A destination is remembered when the whole place says one true thing about itself.
Generic slogans and many parties who struggle to agree are the two things that make a destination fade. Sinh Vũ helps provinces, cities and tourist areas find their real identity, then builds the identity system and the toolkit that local businesses can all use.
Three things: a real identity drawn from the place itself, an identity system lean enough for every party to use, and a toolkit for local businesses and agencies. A destination has no single owner, so the brand only lives when many parties are willing to use it.
Something true of this place that others don't have, recognized by residents and businesses alike.
A mark, color and type that work on a large sign and on a small label on a local product.
Templates and guidance so local businesses, agencies and associations can use it on their own without drifting.
Scale, shared users and how long the brand has to live all differ, so the method differs too.
Their customersVisitors, investors and residents; many agencies using it together.
Brand challengeFind something broad enough to embrace the whole place yet still its own, and lasting enough to outlive several terms of office.
Their customersVisitors coming to relax and sightsee; many businesses operating in the same area.
Brand challengeLet guests see the area as one unified place, even though the properties inside belong to many owners.
Their customersPotential visitors far away who don't know much about the region.
Brand challengeOne shared message clear enough for every party to tell without stepping on each other.
These are the places where destinations tend to fade even when the scenery and culture are rich.
Green, beautiful, attractive, worth a visit: any of those lines would fit another place just as well.
Find what only this place has, from its history, local produce, people or rhythm of life, then write the message around it.
Start from this problemDepartments, businesses, residents and associations each want something different, and meetings go on without a decision.
Run a structured workshop so the parties find common ground together and decide on evidence, not on opinion.
Start from this problemThe logo launches and then sits in a file; local businesses have no files and no guidance, so each redraws it themselves.
Hand over short guidelines and a set of ready-to-use files, with templates for signs, labels, collateral and social media.
Start from this problemVisitors post scenery photos and no one knows where they were taken, with no mark tying them to the place.
Build a shared set of imagery and promotional marks so every photo and every wayfinding sign evokes the name of the place.
Start from this problemAt the Dream stage. Visitors see beautiful photos and videos but don't remember the name of the place, or find nothing that makes them choose this one over another.
Touchpoints are the places where visitors and local businesses see the brand. You don't need to do everything at once. These five touchpoints decide most of whether the brand gets used.
The document that lets every party use it correctly without asking each time.
It has to work at very large sizes on signs and very small sizes on local product labels.
Where visitors first meet the brand in person.
Where the identity is told as a story to people far away.
Turns the brand from the agency's into the whole place's.
Listed in the order to do them. Finding the identity and aligning the parties must come first, because doing it backward often means fixing things after they are printed.
Find the destination's real identity and position from the place's own evidence.
Bring the parties to one table to agree on what will be said together.
An emblem, color and type for the destination, tested at both large sign size and small label size.
Guidelines and a file set so local businesses and agencies use it correctly.
Campaign imagery to tell that identity to people far away.
Sinh Vũ has not published a provincial or destination brand project. The two below are closest in the problem of one shared face that many parties use, tied to a place.
A refined identity system for the parent company of the Hàn River cruise fleet in Đà Nẵng, with Poseidon leading as the five-star flagship…
One shared voyage on the Han River in Đà Nẵng for the whole fleet: a parent name that has to embrace many parties while still giving room to the bright spots, like a locality with many units.
Metacity builds a 3D city where residents buy land, raise buildings and earn a living from the work of building. Sinh Vũ built the brand foundation and the standards behind it…
A standard that lets four teams draw one place every day while it stays the same place: close to many parties using one destination brand.
The principles behind it
A logo is only one part. A destination brand includes the identity, the message, the identity system, how to use it and a toolkit for many parties. Without the later parts, the logo just sits in a file.
Give them a reason and an easy way: an identity they recognize as their own, a ready-to-use file set and short guidance. The brand has to lighten their work, not add to it.
Start from one thing only this place has, then try the line on another place: if it still fits, it isn't specific enough. A good slogan has to evoke the name of the place.
Use a structured workshop and put evidence and visitor feedback on the table instead of personal opinion. Settle what is common first, and leave each party's own parts for later.
There is no general number. Sinh Vũ hands over a clear identity, an identity system and a full toolkit; the effect also depends on whether the parties keep using it together.
A few lines about the place, the parties involved and what is holding you back is enough. Sinh Vũ will read it and reply within one business day.