The Brand Context
It was important for us to start by understanding the context in which the Hipotels brand was located. Its profile as a company responds to the classic model of sun and beach that the pioneers of the holiday hotel industry started. (Meliá, Riu, Iberostar, Fiesta, Hipotels or Barceló among others…)
They were all born with a common management model: led by great Mediterranean entrepreneurs with an unrepeatable sense for business, and today they are experiencing a transition towards a more professional management mode, led by the new generations of the family.
The sun and beach holiday hotel industry has suffered from the crisis in the main European countries that send tourists or from the democratisation of new technologies that have brought many travellers closer to direct booking formulas. In addition, low-cost airfares have opened the door to new destinations that today compete with ours.
All of this has led to changes in the way we travel and consume stays and has forced hoteliers to look for new ways of connecting with customers. A customer who, in this case, seeks the security of a great 4 and 5 star service without the excessive formalism of great luxury; who does not give up a good price in spite of having a medium/high purchasing power; and who seeks reliability and security in the service and the product.
"We Care": More than a claim, a promise of an attitude.
The new claim “We Care” synthesizes all the aspects that define Hipotels: the character of a family business and the values of service vocation, effort and professionalism, updating the way of communicating and connecting with customers.
“We Care” talks about care, but it also talks about demand, responsibility and commitment; about caring and concern.
We decided that this word was going to be its axis, that everything we proposed at the level of design, of communication, had to be coherent with this meaning. From this word we wrote a brand manifesto, a promise, an idea of what they want to be for their clients and collaborators and that we summarized in the video that you can see below.
New Visual Identity
To convey this sensitivity, the visual identity evolves without being breakthrough. The strokes of his well-known seahorse have been simplified and softened, and the typography of the logo has been stylised.
The colour palette has also been adapted to more sober shades such as Hipotels Blue combined with notes of light that identify the different segments and services of the Hipotels Hotels and Resorts portfolio: magenta for families, green for golf, greyish blue for events, nude for spa and copper print for luxury.
A Verbal Identity designed to connect
It has also defined a verbal identity that condenses its spirit where the voice is modulated and humanised to connect people and feelings.
What you see is the tip of the iceberg. Under the surface there is a work of more than a year in which graphic applications, corporate stationery, promotional elements, signage, lettering, a verbal identity that governs the writing of the texts… a long list of communication pieces that we will publish little by little and that will make up the new universe of the company’s Brand.
Introducing rebranding: events and press presentations
In addition to the redefinition of the brand strategy, its positioning and the design of its identity, at Mandarina Brand Society we have also taken care of the conceptualization of the rebranding presentation events, both internal and public. We have also been responsible for the coordination and execution of these events together with the staff and teams of the company, as well as the writing of speeches, press releases and the preparation of the presskit.
Two presentation events have been held in Mallorca and another in Cadiz, one of the company’s key destinations. The first event, on October 19, 2018, consisted of the presentation to all the executives and hotel managers of the house. Almost a month later, on 15 November, the public presentation was made to local authorities, the tourism sector and the media.
This past 21st of November, a third presentation was made in Cadiz for the staff, tour operators and agencies and public administrations of the area.
In short, a very complete project which we continue to enjoy today and which is now entering a second phase, that of progressive implementation.