Know-How Exchange : Branding

To start with, if someone were to ask you how you are different from your competitors, how would you answer?
Who will your clients likely be? Women? Age range? Income level?
When would someone specifically contact you?

Thanks for the detailed answer, Andrea. Given what you wrote, here are some ideas to get you started:

Skin Artistry (of Sacramento)
Elegant Skin (of Sacramento)
Revitalize (Dermatology)

As a professional dermatologist, you should have some mention of that in your practice name or your tagline (or in the blurb on whatever page it's found). I like Jay's ideas, only they aren't professional - hence this supplementary comment. If you use one, you need to back it up. After all, you are a professionally qualified (doctor?) dermatologist and you should be justly proud of that. You still need customers, and a nice name is as good a start as any. They do need the reassurance of knowing you are truly competent.

I'm going for the boring route since the other way is travelled.

Sacramento Dermatology Specialist. Gentle professional skin care.
Sacramento Dermatology. Professional skin treatments with a flair
Cosmetic Dermatology* Reviving your skin with professional gentleness.

*I don't know if you would like to describe yourself like this!

What do you think?

In my experience, when somebody asks a friend for a professional services recommendation, the response is usually the actual name of the practitioner, e.g., Dr. Ron Smith on K Street. You will never change your name, you will always own your name, it's your best personal practice branding solution.

As a test, simply cut and paste: "dermatology near Sacramento, CA" into a google MAPS search. You will see the names of your competitors and the majority are using their own names. There is a reason why.

Then, to differentiate your services from the competition, I suggest you develop a tagline. Maybe something like ...

1) Skin Cancer Surgery & Aesthetic Dermatology
2) Preserving Your Natural Appearance, Artistically
3) Elegant Artistry In Solving All Skin Problems
4) Artistic, Caring, Joyful Results

I'm fine with Sacramento Skin Institute, but the tagline is definitely too long -- 8 words, 20 syllables. Very hard to read/digest.

Question: What's your long-term plan for the business? Do you want this as a company that provides your personal service, so that when you retire the company has served its purpose and can retire with you? Or do you think you might take in partners someday and want a company that survives you?

The answer will drive whether you use your own name as part of the practice identification or not.

Brands that already exist in your area include ... "California Skin Institute" and "Advanced Skin Institute".

How are you going to ensure that patients will not get your brand mixed up with these already branded names?

Your option is using your own name, e.g. "Ron Smith Skin Institute (of Sacramento)". Although, I don't think connecting your practice to the Sacramento geographical area will be a huge problem, use "sacramento" as a keyword, list in Sacramento directories, include Sacramento in all your marketing materials etc.

Ron Smith Skin Institute will not get confused by anyone. And if you ever open a practice in SF, no problem.

Lastly, to mgoodman's point about the benefits selling a professional practice with a non-personal brand, yes it's both logical and can be a successful strategy. There are also hundreds of examples of professional services firm that use the founder(s) name(s) as a brand that will live for decades, even centuries including nearly all of the leading law firms, accounting firms, architectural firms and the like. Granted they are big firms, but they didn't start out as big firms. It's a judgement call, either way can work well.

sorry, I meant to write Andrea Willey Skin Institute.

The majority of California medical practitioners use their own names (in some form), are incorporated as an LLC or the like, have medical liability insurance (which typically includes attorney fee coverage) and are probably using excellent lawyers and tax accountants for advice. What does that tell you?

Good Luck.

What about

Andrea Willey Skin Centre
Andrea Willey Dermatology Academy
Andrea Willey Dermatology Practitioner

Whatever the other guys are doing - re lawyers and the rest, the guys around here are pretty hot too. It's as good a start as you'll get almost anywhere. Once you know the way, then is the time to hire a professional. You can always check back here for a second opinion (or twenty?)

It's gone midnight, g'night all.

The tagline is still too long. It's a mouthful: 9 words and 21 syllables. And it repeats the word "skin" from the second-line name. Even though it says what you want to say, nobody is going to read all those words, let alone recall what they mean. What if you lose the tagline altogether and let the two-part name communicate the brand and the category?

Now Mr Goodman is correct - however there is one point here: what do your customers think? All your choices should be guided by what your customers think (so just ask them). I don't think the one you suggested will come out top, only - well, you never know!

In the mean time instead of criticizing it I am going to try and come up with something simpler.

Andrea Willey MD
Sacramento Dermatology Centre*
Surgical excellence in skin repair

(*Skin centre was a little "raw" for me - only do ask your customers)

Andrea Willey MD
Sacramento Dermatology Centre
Artistry in every aspect of skin surgery

Andrea Willey MD
Sacramento Skin Centre
Excellence in aesthetic Dermatology