  • Refine the mission statement internship#99
  • [draft] Google search our brand attributes and taglines- to see results. internship#98
  • Review usecases for the project internship#97
  • UserTesting for our two domain names for the Internship Project internship#96
  • Design System: Create logo internship#28
• Lucky Parking
• Open Community Survey
• TDM Calculator
• VRMS
• Hack for LA's Website
• Youth Justice Nav

Examples from projects both inside and outside HfLA

Taglines

Feeding America- A hunger-free America
Make-A-Wish: That people everywhere will share the power of a wish
Habitat for Humanity: A world where everyone has a decent place to live
Airbnb- “Belong Anywhere.”
HfLA Internship Project: Where Learning STEMS from Doing

This guide links

• Brand Book folder

Details

[JesseTheCleric]

Assignee, Labels, Project Board Placement, and Milestones for this issue in the UI/UX Repo:

Details

[JesseTheCleric]

Files in this Issue:

Brand Book folder

• This file will need to be moved to the knowledgebase-content Google Drive
• File was moved to knowledgebase-content Google Drive

[ExperimentsInHonesty]

UI/UX cop folder access granted