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Social Media Brand Guidelines

1. EXECUTIVE BRAND POSITIONING

Core Message: Selling Peace of Mind

Generator Supercenter is the backup power authority. Our brand position is grounded in reassurance, reliability, and community presence. We do not use alarmist visuals, hazardous warning signs, or fear-driven weather messaging to compel action. Instead, we show our teams in the field, our installation process, and the peace of mind our customers experience knowing their homes and families are protected. 

As we grow our brand across store locations and franchisee Facebook pages, every post, video, and graphic must reflect clean, professional visual standards that reinforce trust and local credibility.

Content Mix Pillars (70 / 20 / 10)

To build local credibility without overwhelming followers with sales pitches, franchisee content must adhere to the following distribution formula:

Value, Authenticity & Local Credibility (70%): 

  • Local Photos & Showroom Highlights: Real technicians on job sites, service and maintenance work, warehouse operations, and clean showroom floor photos. 
  • Community Impact & Local Events: Home shows, local trade booths, chamber events, sponsorships, and regional storm recovery support. 
  • Customer Testimonials & Reviews: Verified homeowner quotes, 5-star Google review graphics, and real install photo showcases. 
  • Team Spotlights: Introducing installers, sales consultants, and service technicians to build recognizable local faces.
Brand, Education & Peace of Mind (20%): 
  • Maintenance & Preparedness Tips: Simple steps for generator upkeep, battery care, and pre-season checklists.   
  • Technical Walkthroughs: Explaining liquid-cooled vs. air-cooled units or automatic transfer switch mechanics in approachable terms.
  • Behind-the-Scenes & Process Demos: Short Reels showing site surveys or turnkey installation steps.
Sales & Offers (10%): 
  • Promotional Campaigns: Financing offers, discounts , or promotional specials.
  • Direct Calls-to-Action: Direct pushes encouraging followers to schedule a free in-home site assessment.

2. VISUAL & CREATIVE STANDARDS

We are actively phasing out broad stock media and AI-generated imagery in favor of direct, human-centered content from our stores and install sites.

This segment values peace of mind above all, and their behavior is often driven by a desire to protect their loved ones and assets.

APPROVED CREATIVE DIRECTION

  • Authentic Local Photos: Real technicians, local store teams, active installations, and customer moments.
  • Behind-the-Scenes & Process: Clear walk-throughs of installations, maintenance, and store operations.
  • Clean Layouts: Proper text padding, standard font sizes, and generous margins for a clear, high-end feel.
  • Community Action: Field teams on-site during or after severe weather helping provide power to those in need.
  • Short-Form Video: Clips highlighting technician expertise and straightforward preparedness tips.

RESTRICTED/PHASED-OUT ELEMENTS

  • Fear-Based Imagery: Hazardous weather warning signs, severe storm graphics, or alarmist visuals.
  • AI-Generated Imagery & Copy: Synthetic lifestyle images, house renderings, and unedited AI content.
  • Generic Stock Assets: Broad stock photos that lack regional context or local store identity.
  • Unapproved Colors: Custom off-brand color palettes on graphics are strictly prohibited with limited exceptions.
  • Text-Heavy Overlays: Dominating text blocks that overcrowd visual space or lack proper margins.
 
AI Usage: Permitted vs. Prohibited Applications
While generative AI tools can assist in content workflows, their use must be carefully managed to protect brand authenticity and avoid algorithmic penalties.
  • Copy Generation (Permitted with Review): AI tools may be used to draft caption text and video scripts. However, all AI-generated copy must be manually reviewed and edited prior to posting. Remove unnatural syntax, repetitive em-dashes (—), overused AI buzzwords, and awkward formatting to ensure a conversational, human voice that matches our brand guidelines.
  • Background & Environmental Visuals (Permitted): AI-generated assets may be used for generic environmental, backgrounds or architectural textures, provided they appear photorealistic and free of visual artifacts.
  • People & Real-World Operations (Prohibited): AI must never be used to create synthetic human subjects, mock technicians, fabricated store settings, or simulated installation sites. AI-generated people look unnatural and trigger platform-level labels (such as Meta’s visible “AI content” tag). This transparently signals fake media to prospective customers, eroding trust and harming local brand authenticity.

Field Attire & Professional Appearance Standards

Every technician, sales consultant, and team member featured in video or photography serves as a direct representative of the Generator Supercenter brand.

  • Clean & Professional Appearance: Team members in published media must present a clean, professional, and
    trustworthy image.
  • Job-Fit Uniforms: Attire must be practical for field work while adhering to corporate uniform standards:
    clean branded polo shirts or work shirts, appropriate work pants, and safe work boots. Avoid worn, heavily stained, torn, or unbranded clothing in front-facing promotional photos and videos.
Brand Colors & Seasonal Adaptations
Graphic templates must strictly use official brand colors for footers, frames, and text boxes across all franchise channels.
  • Standard Execution: Apply primary brand colors across graphic footers, framing, and typography to maintain visual consistency. Ensure text remains readable and uncrowded.
  • Seasonal Exceptions: Alternative color schemes are strictly limited to official corporate seasonal campaigns:
    • Freedom Month Campaign (July) 
    • Power Up Christmas (December)

Layout Padding, Logo Spacing & Text Rules

  • Logo Safe Area: Maintain a minimum clear space around the corporate logo equal to 0.5 the width of the red plug icon on all four sides. Never overcrowd or obscure the logo. 
  • Outer Margin Padding: Maintain a minimum 10% border margin along all outer edges on feed graphics to
    prevent elements from feeling cramped.
  • The 20% Text Rule: Text overlays must occupy no more than 20% of the overall graphic canvas area. Move
    fine print, event schedules, addresses, and full promotional offer details directly into the caption copy.

3. PLATFORM BEST PRACTICES & TECHNICAL SPECS

To maximize organic reach and maintain high content ranking across Meta algorithms (Facebook and Instagram), franchisee pages must adhere to current technical and posting best practices. 

Asset Formatting & Placement Ratios:

  • Short-Form Video (Reels & Stories): Standardize at 1080 × 1920 px (9:16 vertical ratio). Keep key titles and logos within the central safe zone to prevent elements from being obscured by UI overlays (captions, action buttons, and profile tags).
  • Feed Graphics & Photo Posts: Prioritize 1080 × 1350 px (4:5 portrait ratio) over traditional 1:1 squares. Portrait posts occupy roughly 30% more screen space on mobile feeds, directly improving dwell time and engagement.
  • Carousel Slide Consistency: Maintain a single aspect ratio across every slide within a multi-image carousel (preferably 4:5). Mixing ratios causes automatic cropping on subsequent slides.

Reach Signals & Content Ranking:

  • Reels-First Organic Discovery: Meta pushes native short-form video (15–60 seconds) to non-followers significantly more than static posts, making Reels the primary channel for local brand discovery.
  • Originality Ranking Signals: Algorithms actively downgrade repetitive stock photography, synthetic AI-generated house renderings, or identical template assets shared across multiple franchise locations. Authentic, raw assets captured directly on job sites perform higher in feed auctions.
  • Early Comment Velocity: Post reach is heavily influenced by community interaction within the first 1 to 2 hours of publishing. Franchise store teams should monitor and respond promptly to initial post comments to boost total distribution across local feeds.

4. LOCAL COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Growth after Year One prioritizes active local involvement over follower counts:

  • Regional Relevance: Cover local topics (such as local grid reliability, rolling blackouts, or storm prep), using practical local information rather than fear tactics.
  • Highlight Our Team & Showrooms: Feature technicians, installers, sales consultants, home show booths, and showroom environments to keep the brand direct, approachable, and human.
  • Social Monitoring & Service: Track local outage trends and community questions to provide fast, practical support when power disruptions occur.
  • Ongoing Refinement: Use performance metrics to double down on real photos, install videos, and community stories that drive direct engagement.
Customer Photo Privacy & Approval Protocol
  • Active Permission: Field teams must obtain verbal or written consent from homeowners before taking or publishing photos that feature private property, installed units, or family members.
  • Opt-Out Policy: If a customer asks not to be photographed or requests that a photo be removed, immediately delete the asset from all store devices and do not post it under any circumstances.
  • Privacy Protection: Always ensure visible house numbers, street signs, vehicle license plates, or sensitive personal items are excluded or blurred in published photos.

5. COMPLIANCE & BRAND SUPPORT

These guidelines ensure a consistent, recognizable brand image across all Generator Supercenter territories while supporting local store growth. Franchisees are responsible for ensuring that all published social media creative aligns with these standards.  For creative reviews, custom template requests, or strategy questions regarding local social campaigns, please contact the Franchise Marketing Department.