The wellness space is increasingly competitive but awesome branding can help you stand out. There’s growing consumer interest in yoga, meditation, health food supplements, and self-care in general. This means there’s a rapidly growing market to tap into and a huge opportunity for entrepreneurs.
In this article – we explain how to create an awesome health and wellness brand in five simple steps (along with examples and resources).
Whether you’re starting a new wellbeing business or want to refine an existing brand, this guide will help.
- What does branding consist of?
- How to create a wellness brand
- Branding ideas, examples & inspiration
We’re a specialist fitness marketing agency with 15+ years of industry experience, so we know first-hand what works (and what doesn’t!). We’ve helped gyms, fitness studios, and personal trainers to successfully promote their businesses, so our marketing strategies are tried and tested.
What Does Branding Consist Of?
Branding means different things to different people. To some, it’s about a stylish logo that people instantly recognise. For others, it’s the personality of a company that comes across in their marketing.
In truth, it’s a combination of many factors that fit together to create a whole. These elements typically include…
- Business name
- Logo
- Colour palette
- Tone of voice
- Company values
- Images & photos
- Graphic design (either digital or print)
- Interior design
Don’t let this long list daunt you though. The great thing about creating your own health or fitness brand is that you make the rules! So you get to pick and choose what to focus on.
Branding is about both you and your customers. It needs to reflect your business and appeal to your target audience too. If you can do both, then you’re well on your way to creating a successful brand.
So, where should you start? In our experience, it takes more than a stylish logo and cool colours. We’ll look at some practical strategies in the next section.
Learn which fitness marketing strategies produce the best results (so you can focus on what actually works).
Creating a Wellness Brand
Here are the 5 steps to creating a wellbeing brand that will resonate with clients…
- Define your target audience
- Identify what makes you different
- Get inspired by others
- Collate your ideas
- Combine your favourite elements
Let’s look at each of these stages in more detail…
1 – Define your target audience
Start with this question – who do you want to appeal to? The brand you create needs to resonate with your target audience or ideal clients.
So, who are these people and what do they like? A good way to approach this is by thinking about demographics, headspace, and hangouts.
- Demographics – these are broad characteristics that people are often grouped by, such as age, gender, and where they live or work.
- Headspace – this relates to what they’re thinking, such as interests, goals, and challenges.
- Hangouts – these are places where they spend time, either online or in person.
Use these three areas as a guide to brainstorm everything you know about your target customer. This will help you create a brand that really appeals to the right people.
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2 – What makes you different?
Next, it’s time to look at your business. What makes you different from the competition? What are your unique selling points (sometimes known as USPs). Make a list of all the things that make you better or different – this is how you’ll stand out in a crowded market.
Here’s an example from our ‘about’ page which shows how we approach this with our own brand…
We’re on a mission to transform how the industry markets itself… We think health and fitness marketing should inspire people, not prey on their insecurities. So, we help health and fitness companies to market themselves with integrity (as well as impact).
High-pressure membership sales tactics and fat-shaming people into exercise just aren’t our bag. We’re inspired by the new generation of indie gym studios, fitness bloggers, and nutrition companies that enable EVERYONE to live their best life. If you feel the way we do about health and fitness, then check out our blog, templates, and other marketing resources.
By understanding how your business is different from the rest, you can create a brand that communicates this to customers.
3 – Get inspired by others
It’s helpful to get wellness branding ideas and inspiration from other companies. Are there any brands you really love? Or want to emulate? Perhaps there’s one that already appeals to your target audience?
If so, then use them as inspiration. What is it about their brands that you like? Is it the colour combinations they use? That way their website is designed? The tone of voice and language they use in printed materials or online?
You might also like… Logos ideas for wellness brands, fitness businesses, designs for yoga studios, or concepts for nutritionists & dietitians.
Once you have a general idea of the brands you like, dive deeper into the appealing elements.
- Go to fitness photo websites like Pexels or Wellness Stock Shop to find images you like.
- Get font ideas from Google Fonts or by using the ‘WhatFont’ Chrome extension to see what other sites use.
- Use the Coolors generator tool to get colour palette ideas and inspiration (or go for a classic black-and-white theme).
Collect ideas from brands outside the wellness industry as well as those you admire. This will give you a good mix from which to create your own. We’ve included a selection of brands to inspire you further down in this article.
4 – Collate your branding ideas
The next step is to collate all your wellness branding ideas in one place. You might have screenshots on your laptop, photos saved on your phone, or ideas jotted down on bits of paper. It’s time to bring them all together.
You can use a Pinterest board, PowerPoint slides, or physical mood board if you prefer. Choose whichever way works for you. What matters is that you can see all of the different ideas in one place. Here’s an example of what we did for our own brand a few years ago…
If you’re going to work with a graphic or web designer, then you can give this document to them. It’ll help them understand exactly what you’re looking for in a brand. This makes the design process more efficient which saves time and money.
Time-saving tip – if you’re looking for a shortcut then you can find ready-made wellness branding templates on Creative Market.
5 – Combine your favourite elements
Finally, combine your favourite elements from the collection into one cohesive look. Mix and match the pieces you love and see if they work together. You might need to adjust and rethink some parts but you’ll eventually land on a combination that works.
Your brand needs to be something that you love as much as your ideal client does. Of course, it absolutely has to appeal to them. But if you’re not happy with it, then don’t settle.
If you do, then you’ll always want to tinker with it down the line. This will distract from your core business focus. If you aren’t proud of your brand then it will also hold you back from promoting widely – something that’s crucial for start-ups.
Recommended Further Reading
If you’re taking a DIY approach to branding then we’d highly recommend reading How To Style Your Brand by Fiona Humberstone. It walks you through every element from logos and fonts to colours and graphics. the exact steps to creating a brand that’s both professional and authentic.
You might also like… 25 Must-Read Books For Health & Wellness Entrepreneurs.
Awesome Wellness Branding Ideas & Examples
Looking at other brands is a fantastic way to get inspired. Here’s a selection of ideas and examples to get your creative juices flowing…
Well+Good is the ultimate wellness blog. Its brand features simple, easy to read fonts, real people, and muted colours.
Lululemon is a master when it comes to branding. Their red emblem is instantly recognisable around the world. They use natural colours and inspirational photography to create a calm vibe.
Branding isn’t just about looks – it’s about what you say too. Bad Yogi takes a more inclusive approach with classes for ‘real people’ that redefine what the ‘perfect body’ is. This will likely appeal to different people compared with Lululemon, but resonate perfectly with the intended audience.
Technogym is renowned in the health and fitness world for its high-quality products. Their branding is minimalist in every sense but conveys a sense of style that sets it apart from competitors.
Not every wellness brand needs to be calming and minimalist. Misfits nutrition takes an alternative approach that helps them to stand out in the competitive nutrition supplement market. Their branding is bold, colourful, and features playful icons instead of real-world photos.
Wellness Branding – Summary
So, now you know exactly how to create an awesome brand. By following the steps we’ve outlined, you can develop your branding from scratch and turn it into something you’re really proud of. Use the examples and ideas to inspire your own brand that resonates with your dream clients.
Fitness Marketing & Lead Generation Roadmap
Your All-in-One Toolkit to Attract, Engage & Convert More Clients
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The Fitness Marketing & Lead Generation Roadmap is a comprehensive resource designed for gyms, personal trainers, and online fitness businesses. It’s packed with video workshops, marketing templates, step-by-step guides, cheat sheets, and more. We cover:
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