Applying the brand

Brand Guidelines

Consistent and clear communication improves TxDOT’s brand by building trust. To aid in this, Creative Services maintains templates for a variety of communications materials including:

Business cards
Letterhead
Memos
Newsletters
Presentations
Virtual backgrounds
Public involvement templates
Reports and manuals
Videos
Email signatures, and more

Best practices for applying the brand

Follow typography best practices.
Follow logo use guidelines.
Use approved TxDOT color palettes.
Use approved brand templates.
The red line is a supporting element for anchoring or dividing content areas.
Do NOT use clip art graphics.

Brand templates

Employees can access brand templates from the organization's intranet.
Vendors should request brand templates from their TxDOT point of contact.
Do not share brand templates on TxDOT.gov. All templates should be located on the organization's intranet.

Before you begin

TxDOT provides approved brand templates to help employees and contractors create consistent, compliant materials quickly and efficiently. Always start with an official template when one is available.

Brand templates are available on the TxDOT’s intranet. Contractors may request templates from their TxDOT point of contact.

Use an official template if you are creating:

Presentations, memos, reports, or meeting materials
Brochures, flyers, newsletters
Posters, signs, banners, or event materials

What you can change

Templates are flexible frameworks, not fixed, one-size-only documents. You’re encouraged to tailor the content within the template, but not alter the logo, colors, fonts, or page layout.

Content. Edit or add text, sections, and pages so you can say everything your audience needs to know.
Arrangement of content. Reorder or duplicate content in the template (like text boxes, images, callouts, and icons) keeping their built-in fonts, colors, sizes, and spacing.
Images. Use photos if they meet TxDOT's photography guidelines.
Icons and graphics: Use editorial or reference icons. Additional graphics or icons must adhere to brand guidelines.
Length. Extend a template to fit your content (example, a one-page fact sheet becomes a two-page fact sheet) with the layout, fonts, colors, and spacing unchanged.

What stays the same

The logo. Its design, color, proportions, and placement on the page.
Brand colors and brand fonts. Use only the ones already in the template.
The page layout. Margins, columns, and the position of the header and footer.
Visual styling. No drop shadows, or special effects, gradients, clip art, or non-brand elements.