A brief introduction to certain elements of resort and hotel branding. Increase property bookings by creating a identity for guests.

1. Hotel Branding
I n t r o d u c t i o n

2. INDEX
A. Brand Story
The vision & values that unite us.
Download URL
FILES
Twitter link
Facebook link
Linkedin link
B. Logo
A brands main visual symbol
C. Style Guides
Maintaining consistency
The font families we use
G. Guest Experience
Consumer brand interaction
E. Tone
The language in which we speak
F. Touchpoints
Opportunities to increase awareness
H. Branding Examples
Branding within the hospitality industry
D. Look and feel

3. A. BRAND STORY
WHAT IS A BRAND?
Simply put, a brand is the public image of a business, product or
individual. It is reputation. It is a promise. When delivered
consistently, a brand shapes consumers perceptions and
expectations.
As competition creates an ever-widening array of choice,
companies look for ways to connect emotionally with customers
and create loyalty.
People fall in love with brands, trust them and believe in their
superiority. This is perhaps most evident when you see in the
news consumers sleeping overnight on the pavement to be one
of the first to purchase to purchase the latest Apple device.
However you don’t have to be a multi-national tech company to
develop a brand. The concept of branding is being embraced by
companies of all sizes as well as by individuals. How a brand is
perceived affects its success regardless of whether it’s a start up
or product. Whether it’s a single site bed & breakfast, or a chain
of 5 star hotels.
Who are you?
Who needs to know?
How will they find out?
Differentiator

4. WHAT IS BRAND IDENTITY?
Brand identity is tangible and appeals to the senses. You can
see it, touch it, hear it and hold it. It fuels recognition, sets
you apart and translates company values.
Brand identity takes various elements within a company or
organization and unifies them into a whole system.
Organizations who know who they are and their core
values start the identity process from a position of
strength.
They are able to create brands that are sustainable
and genuine. Reflecting their history, mission,
culture and personality.
Targeted messages
We know how we are
Core messages
Look & feel
Logo

5. WHAT IS BRANDING?
Branding is the process used to build awareness and extend customer loyalty; it’s about
the clear expression as to why consumers should choose one brand over another.
Types of branding would include:
Co-branding – the partnership of two companies / brands
Digital branding – includes web sites, social media
Personal branding – individual reputation
Cause branding –awareness of corporate social responsibility
Destination branding – efforts to attract tourists
PROCESS
1. Research 2. Strategy 3. Design 4. Create 5. Manage

6. B. LOGO
The logo
Central to developing a brand identity would be your logo although it
should be kept in mind that the logo alone is not the brand.
You should be able to cover up the logo and still be able to identify the
company because the look and feel is so distinctive.
Lindon Laser, the designer behind timeless logos such as Fedex, once
revealed that his secret involved striving “for two things in design:
simplicity and clarity. Great design is born of those two things.”
OTHER VERSIONS
Light Backgrounds
Dark Backgrounds
Grayscale
Black & White
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7. Flexibility
Light Backgrounds
Dark Backgrounds
It’s worth revisiting the logo periodically. Innovation, new products,
company expansion, new properties or a redefined target audience
requires a brand to be flexible.
Starbucks has continuously
redesigned its logo to reflect
key milestones in its corporate
history.

8. C. STYLE GUIDES
Instructions
CORRECT LOGO PLACEMENT
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Brand style guides contain the basic elements,
rules and considerations that companies of all
sizes put in place to establish a consistent
presence across various channels. It is evident that
brand applications impact on your customers
perceptions. The way your brand is portrayed in
your stationery, adverts, web assets and many
other pieces affect their perception effectiveness.
If necessary, launch a specific site for press,
agencies, designers and marketing partners, where
they can obtain any images, files or copy that they
might need.

9. Managing brand identity
requires a long-term
commitment.
Creating the brand identity
may have been the easy part.
Managing these assets well
usually proves more difficult.

10. DON'T
1. Change our logo's colors
2. Bend, twist or stretch our logo
3. Lay the logo over busy backgrounds
4. Resize or alter shapes within the logo
5. Use similarly coloured backgrounds
6. Change our fonts
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11. D. LOOK AND FEEL
Look and feel is the visual language that makes a system recognizable as a brand and
as an expression of the organization.
The coordinated system and use of colour, imagery, typography and format creates
an overall look that resonates in the mind of the consumer. All elements of the visual
language should be in keeping with the brand identity to bring together and unify the
whole system.
Systems may have two colour palettes – primary and secondary.
It is frequent for there to be between 2-4 colours in the primary palette. Secondary colours can be subtle
variations on the main primary palette. These palettes often include neutrals such as a white, a gray and a
black hue or a pastel range.
Sometimes brands will go as far as to include an extended color palette, which offers many other tonal options
for extended business lines or products.
Colour palettes
Overall Look

12. Various studies have highlighted the importance of colour with regards to branding.
Colour can trigger an emotion and evoke a brand recognition. It is thought that colour
increases brand recognition by 80%. Distinctive colours should be carefully chosen to
build awareness.
Green
Fresh, calming, organic, earthy, restful
Blue
Reliable, calm, orderly, serene
Purple
Rich, regal, vibrant, unique, artistic
Red
Dramatic, energetic, dangerous, passionate
Orange
Warm, playful, social, exotic
Pink
Feminine, caring, gentle, affectionate
Yellow
Happy, creative, inspired, cheerful
Grey
Careful, modern, focused, modest
Black
Mysterious, powerful, sophisticated
White
Pure, clean, peaceful, innocent
Colours

13. System incorporate typeface families, one or sometimes two. It is not unusual for a special typeface to be
designed for a high visibility brand. It should be consider if the selected typeface can be used in web materials,
or to select an alternative web-friendly typeface if required.
It could be that you select one or two alternative typefaces that could be used just in case the first choice isn’t
an available option.
Add heading
Add subheading
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Typography

14. Within the category of content, style, colour and focus all need to be taken into account whether the imagery is
photography, iconography or illustration.
Imagery

15. There are also material qualities to be taken into consideration especially within the context of hotels and
resorts. How something feels to touch such as textures, fabrics and materials within the property. There is a
unique opportunity to convey the feeling of luxury or sumptuous comfort by appealing to people’s sense of
touch.
Olfactory qualities should not be over looked and can play an important role in brand recognition. Recent
research suggests that smell comes immediately after sight as the most important of the senses and most
influential on a consumer’s emotional response to a company. Whilst larger hotel chains may have developed
signature fragrances and installed networks of diffusers, scent is still something that can be easily
implemented by smaller, independent hotels.
Sensory

16. E. TONE
Tone
When these marketing materials are created, which type of language should your brand use to address the
audience? Are there any specific words or vocabulary that should be used? What does your brand’s voice sound
like in regular conversation? These decisions help set the stage for, user experience design, marketing
materials and many other touchpoints in the customer’s journey.
A tagline could also be developed to define the business to its audience. A tagline is a short phrase that
captures a company’s brand essence and personality.
A taglines frequent and consistent exposure in the media reinforces its message so that when customers hear
a tagline, they should immediately think of its associated company. It also needs to remain short since the
tagline is typically incorporated into the logo design, as well as all collateral marketing pieces.
Tagline

17. F. TOUCHPOINTS
BRAND
Environments
Experiences
Websites
Newsletters
Business Forms
Signage
Exhibits
Emails
Voice mails
Web banners
Letterheads
Direct Mail
Products
Business Cards
Social Media
Trade Shows
Sales promotions
Telephone
PR
Staff
Networking
Ephemera
Each touchpoint is an
opportunity to increase
awareness and build
customer loyalty
Advertising

18. G. GUEST EXPERIENCE
Brand
Awareness
Brand
Awareness
Continues
Public space
experience
Private space
experience
planning trip
reservation
arrival
STAY
departure
review
follow-up

19. H. BRANDING EXAMPLES
Following are examples of two well-known companies each with clearly defined
but contrasting brand identities designed to appeal to their target audience.
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The trend setting W brand is positioned to
appeal more to the younger, style focused
professional with their own brand literature
reading;
"Contemporary cool design, the hippest bars
for mingling and flirting, signature
programming, the hottest destinations and
exclusive retreats – all amplified by
Whatever/Whenever service – make W the
undisputed leader of contemporary lifestyle
brands."
W Hotels

20. Name
Position
Email
Phone
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Position
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Center Parcs in contrast is very much focused
on appealing to the family market and those
looking to get away from the hustle and
bustle and reconnect with nature.
Consistent use of earthy greens and olive
colours in their marketing material reflects
the brands core values and their forest
locations.
Center Parcs

21. Name
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Other examples of hotel branding

22. Name
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THANK YOU FOR READING
If you would like to discuss the brand identity of your
business please feel free to get in touch at;
richard@blackmintmarketing.com