October 2017. V1.

The Economist Group

Brand style guide
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 2

CONTENTS

Brand elements
3. Our brand

4. About us

7. Typography

13. Logos and positioning

22. Colour

25. Signature element

26. Illustrative style

27. Iconography

29. User interface components

30. E-newsletters


The Economist Group – Brand style guide 3

OUR BRAND

Who we are.
Many people think The Economist is only about economics.
It’s not. It’s about pretty much everything.
From politics to business and finance, from science and technology
to the arts—we bring our readers clear analysis of the issues that lie
behind each week’s global news stories. We satisfy the naturally
curious with a distilled view of world affairs that is intelligent,
insightful and thought-provoking. Whatever is happening across the
globe, we have an opinion on it. Which is why we tell our readers:
The Economist is your essential guide to the events and issues that
are shaping our world.
Ever since our launch in 1843, we’ve maintained a fiercely
independent editorial stance, believing in the freedom of the
individual, the freedom of markets and the free exchange of
knowledge and ideas. It’s no wonder that JFK and Mandela were
numbered amongst our readers. In today’s world we continue to
promote the same essential freedoms—and challenge wherever
we see them being denied.
Because of this strong, journalistic point of view, we continue to
regard ourselves as a weekly news publication—never a mere
magazine. With all the professional rigour that implies.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 4

OUR BRAND

About us.
The Economist was established in 1843 by James Wilson, a hatmaker from
the small Scottish town of Hawick, to campaign against the protectionist
Corn Laws. The tariffs were repealed in 1846 but the newspaper lived on as a
“a political, literary, and general newspaper”, never abandoning its belief in free
trade, internationalism and minimum interference by government, especially
in the affairs of the market. (It did, however, abandon the Oxford comma.)
The Corn Laws, which by taxing and restricting imports of grain made bread
expensive and starvation common, were bad for Britain. Free trade, in Wilson's
view, was good for everyone. Wilson believed “that reason is given to us to sit
in judgment over the dictates of our feelings”. Reason convinced him in
particular that Adam Smith was right, and that through its invisible hand the
market benefited profit-seeking individuals and society alike. Wilson was
himself a manufacturer and wanted especially to influence “men of business”.
Accordingly, he insisted that all the arguments and propositions put forward
in his paper should be based on fact and rigour. That was why he called it
The Economist.
Though Wilson founded The Economist, the newspaper’s greatest editor was
his son-in-law, Walter Bagehot (pronounced BAJ-ut), who was the paper’s third
editor, from 1861 to 1877. He broadened the range of the paper into politics;
he was also responsible for greatly strengthening the interest in America that
The Economist has always shown. The paper’s influence grew under his
editorship. One British foreign secretary, Lord Granville, said that whenever
he felt uncertain, he liked to wait and see what the next issue of The Economist
had to say. A later admirer of Bagehot’s was Woodrow Wilson, president of the
United States from 1913 to 1921.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 5

OUR BRAND

Another remarkable editor was appointed in 1922: Walter Layton, whose

achievement, in the words of The Economist’s historian, Ruth Dudley Edwards,
was to ensure that the paper was “read widely in the corridors of power abroad
as well as at home”, a reputation it continues to enjoy today. His successor,
Geoffrey Crowther, developed and improved the coverage of foreign affairs
(especially with regard to America) and business.
From its earliest days, The Economist had looked abroad, both for subjects to
write about and for readers. Even in the 1840s it had subscribers in continental
Europe and America. By 1938 half its sales were outside Britain. Crowther’s
great innovation was to start a section devoted to American affairs, which
he did just after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour in December 1941.
The “American Survey” section (renamed “United States” in 1997) was aimed
not at Americans but at British readers who, Crowther believed, needed to
know more about their new allies. In time, however, it earned a following in the
United States too.
For most of its existence The Economist was content with a small readership.
When Bagehot stood down as editor, circulation was just 3,700, and by 1920 it
had climbed to only 6,000. After the second world war it rose rapidly, but from
a base of barely 18,000. When Crowther left it stood at only 55,000, not
reaching 100,000 until 1970. Today circulation is 1.5m, more than four-fifths of
it outside Britain. Subscribers in the United States and Canada account for 57%
of the total.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 6

OUR BRAND

In recent decades the paper has added sections devoted to Europe, Asia,
Latin America, China, and science and technology. It has also expanded
coverage of books, arts and culture, and introduced columns on financial
markets (Buttonwood), business (Schumpeter), Asian politics (Banyan)
and Latin America (Bello).
The Economist has also been active in its pursuit of new readers on digital
platforms. The newspaper started publishing online in 1996, and has more
recently launched a daily news app (Espresso), a bilingual English-Chinese
product (Global Business Review) and a virtual-reality app (Economist VR).
Economist Radio produces several podcasts a week, and Economist Films
produces short- and long-form video. The social-media department maintains
widely followed accounts on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat, LINE,
Medium and other social networks.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 7

CORE ELEMENTS – MILO SERIF TYPEFACE

Typography Milo Serif Text

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
Milo Serif
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
Use old style numbering as default. Use with
kerning set to metrics, tracking set to zero and 1234567890!@£$%^&*();:’,.”/?
discretionary ligatures turned off.

Set leading according to the point size. As a

guide it should be set at 120% of the font size, Milo Serif Medium
e.g. 8/9.6 (120%) or 10/12 (120%).
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
Milo Serif Text (old style)
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
For use on body copy at or below 11pt.
Do not set body copy below 7pt. 1234567890!@£$%^&*();:’,.”/?
Milo Serif Medium (old style)
For use on headlines above 18pt, primarily
for print. Milo Serif Medium links well visually
Milo Serif Bold
with the heritage of The Economist while abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
introducing the new serif family.

Milo Serif Bold (old style)

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
For use on headlines at 18pt and below, 1234567890!@£$%^&*();:’,.”/?
primarily online and to ensure hierarchy when
placed on smaller banners and in close proximity
to subheadings.

Web Safe fonts

Georgia (serif) and Helvetica (sans serif)
are used as web safe fonts.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide
CORE ELEMENTS – ECON SANS TYPEFACE
Typography
Econ Sans
For use on all subheadings and navigational
elements (such as section openers, fly titles,
page numbers, date lines, metadata,
captions and calls-to-action). Also to be
used for subscription information and
resubscription channels.
To be used with kerning set to metrics and
tracking set to zero. Do not set navigation or
subscription copy below 7pt.
For longer sections of copy, the leading
should be set at 120% of the font size, e.g.
8/9.6 (120%) or 10/12 (120%).
Use old style numbering as default. Only use
aligned figures (set to proportional lining)
where old style is unsuitable.
Primary: Old-style figures.
Secondary: aligned figures (proportional lining).
Primary: Old-style figures.
Secondary: aligned figures (proportional lining).
Primary: Old-style figures.
Secondary: aligned figures (proportional lining).
8
Econ Sans Regular
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&*();:’,.”/?
1234567890!@£$%^&*();:’,.”/?
Econ Sans Medium
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&*();:’,.”/?
1234567890!@£$%^&*();:’,.”/?
Econ Sans Bold
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&*();:’,.”/?
1234567890!@£$%^&*();:’,.”/?
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 9

CORE ELEMENTS – LOGO

Logo – print x x
Our logo is provided in vector format.
Use only the artwork provided. Never
create your own, stretch, distort or alter
the logo in any way.
x
Clear space
The exclusion zone shown around the
logo is 1/2 the height of the logo. This clear x
space ensures the logo does not become
overwhelmed by other elements.

Minimum size
x x
To ensure legibility, the logo must not be Print: minimum clear space
reproduced at a size smaller than 6mm. 1/2 logo height.

Colour
Logo typeface: Eco Tilting
6mm minimum.
Eco Red print: Pantone 485c
Eco Red print: CMYK 100m/100y
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 10

CORE ELEMENTS – LOGO

Logo – digital x x
Our logo is provided in vector format. x
Use only the artwork provided. Never
create your own, stretch, distort or alter
the logo in any way.
x

Clear space
x
The exclusion zone shown around the
logo is 1/4 the height of the logo. This clear
x
space ensures the logo does not become
overwhelmed by other elements. x x
Digital: minimum clear
space 1/4 logo height.
Minimum size
To ensure legibility, the logo must not
be reproduced at a size smaller than
40 pixels high. 40px minimum.

Colour
Logo typeface: Eco Tilting
Eco red HEX: #e3120b
Eco red RGB: 227/18/11
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 11

CORE ELEMENTS – LOGO KEYLINE

Logo – keyline
versions print 6mm high and above—0.5pt border.

Our logo is provided in vector format for use in

printed material. Use only the artwork provided. 12mm high and above—0.5pt border.
Never create your own, stretch, distort or alter
the logo in any way.
Where the logo needs to appear on a red
background (or a background of similar
colour with insufficient contrast), use the
keyline version of the logo to separate it from 24mm high and above—0.75pt border.
the background.
Colour contrast can be checked
online via https://snook.ca/technical/
colour_contrast/colour.html
Size the logo and keyline according to the
guidelines to the right. To ensure legibility, the
logo must not be reproduced at a size smaller
than 6mm.

48mm high and above—1pt border.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 12

CORE ELEMENTS – LOGO KEYLINE

Logo – keyline
versions digital
40 pixels high and above—1 pixel border.
Our logo is provided in vector format for use
online. Use only the artwork provided. Never
create your own or stretch, distort or alter the
logo in any way.
Where the logo needs to appear on a red
background (or a background of similar
colour with insufficient contrast), use the
keyline version of the logo to separate it from 80 pixels high and above—1 pixel border.
the background.
Colour contrast can be checked online via
https://snook.ca/technical/colour_contrast/
colour.html
Size the logo and keyline according to the
guidelines to the right. To ensure legibility, the
logo must not be reproduced at a size smaller
than 40 pixels.

160 pixels high and above—2 pixel border.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 13

CORE ELEMENTS – GROUP LOGO

6mm minimum size.

Group logo x x

Our logo is provided in vector format

x
for use in printed materials and online.
Use only the artwork provided. Never
create your own, stretch, distort or x
alter the logo in any way.
x x Print: minimum clear space
To ensure legibility, the logo must not
1/2 logo height.
be reproduced at a size smaller than
6mm or 40 pixels.

The blue line indicates the extent

of the logo. Clear space is identical
across all group logos as above.

Group logo reversed.

Group logo—white-on-black.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 14

CORE ELEMENTS – GROUP LOGO

Group logo 6mm high and above—0.5pt border.

keylines –
print
12mm high and above—0.5pt border.
Our logo is provided in vector format
for use in printed material. Use only the
artwork provided. Never create your
own, stretch, distort or alter the logo
in any way.
Where the logo needs to appear on a red
background (or a background of similar
colour with insufficient contrast), use the 24mm high and above—0.75pt border.
keyline version of the logo to separate it
from the background.
Colour contrast can be checked
online via https://snook.ca/technical/
colour_contrast/colour.html
Size the logo and keyline according to
the guidelines to the right. To ensure
legibility, the logo must not be
reproduced at a size smaller than 6mm.

48mm high and above—1pt border.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 15

CORE ELEMENTS – GROUP LOGO

Group logo
keylines – 40 pixels high and above—1 pixel border.

digital
Our logo is provided in vector format for
use online. Use only the artwork provided.
Never create your own, stretch, distort or
alter the logo in any way.
Where the logo needs to appear on a red
background (or a background of similar 80 pixels high and above—1 pixel border.

colour with insufficient contrast), use the

keyline version of the logo to separate it
from the background.
Colour contrast can be checked
online via https://snook.ca/technical/
colour_contrast/colour.html
Size the logo and keyline according to the
guidelines to the right. To ensure legibility,
the logo must not be reproduced at a size
smaller than 40 pixels.

160 pixels high and above—2 pixel border.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 16

CORE ELEMENTS – EDITORIAL LOGOS

PRIMARY LOGOS SECONDARY LOGOS

Core
editorial
logos
Sub-brand logos are provided for
editorial use across film, radio, the
Espresso app, 1843 and The World In
annual publication.

Editorial logos. Editorial logos reversed.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 17

CORE ELEMENTS – EDITORIAL LOGOS

PRIMARY LOGOS SECONDARY LOGOS

Other
editorial
logos
Sub-brand logos are provided for use
across other editorial publications. Global Business Global Business Review
Review logo. logo reversed.

Other editorial logos. Other editorial logos reversed.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 18

CORE ELEMENTS – SUB-BRAND LOGOS

PRIMARY LOGOS SECONDARY LOGOS

Media
business
logos
Sub-brand logos are provided
for business branding use.

Group signatures. For use with non

“core brand” business logos.

Media business logos. Media business logos reversed.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 19

CORE ELEMENTS – SUB-BRAND LOGOS

PRIMARY LOGOS SECONDARY LOGOS

The Economist
Intelligence
Unit logos
These logos are provided for branding of
The Economist Intelligence Unit.

EIU logos. EIU logos reversed.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 20

CORE ELEMENTS – SOCIAL MEDIA AVATARS AND HOME SCREEN ICONS

SOCIAL MEDIA AVATAR ICONS HOME SCREEN APP ICONS

Icons
Social media avatars and home
screen icons are provided for
use across the various Economist
Economist apps and social
media accounts.
The Economist App.

4X X

2X
Economist Group X

The Economist Group.

Espresso
The Espresso App.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 21

CORE ELEMENTS – LOGO

Logo – sizing x

x
When sizing the logo for print material, 30mm (at actual size)
x
ensure it remains sympathetic to the
overall dimensions of the layout.
When sizing the logo online, ensure
the logo size corresponds to the size
of the ad in which it appears. Refer to
the banner ads in the owned media
advertising section of this guide for size
and positioning examples.
Colour
Logo typeface: Eco Tilting
Eco Red print: Pantone 485c
Eco Red print: CMYK 100m/100y

15mm (at actual size)

10mm (at actual size)

Magazine cover wrap—211 x 273mm. Vertical A4 layout. Horizontal A5 leaflet.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 22

CORE ELEMENTS – LOGO

Logo – sizing
When sizing the logo for print material,
ensure it remains sympathetic to the
overall dimensions of the layout. 200mm (at actual size).

Colour 12-sheet billboard.

Logo typeface: Eco Tilting

Eco Red print: Pantone 485c
Eco Red print: CMYK 100m/100y

300mm (at actual size).

32-sheet billboard.

300mm (at actual size).

96-sheet billboard.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 23

CORE ELEMENTS – COLOUR

PRIMARY PALETTE SECONDARY PALETTE

Colour – ECONOMIST RICH GREY GREY LIGHT GREY

print
BLACK
RED

The aim is to ensure the integrity Rich Grey Grey Light Grey
C70 M60 Y50 K55 C0 M0 Y10 K30 C0 M0 Y5 K15
of The Economist’s brand. We
Economist Red Black
recommend keeping the palette C0 M100 Y100 K0 C0 M0 Y0 K100 Used for content Used for punchy Used for subtle
simple and applying the core red headlines and backgrounds. backgrounds.
sparingly to ensure heightened White Out Of Red Body copy on body copy.
(WOOR) covers. white.
visual impact.
Highlight key
elements of layout.

STEEL BLUE SOFT BLUE PALE BLUE

Steel Blue Soft Blue Pale Blue

C60 M0 Y0 K40 C30 M0 Y0 K20 C15 M0 Y0 K10

Used for design Used for design Background

accents. accents. colour for print
advertising and
inserts.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 24

CORE ELEMENTS – COLOUR

PRIMARY PALETTE SECONDARY PALETTE

Colour – ECONOMIST HEADERS ICONS METADATA RULES BACKGROUND BLUE GREY

digital
BLACK
RED

The aim is to ensure the integrity of Headers Icons Metadata Rules Background Blue Grey
The Economist’s brand. We recommend #383E42 #7A7A7A #B6B6B6 #D7D7D7 #F2F2F2 #E3EBF0
Economist Red Black
keeping the palette simple and applying RGB #E3120B RGB #121212
the core red sparingly to ensure heightened
visual impact.
CALL-TO-ACTION MEMBER
CALL-TO-ACTION BETA BAR
ACTIVE YELLOW

Call-to-action Call-to-action Member Beta Bar

#4C60EB active #3E51B5 #FFD700 #16C9B3
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 25

CORE ELEMENTS – BRANDING TAG

Accent construction
X equals stroke
width of ‘I’, length
equals 2 x ’I’

X equals cap

Accent construction Accent construction

height of section

Section
heading

X equals stroke
X equals stroke
Accent construction
width of ‘I’, length

Signature element
equals 2 x ’I’ width of ‘I’, length
equals 2 x ’I’
Accent
X equals construction
cap
X equals stroke
width of ‘I’, length

– accent rule
equals 2 x ’I’
height of section
X equals cap

Section
heading X equals stroke
X equals cap
width of ‘I’, length
height of section
height of section

Section
equals 2 x ’I’ heading

Section
heading

Mutti’s malaise
X equals cap

The signature “brand tag” is used as a graphic device to height of section

German approval of Angela Merkel, % polled

Section
heading
80
help focus titles or headers, highlight key features, and Euro
Crisis 70
to punctuate the general rhythm of text-heavy pages.
60

50

40
Mutti’s malaise Migrant
German approval of Angela Merkel, % polled Crisis 30
80
Euro
Mutti’s malaise
2005 07 09 11 13 15 16
Mutti’s malaise
German approval
Source:ofARD
Crisis
Angela Merkel, % polled
70
DeutschlandTREND/infratest dimap
60
German approval of Angela Merkel,
Euro
% polled 80

Crisis 807050
Euro
Crisis Migrant70
40
60
Mutti’s malaise
Crisis 5030
German approval of Angela Merkel, % polled
15 1660
40
2005 07 09 11 13
Migrant
80
Source: ARD DeutschlandTREND/infratest dimapCrisis 30
50 Euro
Crisis 70
2005 07 09 11 13 15 16
Source: ARD DeutschlandTREND/infratest dimap 40
Migrant 60
Crisis 30
50
2005 07 09 11 13 15 16
Source: ARD DeutschlandTREND/infratest dimap
40
Migrant
Crisis 30

2005 07 09 11 13 15 16
Source: ARD DeutschlandTREND/infratest dimap
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 26

ILLUSTRATION

Illustrative
style
Use a variety of illustration styles that
are appropriate to The Economist
brand. Brief towards an ideas-led
contemporary style.
Establish a style beyond the blog
identities of illustrators. House-style
illustrations may also be used to
complement supplied illustrations.
Never change, distort, add to or alter
supplied illustrations. Luca D’urbino.
Robert Samuel Hanson.
These illustrations are shown for
reference only. Direct any questions on
illustration style, illustration re-use or Noma Bar.
usage permissions to: Angus Greig.
stephenpetch@economist.com
or philkenny@economist.com
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 27

ICONOGRAPHY – GOOGLE MATERIAL RESOURCE

Iconography
The Economist uses the icon set provided
through Google’s Material Design resource:
https://material.io/icons/
The icon set is constantly updated and open
source—commercially free to use.
Position and size icons within circles as
indicated below.

Some commonly used icons.

The Economist Group – Brand style guide 28

ICONOGRAPHY – GOOGLE MATERIAL RESOURCE

Iconography
The Economist uses the icon set provided
through Google’s Material Design resource:
https://material.io/icons/
The icon set is constantly updated and open
source—commercially free to use.
Position and size icons within circles as
indicated below.

Icons reversed.
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 29

USER INTERFACE COMPONENTS

CTA button—use for registration/subscription.

Height: 30px;
Background-colour: #3e51b5 (hover: #4c60eb);
Register Font-family: Econ Sans;
Font weight: normal;
Padding: 8px 30px;

Website Register Font-size: 14px;

Colour: #fff;
Border-radius: 4px.

call-to-action CTA button—use for registration/subscription.

buttons Height: 30px;

Background-colour: #d7d7d7 (hover: #3d51b5);
Font-family: Econ Sans;
Reuse this content Font weight: 300;
Padding: 8px 30px;
Font-size: 14px;
Reuse this content Colour: #121212 (hover: #fff);
Border-radius: 4px.

CTA button—use for registration/subscription.

Height: 30px;
Background-colour: #e3120b (hover: #fc150d);
Font-family: Econ Sans;
More issues Font weight: normal;
Padding: 8px 30px;
Font-size: 14px;
More issues Colour: #fff;
Border-radius: 4px.

Editorial CTA button—use for secondary editorial associated content/redirects.

Height: 34px;
Background-colour: #fff (hover: #3d51b5);
Font-family: Econ Sans;
See all updates Font weight: normal;
Padding: 8px 30px;
Font-size: 14px;
See all updates Border: 2px solid #d7d7d7;
Colour: #7a7a7a (hover: #3e541b5).
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 30

E-NEWSLETTERS – DAILY DISPATCH

Web safe fonts used

for internal newsletter
content—Georgia (serif)
and Helvetica (sans serif).
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 31

E-NEWSLETTERS – EDITORS’ PICKS

Web safe fonts used

for internal newsletter
content—Georgia (serif)
and Helvetica (sans serif).
The Economist Group – Brand style guide 32

E-NEWSLETTERS – SERIOUSLY CURIOUS

Web safe fonts used

for internal newsletter
content—Georgia (serif)
and Helvetica (sans serif).