Brand identity documentation: a cross‐national examination of identity standards manuals

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify the key features of an identity standards manual and assess the differences in the rules used for applying the brand to both low‐ and high‐context cultures, companies selling consumer goods and those selling services, and multinational and local companies.Design/methodology/approachThe methodology is based on the analysis of 341 identity standards manuals and on the analysis of three key features found in the manuals: contents, normative tone, and development.FindingsThe results divide the contents of the manual into two blocks: core and peripheral; and show that there are differences between the manuals of high‐ and low‐context cultures, comp…