Digital brand Book

purpose

To support entrepreneurs & invest in innovative companies, so that we can solve world problems & responsibly generate returns.

vision

A world where the solution to problems can be tested and developed through entrepeneurship.
We aspire to be the best VC fund, of early-stage Portuguese digital startups.

Values

• Growth - Investment return resulting from startups growth.
• Ethics - Be commited to the agreements and don’t compromise the ethics.
• Responsibility - Be responsible with investors money and startup dreams.
• Knowledge - To provide wisdom and support from VC experience & background.
• Success - To struggle and be commited with startups success.

Positioning

We help founders who seeks funding & support to achieve sustainable growth. Our team is made of engineers with entrepeneurship experience and proven track record.

tagline

Growing seeds into forests

Archetypes

The Hero (main) looks to make a difference in the world by seeking to overcome major problems. They have a core desire for mastery and inspire others to push themselves. The Hero is admired by those who appreciate the self-sacrifice, stamina and courage required to triumph over adversity and evil. A Hero brand portray success through hard work and effort and meet challenges head-on. They are proud that their work sets them apart and see their work as essential and empowering.
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The Sage (secondary) seeks knowledge and wisdom and believes that truth will set you free. They look empower others to change the world by seeking out valuable information and sharing it. They are often life-long learners and thought leaders and make excellent mentors. Possessing a high need for autonomy, the sage values learning for its own sake because it allows for detachment from the masses and the capacity to remain objective.

tone of Voice

• moderately respectful
• neutral formality
• highly enthusiastic
• neutral humour

We're casual, but we're not informal or disrespectful.
We're enthusiastic & positive, but we're not naive or unprepared.

attitudes

We love innovation because we seek new solutions to world problems.
We hate stagnation because it blocks our creativity & growth.

Visual Identity Kit

• Logos
• Symbol
• Color Palette
• Fonts
• Icons
• Pattern Rapports
• Graphic Elements
• Photography

Digital

• Social Media
• E-Signatures
• Presentation Template
• Footer Badges
• Audiovisual

Offline

• Small Format
• Big Format

meaning behind the logo

The symbol represents growth, boldness and establishment. The arrow, which is always pointing upwards, represents the potential and knowledge that M4 Ventures gives to the startups that invests in, opening doors to growth and internationalization. The arrow is cut out as a differentiating factor and makes the symbol easily recognizable. The boldness of the logo is not only related to the physical and financial growth of the startups, but also to the strong values of ethics written on our DNA.

Logo variations

There are 3 logo variations.

• The main logo should be used primarily in almost every situation;
• The usage of secondary logo is allowed for environments where most of the audience knows M4 Ventures (in first years), after that this usage rules should be reviewed;
• The tertiary it's for other specific situations. The usage of this version for communications for Brazilian-Portuguese speakers are not allowed.

chromatic logo

This chromatic version of the logo should be used only in light backgrounds that do not jeopardise its visibility.

monochromatic logo

The monochromatic version of the logo should be used only in dark backgrounds that do not jeopardise its visibility.

Logo composition

Our logo it's composed by the symbol, an arrow, that represents growth, boldness and establishment. And the wordmark, highlighting always the "M4".

minimum size allowed

To maintain the visibility of our logo, it can be reduced to a minimum of 3mm (height) for print and 8px on screen. It is allowed, in some cases, to use only the symbol to represent the brand.

clear space

Clear space ensures the legibility and impact of the logo by isolating it from competing visual elements, such as text or supporting graphics. This space should be considered the absolute minimum, and should be equal to the size of the symbol.

dont's

Don’t stretch the logo.
Don’t deconstruct the logo.
Don't add elements.
Don’t use a gradient.
‍Only use the original logo versions available.

Color palette

Our palette should always be respected. The greens should be used as main colors, grainsboro in most cases as a background, and the other two for the wordmark "VENTURES" on the logo. Color variations are allowed, see them in the online color palette.

fonts used

Two font families are used across our range of communications:
Clash Display Medium for headlines and Archive Regular for subheads and body copy.

headline rules

The headline for any of our artworks should be always in capital letters, use only the medium weight, and use +2% tracking.

Proportions

After determining the headline base size, it should be resized using the Golden Ratio (1,618) proportion, multiplying the base size by 1,618 and so on.

Title vs paragraph Proportion

Proportions consistency is important to keep brand aesthetics, in every artwork headlines under 26pt should use body copy of 21pt, above 26pt should be use a body text size of 26pt dimensions.

Graphic elements

patterns

title dimensions

To determine the size of the title on a layout, it should be scaled until 2 lines of text reaches 15% to 20% of the smaller artwork side. If the title only have one line the percentage of occupation should be 5% to 10%.

See an example in the image.

basic composition rules

In order to maintain the visual identity consistent, we use this basic grid and the size percentage that should be respected.
For communication and marketing purposes the message should be simple and clear. In the case of using images, they should be always full bleed, if they're partial it should have the cut effect.

For horizontal artworks elements proportions should be consistent across all of our communications.

See all layout settings for web design on this Figma file.

Photo Cut effect

The cut effect should be used every time it's possible because it's a characteristic that empowers the visual identity.
It should be a perfect 45º cut on the corner of a photo.

dont's

Don't use titles in vertical.
Don't use the photos without the cut effect when it's possible.
Don't use margins in full background images, always use them full bleed.

social media

In the link you can find a set of social media posts templates that you can use for multiple purposes. For this matter there are available assets for social media posts, social media profile pictures, cover photos and e-signatures for email.
If you need to make adjustments or a new template, don't forget to use always the composition rules as well as the general aesthetics of M4 Ventures visual identity.

We recommend that all collaborators use the profile picture adapted to the visual identity of M4 Ventures as well as the cover photo.

other digital applications

In addition to all other assets, you will also find the email e-signature. For this purpose the photo should have the cut effect as well as the logo symbol.

Posters and outdoors

There are basically 3 types of poster and outdoors. All graphical, half photo with cut effect and full bleed single photo background.

Other offline applications

In this case we created an ID badge for a possible M4 Ventures event and to show some important details of our visual Identity. Every time it's possible and there's a profile picture, you should use the cut effect and the logo symbol. Other detail it's the secondary logo, as this is an event that supposedly everyone knows M4 Ventures, the usage of this version is allowed.

For merchandising the usage of graphic elements and alternative slogans it's really important in order to create awareness on various graphic elements and approaches. Use the variety of graphic elements available or even create new ones!

Photography Moodboard

To keep the visual consistency you should use this moodboards as an inspiration. The main feeling about M4 Ventures photography should be comfortable environment, challenge, hard working, thinking forward and prosperity.

framework rules

There are 2 rules of photographic framework. One is centered and the other its aligned to the left/right but out of the "Rule of thirds".