How To Stand Out as a Naturopath
Naturopaths, I have a challenge for you. Without closing this one, open a new tab and look up “Naturopathy Logos.”
Do you see what I see?
A whole lot of green. Leaves, leaves, and more leaves. Take it from me, this page goes on a long way! You can scroll and scroll…and they all start to blur together.
Unfortunately, these basic leaf-inspired logos have become a bit of a standard convention in the wellness and natural health industry (something I am on a mission to change!)
When we dig a bit deeper, we can see that many of these logo designs are simply stock graphics, and look nearly identical in style and shape.
You could go onto any stock site, buy one of these for next to nothing, slap your name on it, and Bob’s-your-uncle you’ve got yourself a logo! Using that method to create your branding is not going to help you stand out, though.
So, how DO you stand out amongst the rows of green sameness?
The key is to break free from the conventional standard. Blending in with your competition will not get you noticed or remembered, and your branding is not a place for a game of copycat!
Just because something has always been done a certain way, doesn't mean it's the right way or the only way.
You can do things a different way and bring in a totally new set of ingredients when whipping up the recipe for your unique brand’s chemistry.
Awareness is Your Best Teacher
Knowing what your competitors are doing is key! Both from a messaging and visual standpoint, as well as giving you powerful information that you need to know in order to stand out.
When you’re in this field, you may attract mostly local clientele, but it’s important to realize that you’re competing in a much larger space - most Naturopathic doctors I know also work virtually - especially through the pandemic.
Your future clients are heading straight to search engines to find out which Naturopathic doctor is right for them and will have a hard time knowing what makes you special if you’re blending in with the rest of them.
Once you’re aware, you can start to break away from the pack and put yourself in a category of ONE for the right clients.
In short, when you know what your competitors look and sound like and combine that with what you do different, you can create a brand that stands out.
Get Clear on Who you Serve
At Lab Creative, we help our Naturopathic clients stand out by first determining the specific market they want to serve - their niche.
For example, a naturopath could zero in on the following:
Women and hormone issues
Chronic fatigue
Lyme disease sufferers
Gut disturbances
Mental health
Fertility
Pro Tip - you don’t have to always go super micro with your niche - you can go more broad, and still serve individual smaller audiences - read more about that in my blog: To Niche or Micro-niche.
Once you know who you want to serve, you can determine how you stand out.
I didn't have clarity on my niche and how to use colours, language and font to capture my vision and passion. I hired Lab Creative because their formula for creating a unique and individualized brand made complete sense to me. The work we did together is challenging to do on your own, so having an expert to collaborate with helped to bring my brand alive.
The outcome was a brand that was completely me and represented my patients. I feel like I stand out because my website and language is not generic, but precise and engaging with my targeted audience.
– Dr. Ann-Marie Regina, ND
Focus on What Makes You Different
Many Naturopathic doctors walk out of medical school with the same degree in hand, so I remind them of the importance of tapping into what makes them different.
There is not a single person exactly like you, even if they have the same piece of paper on graduation day, so this is the time to dig a little deeper and see what sets you apart.
What past life or work experiences do you have? What additional training have you gone through? Do you have an area in which you are highly specialized?
All of this needs to stand out in both your messaging and your design (ie, logos, colours, social media, etc.)
Remember those generic logos and colour palettes we saw above? Avoid blending in, and instead do something different that will be remembered.
Share the Benefits to Your Patients
So many Naturopathic doctors will speak to the modalities of their practice. Since many of the offerings are similar from practitioner to practitioner, this makes it increasingly hard to be perceived as the best choice. Instead of focusing on the what, you can focus on the how and why. It's the benefits that your patients see in working with YOU that make you unique. Your vision. Your mission. Your values. Share those instead!
A memorable brand speaks directly to its audience and reflects your personality and values.
Ready to see this in action? Below are all the logos we at Lab Creative have created for Naturopaths in the past couple of years:
Each and every one of these logos was designed with the Naturopathic doctor’s specific niche in mind, what makes them different, who their patients are, and what their brand personality is. You will see one green/leaf logo and that's because it perfectly fit the brand and the name - so we went with it!
Before working with Laura and Lab Creative, I was unclear on how to best portray my message to my ideal client in a short clear and resonating way. The whole process was seamless and the end result was a brand that truly represented me and my business.
Lauren Bennett, ND
As you can see, we LOVE working with Naturopathic doctors on their branding.
If you’re looking to create a stand out brand for your Naturopathic practice, I’ve got a small group session of Brand Camp starting on May 1st and there are 4 spots left.
This is a transformative branding experience that will help you stand out and attract the right clients! Click here to learn more and sign up!