Branding studio
Free Branding Proposal Template
A free brand identity proposal template with brand strategy, logo and visual identity system, brand guidelines, a phased timeline, and milestone pricing.
Direct answer
A free brand identity proposal template with brand strategy, logo and visual identity system, brand guidelines, a phased timeline, and milestone pricing.
Best for
- Branding studio creating a client-ready proposal
- Service teams that need branding scope, pricing, timeline, and terms in one document
- Visitors who want to fill a proposal template before creating an account
Brand Identity Proposal
A complete plan to define the brand strategy, design the visual identity system, and deliver clear brand guidelines.
- Prepared for
- Jordan AveryOwner, Cedar Lane Coffee Roasters
- Valid until
- Jun 17, 2026
A brand that matches the coffee and the expansion
Cedar Lane Coffee Roasters has outgrown a brand it built in its first year and now needs an identity that matches the quality of its product and the ambition of its retail expansion. Maypole Brand Studio will define a clear brand strategy, design a flexible visual identity system, and deliver brand guidelines the team can apply with confidence across packaging, retail, and digital.
One approved brand system used everywhere within 60 days
The current brand reads as a side project rather than a category leader. Logo usage is inconsistent, the color and type choices do not hold up across packaging and signage, and the team has no guidelines to keep new materials on brand.
Maypole Brand Studio will run a focused brand engagement that sets positioning and messaging, designs a complete identity system with logo, color, type, and core assets, and packages everything into practical brand guidelines for the team to use.
Success Metrics
- Brand consistency
- Current
- Inconsistent logo and color usage across touchpoints
- Target
- Single approved system applied everywhere within 60 days
- Shelf recognition
- Current
- Packaging blends in with competitors
- Target
- Distinctive packaging that stands out on the shelf
- Team self-sufficiency
- Current
- Every new asset needs a designer from scratch
- Target
- Team produces on-brand materials from guidelines
You approve direction at a working session each phase
A grounded strategy-then-design process for a growing consumer brand that needs both a clear point of view and a system that scales across packaging, retail, and digital.
Client Dependencies
- Access to founders for a strategy and positioning session
- Timely feedback from one decision owner per round
- Product details, story, and any existing customer research
- Final product names and any required label or legal copy
Logo system and packaging included but no website or photography
In Scope
- Brand strategy workshop, positioning, and messaging direction
- Primary logo, secondary marks, and a responsive logo system
- Color palette, typography, and core brand elements
- Packaging and retail application of the identity
- Brand guidelines document and asset handoff
Out of Scope
- Full packaging die-line production for every product line
- Website design and front-end development
- Photography and video production
- Print runs, signage fabrication, and third-party license fees
Success Prerequisites
- One consolidated feedback round per milestone
- Client confirms product names and label copy before system build
- Final guidelines review is scheduled before handoff week
Strategy to guidelines handoff in 10 weeks
- ·Brand strategy platform
- ·Visual identity system
- ·Brand applications
- ·Brand guidelines and asset package
A specialty food brand's team now extends its own system
Team Members
Leads strategy, creative direction, and client working sessions.
Owns logo design, the type and color system, and application detail.
Case Studies
Rebuilt the brand strategy and identity system around a clearer point of view and a packaging look designed to stand out on the shelf.
Created a flexible identity and guidelines that unified signage, print, and social into one recognizable brand.
Differentiators
- Strategy and design led by one accountable brand owner
- Positioning, identity, scope, and pricing aligned from the first draft
- Guidelines built for the team to actually use, not just admire
One fixed price from strategy through guidelines handoff
Net 15
Pre-approved expenses are billed at cost.
Fees
Strategy workshop, positioning, messaging direction, audience priorities, and creative brief.
Logo system, color palette, typography, core brand elements, and concept directions refined to a final route.
Packaging, retail, collateral, and digital touchpoints showing the identity applied in real contexts.
Brand guidelines document, usage rules, and production-ready logo and asset files.
Payment schedule
A founder strategy session opens the engagement
- 1Accept the proposal and sign the agreementCedar Lane Coffee Roasters
- 2Send product details and any existing customer researchCedar Lane Coffee Roasters
- 3Book the founder strategy and positioning sessionMaypole Brand Studio
Source ledger
What's inside this free branding proposal template
This branding proposal template is a complete, editable example for design studios pitching a brand identity engagement. It covers brand strategy and positioning, logo and visual identity design, brand applications, guidelines delivery, and phased fixed pricing tied to milestones. Use it as a starting structure, then replace the sample content with your engagement specifics.
- A brand strategy and positioning phase
- Visual identity system: logo, color, and typography
- Brand applications such as packaging and collateral
- A brand guidelines deliverable with asset handoff
- Milestone payments tied to direction approval and handoff
How to use this branding proposal template
Preview the full example above, then open it in InkDraft to make it yours. Replace the sample strategy with your discovery findings, adjust the identity deliverables and applications to match the engagement, and set the milestone fees. When the proposal reads the way you want it, send it for review and signature or export a PDF.
Template questions
What should a branding proposal include?
A strong branding proposal covers brand strategy and positioning, the visual identity system (logo, color, and typography), brand applications like packaging and collateral, a brand guidelines deliverable, a phased timeline, and clear fixed pricing tied to milestones. It also sets scope boundaries, client responsibilities, and IP ownership terms so both sides know what is included before work starts.
How do you price brand identity work?
Most studios price brand identity as fixed project fees rather than hourly, broken into phases such as strategy, identity design, applications, and guidelines. Anchor each phase fee to its deliverables, then tie payment to milestones (for example 40 percent on acceptance, 40 percent on direction approval, and 20 percent at handoff) so cash flow follows progress and the client always sees value before the next payment.
What goes into brand guidelines?
Brand guidelines document how the identity is used: logo variations and clear-space rules, color specifications, the type system, core brand elements, and do and do-not examples, plus production-ready logo and asset files. Good guidelines let the client's own team produce on-brand materials without going back to the designer for every new asset.
How many revisions should a branding proposal allow?
Define revisions by milestone rather than leaving them open-ended. A common approach is one consolidated feedback round per phase, with the client routing all comments through a single decision owner. State this in the proposal so unlimited revision requests do not erode the fixed fee, and note that work outside the agreed rounds is billed separately.