Ads: Design Standard for the Federal Identity Program

• Static ads

  Static ads are motionless ads that appear:

  • on digital platforms such as social media, websites and mobile apps
  • in print such as newspapers, magazines and inserts
  • out-of-home such as on billboards, on public transit, on benches, on closed-circuit screens and on digital billboards

  The Canada wordmark and corporate signature must be clear and prominent. If space is limited, such as on small digital screens, the Canada wordmark can be used alone.

  Sample gallery

  • See the gallery for examples of how the official symbols can be applied to static ads.

  • Static ad on the side of a bus showing how the official symbols can be applied
  • Static ad on a billboard showing how the official symbols can be applied
  • Three types of static ads of various sizes showing how the Canada wordmark can be applied due to space limitations
• Video ads

  • In this section

    • Ads shorter than 10 seconds
    • 10- to 15-second ads
    • 16- to 24-second ads
    • Ads 25 seconds and longer
    • Sample gallery

  Video ads include television and cinema ads and ads that appear on websites, social media, and mobile apps.

  The Canada wordmark and corporate signature are applied differently depending on the duration of the ad.

  Ads shorter than 10 seconds

  The static Canada wordmark is:

  • the last image in the ad
  • centred and covers approximately 60% of the screen width
  • displayed on the screen for at least 1 second

  The end screen can include one additional message under the wordmark, for example, a website address (see Figure 1). The distance between that message and the wordmark must be at least equal to the width of the flag symbol. The message should be centred, and the character height should be approximately 20% of the wordmark height.

  Figure 1. Example of end screen showing placement of additional message under Canada wordmark

  

  10‑ to 15‑second ads

  The static Canada wordmark is:

  • the last image in the ad
  • centred and covers approximately 60% of the screen width
  • displayed on the screen for at least 1.5 seconds

  The musical signature:

  • plays while the wordmark is on the screen
  • is optional for ads that do not contain sound or spoken words

  The end screen can include one additional message under the wordmark, for example, a website address (see Figure 1). The distance between that message and the wordmark must be at least equal to the width of the flag symbol. The message should be centred, and the character height should be approximately 20% of the wordmark height.

  16‑ to 24‑second ads

  Departments have 3 options to choose from.

  Option 1: Voice-over and animated Canada wordmark

  The Government of Canada is identified by voice-over “A message from the Government of Canada,” during the display of the wordmark.

  The animated Canada wordmark is:

  • the last image in the ad
  • centred and covers approximately 60% of the screen width
  • displayed on the screen for at least 2.5 seconds

  The musical signature:

  • plays while the wordmark is on the screen
  • is optional for ads that do not contain sound or spoken words

  Option 2: Corporate signature and static Canada wordmark

  The corporate signature is:

  • displayed in the frame immediately before the wordmark
  • centred
  • displayed on the screen for at least 1 second

  The static Canada wordmark is:

  • the last image in the ad
  • centred and covers approximately 60% of the screen width
  • displayed on the screen for at least 1.5 seconds

  The musical signature:

  • plays while the wordmark is on the screen
  • is optional for ads that do not contain sound or spoken words

  Option 3: Verbal reference to department and animated Canada wordmark

  The Government of Canada or the department is mentioned during the ad.

  The animated Canada wordmark is:

  • the last image in the ad
  • centred and covers approximately 60% of the screen width
  • displayed on the screen for at least 2.5 seconds

  The musical signature:

  • plays while the wordmark is on the screen
  • is optional for ads that do not contain sound or spoken words

  Ads 25 seconds and longer

  Departments have 3 options to choose from.

  Option 1: Voice-over and animated Canada wordmark

  The Government of Canada is identified by voice-over “A message from the Government of Canada,” during the display of the wordmark.

  The animated Canada wordmark is:

  • the last image in the ad
  • centred and covers approximately 60% of the screen width
  • displayed on the screen for at least 4 seconds

  The musical signature:

  • plays following the voice-over and while the wordmark is on the screen
  • is optional for ads that do not contain sound or spoken word

  Option 2: Corporate signature and animated Canada wordmark

  The corporate signature is:

  • displayed in the frame immediately before the wordmark
  • centred
  • displayed on the screen for at least 1.5 seconds

  The animated Canada wordmark is:

  • the last image in the ad
  • centred and covers approximately 60% of the screen width
  • displayed on the screen for at least 2.5 seconds

  The musical signature:

  • plays while the wordmark is on the screen
  • is optional for ads that do not contain sound or spoken words

  Option 3: Verbal reference to department and animated Canada wordmark

  The Government of Canada or the department is mentioned during the ad.

  The animated Canada wordmark is:

  • the last image in the ad
  • centred and covers approximately 60% of the screen width
  • displayed on the screen for at least 2.5 seconds

  The musical signature:

  • plays while the wordmark is on the screen
  • is optional for ads that do not contain sound or spoken words

  Sample gallery

  • See the gallery for examples of how the official symbols can be applied to video ads.

  • Canada wordmark and website URL on the end screen of a video ad under 15 seconds long
• Animated ads

  Animated ads contain images or text in motion (for example, animated GIFs). They can share characteristics with static and video ads.

  Depending on the type of animation, departments can follow either the requirements for static ads or video ads.

• Audio ads

  Audio ads include radio ads, streaming audio ads and ads in podcasts

  Radio and streaming audio ads such as those produced by an advertising agency for the Government of Canada must:

  • end with the voice-over “A message from the Government of Canada”
  • include the musical signature after the voice-over if they are 16 seconds or longer

  Announcer-read ads such as those used in podcasts must identify the Government of Canada as the originator of the message.

• Search engine marketing ads

  Search engine marketing (SEM) is a form of advertising used to promote websites and increase their visibility in search engine results.

  SEM ads identify the Government of Canada or a department as the originator of the message using one of the following methods:

  • in the heading or title
  • in the body copy
  • using a Canada.ca or .gc.ca URL

Supporting tools

• Mandatory Procedures for Advertising
• Advertising oversight mechanism
• Federal identity glossary