Does your product, spa, resort or medical spa have a unique “Corporate
Identity?” There are a number of very important elements to consider when
creating a corporate identity for your spa or spa product. Visual consistency is
key! The most important factors to consider are your corporate colors, logo,
graphic icon, logotype, type fonts, graphic design images, professional
photographs, paper selections and every other visual variable.
Most importantly, you will need to create a very consistent corporate image that
is reflected in every advertising, marketing, PR, signage, package design and
promotional device that you create to build your spa business.
You know Coke’s or McDonald’s colors and corporate image. They are extremely
consistent. Coke will not vary from their bight red and white with the swoosh.
McDonald’s will not vary from the big ‘M’ with the golden arches. You have never
seen them red for Christmas or green for St. Patrick’s Day. The logos, colors
and imagery may get quite creative, yet it is extremely consistent. Do you have
what it takes to stay on the straight and narrow so your community and clientele
will know your marketing devices, advertisements and brochures from a first
glance? If not, it’s time to get on the corporate identity bandwagon.
BE DISTINCTIVELY UNIQUE:
You must first determine what makes you different and how you can stand apart
from everyone else. Determine your ‘USA Quotient’ or your – ‘Unique Service
Advantages’. Decide exactly what you want your spa or product to be known as, by
attempting to select a specific niche. Today, any spa owner, like every spa
product manufacturer has many, many choices. Some times – there are too many
choices. Try to keep it limited. You may determine to be known as
medically-oriented, upscale, trendy, European or even related to a specific age
range like teens.
Your corporate identity package needs to immediately tell this to your clients,
patients and non-clients alike, exactly what you are. Your corporate identity
makes an important first impression and it should reveal what type of spa
business you are. It should also tell what you want to be known for now as well
as in the coming years. It must also help to identify what type of clients you
are trying to attract. In a well-planned identity system, all of your printed,
visual and audible materials must be linked to each other in order to form your
spa’s total corporate identity package. It is important that you understand your
spa identity and how to continually build it through consistency.
THE SPA NAME GAME:
The first aspect you should consider when creating your identity is the name for
your spa business. Think of the type of business you have, where you are located
and what type of medical, skincare, hair removal, body treatment and other
related beautycare services you provide or wish to provide. You also need to
consider the future of your business. For example, if you plan on upgrading your
day spa by adding medical and laser treatment services, then `Ordinary Day Spa’
would not be the best choice for the name of your spa business. Clients should
immediately know who you and what you offer are by the name on the building. You
can have a name like ‘Boston Medical Spa’ with a subtitle like, ‘Facial
Treatment & Laser Specialists’.
Research the names of other salon and spa businesses in your area by looking in
the Yellow Pages and on the Internet. You do not want to have a spa name that is
similar to any other companies in your area.
LOGOS:
A distinctive logo must serves as a memorable symbol and a visual name that best
represents your spa business. A logo consists of the entire visual design with
elements like the typefont, the name of your spa business and a graphic design
icon or symbol. Your logo is an extremely important element that will help to
project the visual image of your spa, medical spa or product company. A logo is
a complete symbol or mark that represents all of the aspects of your business.
You may want to trademark your company name and logo.
In creating a visually attractive logo, you will need to think about the
symbols, colors and words that will portray the various meanings you desire for
your spa services and products. A cosmetic studio or a freelance makeup artist
may select a logo that includes your business name and an icon of an eye, lips
or face. A tanning salon can easily choose a sun as their mark, yet the style of
that graphically designed sun symbol needs to say something about their
business. Be creative to best represent your spa.
It is important that your spa image and logo has some flexibility for the many
functions it will serve in the future, while at the same time maintaining your
corporate identity with total consistency. Make sure that your spa logo can be
easily printed in black and white as well as in full color when cost permits.
Avoid the use of grays in your basic logo design by maintaining a strictly black
and white ‘line art’ image. Think about how your spa logo will look in a
newspaper advertisement, on a postcard design, in a brochure, on a billboard or
on television. Will your spa logo and image hold up on a range or various sizes
and locations?
Your spa logo really needs to be able to work as small as two inches wide by as
big as you can imagine. The complete logo mark and icon symbol should each be
able to represent your company, whether used together or independently from one
another. Think about the Nike ‘swoosh’ icon and the Merrill Lynch ‘bull’ icon or
McDonald’s ‘golden arches’. Each of these icons or symbols can be used alone
without the full business name or logo. Your spa logo should be clean, easy to
identify, easy to read, simple and distinctive, so people can easily recognize
your company.
If you hire a local freelance graphic designer to create your new spa logo,
package design and corporate identity package, make sure you obtain details from
them such as your exact Pantone Color or PMS Number, your specific typefaces and
the weight and color of your stationery. Keep this information on file. Knowing
these details will help your image remain consistent in any future projects
produced by various designers or vendors.
SPA LOGOTYPES:
A logotype is what people often think of when you say “logo”. It is actually the
name of the spa or company typewritten in a creative way. Where as a total logo
image involves the use of an icon symbol or mark, a logotype also involves use
of the actual words that represent the name of your cosmetic business. Coca-Cola
for example, uses a particular type font and style with an underlining swag to
create their famous logotype. Most businesses use this logotype on their outdoor
signage, printed marketing devices and in all of their advertising. If you have
a mark that you use, make sure the mark is flexible enough to use both alone and
together with your specific typeface. In some instances, a clean spa logotype
without the icon or mark will be necessary, so they really must be able to work
together as well as independent of each other.
A good example of a logotype that works well with a logo or without is Creative
Nail. When you see their unique big painterly ‘C’, the words Creative Nail or
you see them together, it always works. Another is the International Esthetics,
Cosmetic & Spa Conference with their pink, orange and blue icon of palm trees
with a gazebo.
CORPORATE COLORS:
Select one or two colors that you will always use to best represent your spa
business. These colors are as important an aspect of your identity as the logo
icon symbol and logotype. Selecting corporate colors that will speak about your
spa business may appear a little tricky. If you are a medical spa, you do not
want to appear too medical. You need a softer touch, yet while retaining
professionalism and a somewhat clinical approach. A trendy cosmetic and nail
salon can easily use a bold pink or fuchsia, where an upscale spa would want to
use a more muted tone that represents relation. Many colors also carry
connotative meanings or induce feelings. Blue is very relaxing and orange is
often used in fast food restaurants because is psychologically creates feelings
for hunger. In cosmetics, there is a broad range of colors that fit the face and
body. Cosmetic companies can go with bright pinks, blues, reds and black. In
many spas, you can safely use beiges, tans and black. However, you really still
need another distinctively unique color, to make your spa-oriented business
truly stand apart from other medical clinics, spas, salons and beautycare
products. It may be important for you to explore these meanings before selecting
a corporate color. This research and education may l also make decorating your
skincare clinic, spa or medical spa much easier.
Consistency can be difficult when dealing with printed colors. Be careful. For
example, when designing seasonal marketing devices, advertising and
merchandising materials for Valentine’s Day, you might want to deviate from your
official royal blue and black colors, by switching to hot pink or red. Sure, you
can creatively print seasonal marketing materials that use other colors, while
still printing your logo and most of the materials in your basic corporate
colors. That’s OK. If you select a red — it should be a deep shade and have the
same feel as your signature blue hue. Even if your postcard, promotional flier
or window banner is printed with colors other than the ones in your logo, you
should still always print your logo in its normal colors on each marketing
piece.
CORPORATE IMAGERY ACCENTS:
Many other parts can play a role in your Identity. You may use an actual photo
as part of your identity, for example Currie Hair Skin & Nails in Pennsylvania
is a day spa salon. For years now, they often use a specific angel hairstyle
photograph in their advertising and salon materials. This repeatedly used
photographic image has become known almost as well as their logo and colors.
Pevonia always uses beautiful women sitting by the sea or water with a mud
painted artistically on the bodies. Revenir Skincare always uses a wonderful
nude of a young woman with an orange in her hand, as they represent vitamin C
based skincare products. Medicalia always uses red, black and white – with a
harshly lit facial shape in each of their marketing devices. These examples are
always powerful and very memorable.
Once you have a strong name, think about creating your mission statement and
slogan. If you do not have a written mission statement or a slogan, now is the
time to create one. A creative slogan can become part of your identity; it
should definitely be a major driving force behind the identity of your spa
business. Fir example, Repechage uses, “Beauty From The Sea” and Revenir uses,
“The Skincare Solution!”
CORPORATE IMAGERY & MARKETING RESOURCES:
You can use local freelance graphic designers, a full-service graphic design
studio or even a full-service marketing, advertising, graphic design and PR
agency. There are even some agencies that specialize in the professional beauty
industry, while understanding your needs as well as your spa client’s special
needs. If you need help, check out the ‘Spa Trends Directory’ for a resource
that understands the professional beauty industry.
BUILD YOUR SPA IMAGE!
If you haven’t done it already, it’s time to create a distinctively unique and
new image for yourself and for your spa business! Consistency will always be
very important to create and protect your spa business image! Pay close
attention to all of your building signage, your marketing materials,
advertisements, brochures, business cards and even the decorations you use
throughout your spa. All of these elements will need to carefully illustrate
your spa’s corporate identity. These visual symbols will represent who you are
and what spa services you provide for your clients and your community.
Happy Marketing!
# # #
EDITORIAL NOTE: Larry H. Oskin is president of Marketing Solutions, a
full-service marketing, advertising, media relations and consulting services
agency specializing in the professional beauty business. Clients include salons,
day spas, medical clinics, manufacturers, distributors and associations from
across North America. For more information contact Marketing Solutions at 10875
Main Street, Fairfax, VA, 22030 USA — 703-359-6000, www.MktgSols.com or via
email at LOskin@MktgSols.com.
