BRANDING & IDENTITY

INNER GLOW THERAPY & REIKI

A close, longtime friend started her own Therapy and Reiki business this past winter and hired me to develop a logo from her new brand.
Follow along to see the stages I took to develop the logomark and branding for Inner Glow.
Freelance Sr. Art Director, Winter 2024

STAGE 1- LAY THE FOUNDATION

First, I met with my client to clearly define the unique brand elements that the logomark should represent. We outlined the brand mission, personality and values, and I gave her the opportunity to share any creative preferences she had, including colors, fonts, and logomark type. This step was essential to ground us in using the same language as I develop and refine her brand logo, while she defines her brand.

STAGE 2 - Research and ExplorE

Next I spent time researching Therapy, Reiki, and associated imagery and graphics. I reviewed my client’s direct competition to make sure we carved out a unique POV with Inner Glow’s branding. Then I spend time over several days sketching out different ideas, not limiting myself to any thoughts. At this stage, I design as wide as possible and narrow down to the best ideas in the next stage. Depending on the client’s preference, experience and payment terms I may review sketches to narrow down to our favorites or move to the stage on my own. In this case we narrowed down together, since the client was a close friend and wanted to stay involved in creating her personal brand. I also gathered a range of fonts to make sure I understood her request of “feminine, elegant, soulful and approachable.”

STAGE 3 - REFINE & PRESSURE TEST

My client chose her favorite 5 sketched logos to refine in this next stage, as well as a few fonts she felt embodied her new brand. I worked on developing the logo digitally, executing it vertically, horizontally, on black, on a solid color, in CMYK, RGB, and as a 1 color execution. Pressuring testing all logo uses at this stage eliminates surprises in the application stage. I also explored 3 different color palettes to present options that would stand out against her competition.

STAGE 4 - FINALIZE AND APPLY

After reviewing the 5 refined logos, my client had a favorite logo with a favorite color palette. When I combined those two in the finalization stage, we both knew it was the clear winner! Lastly, I applied the logo mark, additional branding elements, and the color palette into her business cards, swag, and website.