Brand Guidelines

Neutral colors

Our neutrals are available to complement our main color palette. Black and white can be used sparingly.

Tints & Shades

Tints and shades of our main colors can be used to create accessible brand images when higher contrast is needed.

Headings MARTEL SANS (Black 900)

Sub Headings & Body Copy

Poppins is a geometric font style that is clean, modern and professional. It is versatile and used for both our subheadings and our body copy just by changing the weight of the font. It is important for us to use a highly readable font with style to continue our dedication to accessibility.

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Available in all Google apps and for download, free of charge, from Google Fonts.

Download Martel Sans from Google Fonts

Download Poppins from Google Fonts

Turn on Poppins in Adobe Fonts (License Required)

Text to Background Color Contrast

Based on WACG guidelines AA minimum standards text and images of text need to have a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1.

Large-scale text (18pt – typically 24px – and larger, or 14pt – typically 18.66px -and larger if bold) can have a minimum contrast ratio of 3:1.

If you are ever unsure check color contrast through WebAIM Contrast Checker Tool.

Below is an example of approved color combinations with our brand colors:

Standard Text Contrast Checked (17px – Minimum Contrast 4.5:1)

Large Text Contrast Checked (20px Bold – Minimum Contrast 3:1)

Additional accessibilities guidelines live in our Editorial Guidelines here.

Logo Usage

When displayed on a white or neutral light background our Icon Logo may be displayed in color using our blues and teals as background “sky” colors. Our chicken’s coloring should remain unchanged.

Our Emblem Logo and Icon Wordmark Logo may also be displayed in its outline-only format and it should always be displayed at a size where you can easily read the surrounding text. When using the logos outline please select a brand color that provides adequate contrast to the background it is being displayed on.

Core Values

Authenticity

The main purpose of our marketplace is to make sales of authentic handmade goods that support artisan livelihoods. 

Compassion 

Artisans should be celebrated and treated with the utmost respect. We will keep the artisans’ best interest at the forefront of our decisions.

Trust

We seek to be transparent and honest with all who come to our marketplace. Trust cannot be built with words alone. We will regularly reach out to our community and incorporate community feedback in our democratic decision-making. 

Diversity

We actively seek input from all backgrounds. Diversity is crucial to our success, because it is how we continue to learn and grow as an organization.

Positivity

We want to be the flashlight illuminating a dark path. We can recognize injustice while also providing a way to be successful despite it.

Impact

We are motivated to provide a fair and empowering alternative that enables artisans to achieve financial independence and security.  

Personas

Artisans Cooperative Personality

When writing as the Artisans Cooperative, or on its behalf, try to embody the following qualities in your writing: 

Confident 

We are confident in what we can achieve and have a lot of knowledge to offer, but in a way that is comfortable and friendly. We would rather plant a seed and let it grow than dig a large hole and insert a fully-grown tree. 

Playful

While competent and professional, we also have a deep enjoyment of play. This is shown often in the illustrations of our mascot, Brook the Chicken. We prefer to work in a less-formal environment.

Approachable

We are easy to engage with and are able to seamlessly travel between different groups. There are no “dumb questions” for us and we focus on helping others without making them feel uncomfortable.

Engaged

Our playfulness doesn’t take away from our focus. While we may meander a bit conversationally, we remember to stay on point.

Optimistic

The confidence and drive that keeps us optimistic is contagious to those we interact with. People feel motivated and energized after being around us instead of disenfranchised. 

Audience Personas

When writing content or copy, keep the personalities and interests of our audience in mind. Do your best to anticipate their questions and answer them preemptively. Audience Personas are kept in the Marketing Strategy and/or Target Personas. 

Brand Voice

The Artisans Cooperative has a professional, casual, and friendly voice. Reading our writing should be like hearing information from a knowledgeable friend. 

Avoid jargon, cliches, and idioms

Sometimes our knowledgeable friend knows much more than we do. When explaining things to our audience, it’s important to make sure that the information we provide is usable. It’s also important to keep in mind that we have a global audience; colloquialisms and idioms don’t translate well in tools like Google Translate.

Professional doesn’t mean unapproachable

As a business in a creative industry, it is important to balance professionalism with originality. While our language may err on the side of formality, it doesn’t mean that it’s cold or unapproachable.

Always inclusive

“Seek ways to place the ‘other’ in the center of things … Try not to present the privileged, tech-savvy, wealthy, able-bodied, white, cis-gendered, anglo-centric male experience as ‘standard’ and everything else as ‘other’ or ‘diverse.'” (Beth Dunn). 

Learn how to avoid unnecessarily discriminatory language by reading these resources:

• Inclusive Language: How to Use It and Promote It At Your Organization
• A Human Approach to Product Content
• The Conscious Style Guide

Common concerns: 

• Use “they/them” pronouns as the default for unknown parties 
• Avoid unnecessarily gendered language like “manpower” 
• Avoid ableist language such as “hysterical” or “crazy”, or calling someone with disabilities “inspirational”
• Avoid cultural appropriation and microaggressions like the use of words like “tribe” (like-minded people), “pow-wow” (meeting), or “spirit animal”(referring to something you connect with).

Show, don’t tell expertise

The information we provide should add value to our users’ lives, and our expertise should be shown, not told. Cite as much information from reliable external sources as possible and practical. 

Edit for readability and translation tools

We aim for writing to be at the 8th-grade reading level. Writing should be simple and straightforward for both readability and to create reliable translations in tools like Google Translate. Simplify sentences. Avoid passive voice. Edit down all writing to its essential meaning. The Hemingway editor is a tool that can help demonstrate how to pare down writing in this way, but should be used with common sense and not as the final say. 

Positive tone

If dealing with a negative topic, be sure to focus on the solutions and not the problems. 

Incorporate our values

Keep in mind the Core Values of Artisans Cooperative in writing. 

Importance of “We” 

Make strategic use of “we/us” thereby building a sense of collective ownership and mutualism as a cooperative.

Write to our audience

Keep the Brand Personas in mind and write each piece towards them as if they were an audience in front of you as you give a presentation. 

Writing Stylebook

We use the Chicago Manual of Style, with some exceptions noted below. When in doubt, err on the side of formality.

A quick reference guide to notable relevant entries is provided below:

Dimensions 

“When writing about height, weight or other dimensions, use figures and spell out words such as feet, miles, etc. Examples: She is 5-foot-3. He wrote with a 2-inch pencil.”

Commas

• In lists, we use the Oxford comma. That is the final comma before the and. It is used to avoid confusion. Example: He bought milk, eggs, cheese, bread, and butter. 
• Commas and periods go inside quotations. Reference guide. 

Numerals

“When referring to money, use numerals. For cents or amounts of $1 million or more, spell the words cents, million, billion, trillion etc. Examples: $26.52, $100,200, $8 million, 6 cents.”

Exceptions

Names

Use a person’s preferred name (or alias) as it was presented to the writer. 

For some, that may be a first and last name. If so, the first time they are mentioned in a story, use both. Through the rest of the piece, we default to first names. 

Do not use courtesy titles such as Mr., Mrs., Miss or Ms. unless they are specified by the person, part of a direct quotation, or needed to differentiate between people who have the same last name.

Commonly-used terms and phrases 

• Artisan not artist. Artist may be used when in a list of example professions (Example: “Our Artisans include makers, crafters, designers, illustrators, and artists”), but never as a replacement for the word Artisan.    
• e-commerce not ecommerce
• cooperative not co-operative
• co-op not coop (in title case: Co-op) when using the generic shortened term for a cooperative and not our chicken-themed nickname, “the Coop”
• Members are Artisans, Supporters, and Staff, and their definitions are in the AC Ownership Model Canvas 2.28.23

Brand Names

Primary and first use

✅ Artisans Cooperative 

Secondary use

These names can be used in informal communications or outreach for audiences that are already familiar with Artisans Cooperative:

✅ Artisans Co-op

✅ the Coop
Example: “The Artisans Cooperative helps artisans sell their handmade goods. Everyone is welcome at the Coop!”

✅ artisans.coop
When referencing or writing anything that looks like our website, always use the correct spelling and nomenclature: artisans plural. Be aware that autocorrect may try to turn .coop into .com. 

Do not use

🚫 AC

🚫 The A/C

🚫 The Artisans Cooperative

🚫 Artist Cooperative

🚫 art.coop

🚫 artisan.coop