Brand basics for small charities

This guide is for small charities choosing a name, making a first logo, or tidying up a look that has grown messy over the years. You don't need a designer or a big budget to have a clear, trustworthy brand. After reading, you will know what a brand really is, how to choose a name and simple visual style, how to stay consistent, and how to make sure everyone can read what you publish.

What a brand is (and isn't)

Your brand is what people think and feel when they hear your charity's name. It is shaped by everything: how you treat people, what you say, and how you look. A logo is only a small part of it.

For a small charity, a good brand does three jobs:

• Helps people recognize you quickly
• Helps people trust you
• Makes it easy for volunteers to produce materials that look like they belong together

Choosing a name

If you are naming a new charity or a program, a good name is:

• Easy to say and spell. Imagine someone hearing it once on the radio and trying to find you online.
• Clear or memorable. It either says what you do ("Riverside Food Pantry") or is easy to remember and explain.
• Not too narrow. A name tied to one street or one service can feel limiting if you grow.
• Respectful. Ask some of the people you serve how the name sounds to them. Avoid names that pity or label people.
• Available. Check that it isn't already used by another organization.

Checking a name is available

• Search the web and social media for the name.
• Check your state's business or charity registry, usually on your secretary of state's website.
• Check whether the website domain is free.
• Search the federal trademark database. A trademark is a name, logo or slogan that identifies who provides goods or services. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) offers a free online search of registered and pending trademarks.

A simple logo

A logo is a small symbol or styled version of your name. Simple is best.

• Make it work small. It must still be readable on a phone screen or a social media profile picture.
• Make it work in one color. It should look right in black on white, white on a dark background, and in your main color.
• Avoid fine detail, thin lines and lots of text.
• Create a few versions: a full version with your name, a square or round version for social media, and a one-color version.
• Save the original files in a shared folder the charity owns, not on one volunteer's laptop.

If a volunteer or freelancer designs your logo, ask for a short written agreement saying the charity owns the design and can use and change it freely.

Colors

Choose a small palette:

• One main color that people will associate with you
• One or two accent colors for highlights and buttons
• A dark neutral (near-black or dark gray) for text
• A light neutral (white or off-white) for backgrounds

Write down the exact color codes (often a six-character "hex" code like #1A4D8F) so everyone uses the same shades.

Contrast: can everyone read it?

Contrast is how much your text stands out from its background. Low contrast, like light gray text on white or yellow on white, is hard to read for many people, including people with low vision, older readers, and anyone reading a phone in sunlight.

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), the international standard for accessible web content, ask for a contrast ratio of at least 4.5 to 1 for normal text and 3 to 1 for large text. You don't need to calculate this. Free tools like the WebAIM Contrast Checker tell you if two colors pass.

• Use dark text on light backgrounds for body text.
• Test your main and accent colors against white and against your dark neutral before you commit.
• Don't use color alone to share meaning. WCAG says color shouldn't be the only way you show information. For example, don't mark required form fields only in red; add a word or symbol too.

Fonts

• Choose one or two fonts: one for headings, one for body text, or just one for both.
• Pick fonts that are easy to read at small sizes, with clear letter shapes.
• Avoid script or decorative fonts for anything longer than a few words.
• Use a comfortable text size, especially for older readers and printed flyers.

Consistency: a one-page style guide

A style guide is a short document that tells volunteers how to use your brand. One page is enough:

• Your name, written correctly (and how not to write it)
• Your one-sentence message
• Logo versions and when to use each
• Color codes
• Fonts
• A few words about your tone: for example, "warm, plain, respectful, never pitying"
• Rules for photos: consent, dignity, no stock images that pretend to be your community

Share it with everyone who makes materials. Consistency builds recognition and trust over time.

Free and low-cost tools

• Online design tools with free plans and templates can help volunteers make social posts and flyers. Some offer nonprofit programs; see our free and discounted tech guide.
• Free contrast checkers, like WebAIM's.
• Free font libraries from reputable sources. Check the license allows your use.
• Shared folders for logo files and templates, so nobody has to recreate them.

Templates are your best friend. Make one for social posts, one for flyers and one for letters, and volunteers will use them.

Your brand checklist

• Check your name with web, state, domain and USPTO searches
• Create a simple logo that works small and in one color
• Get written confirmation that the charity owns the logo
• Choose a small color palette and record the codes
• Test your colors with a contrast checker
• Pick one or two readable fonts
• Write a one-page style guide
• Store logos and templates in a shared folder the charity owns

A clear, consistent and readable brand helps people find you, trust you and support you. Keep it simple, and let your work do the rest.

If you want design feedback or help with a logo, ask a member charity for help through the Exchange.

General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules change and every situation is different, so check the official sources and talk to a qualified professional before you act.