One of the biggest challenges in starting a chiropractic practice is developing a “visual identity”. Sometimes known as “branding” – the visual elements you choose to represent your practice are an important part of your practice success.
Part of the “brand” development process is to create visual elements– such as a logo – which help to carry your marketing message. Every detail plays a role in how well the “brand” communicates the“who, what and why” of your practice.
Seemingly inconsequential elements such as the choice of colors and the style of font used play pivotal roles in the overall message your “branding elements” communicate.
It’s important to note at this point that while visual elements can and do play an important rol in communicating with prospective chiropractic patients – “branding” is not limited to the visual elements you choose to represent your practice.
It wasn’t that long ago that the term “branding” described the act of scarring an animal permanently. However, over the past few years – more than a few “branding” experts have tried to sell businesses on the notion that branding is something that a business can “buy”.
Branding is not something you choose to do to your practice but rather is something that your PATIENTS will do to your practice.
Just as the unsuspecting calf is branded by searing metal pressed into it’s flesh, your practice is being branded by your patients.
That’s right. Branding is not an “inside out” process, though it is a process that begins deep within your practice. Instead, branding is the process through which you imprint what it is your practice is about upon the minds of your prospective and current patients.
Because branding is an ongoing activity, it occurs constantly. Every interaction between you and your staff with your current and potential patients is – whether you like it or not – building your brand.
With that perspective on branding, it’s easy to see that the task at hand is to control your patient’s perceptions of your practice as much as is possible. It starts with visual elements such as a logo – but the process of branding goes much much further than being just “skin deep”.
For the chiropractic practice – your “brand” is literally written on the DNA of your practice!
With this perspective, you may suddenly realize that the surely angst ridden teen who answers your phone after school is helping to building your chiropractic practice’s brand – just as your office manager does every time he/she interacts with a patient.
Every time someone you employ has contact with patients and potential patients, they are in fact helping to build your brand.
If this doesn’t frighten you, nothing will. 
The “experts” want you to believe that branding is something you can buy. Can you blame them? It’s much easier to say, “Run your ads here and be sure to use use the right colors and font faces in those ads,” than to look beyond the ads at the business behind the ads.
Advertisements are simply invitations to strangers asking them to allow you to solve their problems. Implementing a methodical identity program (a.k.a. branding program) will allow you to determine exactly how you want to portray your company or product to the outside world. However, what happens once those customers do business with you will, in the end, determine your company’s “brand.”
In the end, your brand is merely the way you are perceived by your customers. Developing visual branding elements is merely identifying the image you want to communicate to outsiders. Your goal should be to make certain that your brand accurately reflects what you do within your practice.
Part of the “brand” development process is to create visual elements – such as a logo – which help to carry your marketing message. Every detail plays a role in how well the “brand” communicates the “who, what and why” of your business. Seemingly inconsequential elements such as the choice of colors and the style of font used play pivotal roles in the overall message your “branding elements” communicate.
