Brand Development

Don't Just Be a Place. Become a Destination Brand.

Our Brand Development services help you uncover your unique identity, craft a compelling story, and build a powerful brand that attracts your ideal guests, commands loyalty, and sets you apart from the competition.

Why do travelers choose one mountain over another with nearly identical snowfall? Why do they return to the same beach resort year after year, even when newer options exist?

The answer is Brand.

A great destination brand is more than a pretty logo or a catchy tagline. It’s a promise. It’s the gut feeling a guest has when they think of you. It's the compelling story that turns a simple location into a sought-after experience people will pay more for and return to again and again. In a crowded tourism market, your brand isn't just a part of your strategy; it is your primary competitive advantage.

At nxtConcepts, we help you define and amplify the authentic soul of your destination.

Is Your Brand Working as Hard as You Are?

A strong brand provides clear answers. If you struggle with the following questions, it might be time for a strategic brand evolution.

Can you clearly articulate why a visitor should choose you over your closest competitor—without mentioning price?
Is your brand promise consistent across your marketing, your website, and your on-site guest experience?
Does your brand effectively attract the high-value guests and visitors you want?
Does your entire team—from marketing to the front desk to the ski patrol—understand and embody your brand's core values?

From a Location to a Legendary Brand

A strong brand strategy transforms how people perceive you:

A ski resort

evolves from being "a place with snow" to being renowned as "The Mountain for Adventurous Families."

A beach resort

moves beyond being "a hotel on the water" to become "The Sanctuary for Mindful Relaxation."

A DMO or CVB

unifies a diverse region under a single, powerful idea, such as "The Unexpected Culinary Capital" or "Where History and Innovation Collide."

Good to Know

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions about Brand Development

What’s the difference between our 'brand' and our logo or marketing materials?

Your logo, website, and brochures are important, but they are only the expressions of your brand. Your actual brand is your reputation. It's the story people tell about you. It's the gut feeling and promise that comes to mind when a traveler thinks of your destination. Our brand development process focuses on defining that core story and promise first, which then allows us to create a logo, messaging, and marketing materials that are authentic, powerful, and consistent.

Our destination has been successful for years. Why should we consider a brand development project now?

Success in the past doesn't guarantee success in the future. A strategic brand project is often the key to unlocking the next level of growth. Common triggers include:

Increased competition from new or revitalized destinations.
A desire to attract a new, higher-value guest demographic.
Major capital improvements that your old brand no longer reflects.
Inconsistent messaging across your marketing channels.
A need to unify multiple stakeholders (for DMOs/CVBs) under a single, compelling regional identity.

Branding can be subjective. How do you ensure we arrive at a decision our entire leadership team or board can support?

This is a critical part of our process. We remove subjectivity by grounding every decision in data and research. Our Brand Discovery phase involves in-depth market analysis, competitive reviews, and, most importantly, interviews with your key stakeholders and guests. By building consensus around a shared, fact-based understanding of your strengths and opportunities, the strategic direction becomes clear. The process is designed to unify your team around a common vision, not to vote on color palettes.

How long does a brand development project take and how much of our team's time will it require?

A typical comprehensive branding project takes between 1 to 4 months, depending on the scope. While we do the heavy lifting—the research, analysis, strategy, and creative development—we require focused participation from your leadership team at key milestones. These are typically collaborative workshops and review sessions that are highly efficient and essential for ensuring the final brand is an authentic reflection of your organization.

What are the tangible deliverables we receive at the end of the process?

You will receive a complete strategic and creative toolkit for your brand's future. This typically includes:

A Brand Discovery & Research Report with key insights.
A Strategic Brand Platform defining your mission, vision, values, brand personality, and market positioning.
A Messaging Guide with your official brand story, tagline, and key messages.
A Visual Identity System including your logo, color palette, typography, and imagery guidelines.
A Brand Rollout Plan to guide a successful launch.

Why should our destination work with nxtConcepts instead of a large, well-known design or branding agency?

Because a branding agency from a major city doesn't instinctively understand the soul of a ski town, the rhythm of a beach resort, or the complexities of a DMO. They don't know your guests, your seasonality, or your operational challenges.

We do. We are tourism marketers first. We build authentic destination brands from the inside out because we are part of your world. Our strategies are born from real-world experience, ensuring your brand is not only beautiful and compelling but also practical, authentic, and poised for success in the competitive travel market.