Surtel
To listen to the bright side of life.
CLIENT
Surtel
SERVICE
Branding Redesign
YEAR
2015
LOCATION
Porto Alegre, BR
Overview
Rethink the visual identity and slogan of Centro Auditivo Surtel, located in Porto Alegre, with the goal of making it more modern, guided by the principles of technology, safety, agility, and health, aiming to honor long-time clients and attract new ones. Also, design materials for use by the hearing center.
Target
Elderly people with hearing problems who are interested in hearing again to improve their quality of life. These individuals are usually encouraged by a more active person to seek hearing solutions, such as children, caregivers, or partners.
This target audience is known for being more loyal to brands they already know and have a connection with, as long as these brands demonstrate quality, since they tend to be more demanding.
The participation of elderly people in the Brazilian population is increasing due to longer life expectancy, and they have been seeking more quality in their daily lives. Additionally, they tend to have better purchasing power and more structured budgets.
Analyzing the brands in the Porto Alegre region, we can observe a strong use of blue and green colors and symbols directly related to hearing, such as ears and sound waves. Breaking away from this pattern, the brands Aura and +Sons use other colors and shapes that are not directly associated with hearing centers. All the brands analyzed include some identifier of being a hearing center.
Hearing center brands from São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro show a greater variation in colors, though most still use green. Some include colors not directly related to health, such as yellow and lilac. These brands also feature hearing-related symbols, and some appeal to emotion by incorporating heart shapes.
Among foreign brands, there is a traditional preference for using labels and serif fonts. Common symbols include sound waves, and the color palette typically ranges between blue and green.
In the Porto Alegre region, Surtel is the only brand analyzed that uses a serif font, and it also features an ear symbol. Its color palette is similar to that commonly used in the region. Additionally, it incorporates more elements, such as a yellow band, an identifier, and a slogan.
Analysis
For the creation of the new visual identity, we asked how hearing affects our lives and how technology supports it. To begin with, we considered that the human body is made up largely of water, and according to Dr. Masaru Emoto, water crystals respond to stimuli such as positive words. Vibrations are also capable of creating patterns in nature. These were the main references for developing the visual identity.
Brand
The design is fluid, visually soft and pleasant, and also resembles a flower—something natural and universally appealing. The turquoise color used is commonly associated with the healthcare sector. As part of the cool color palette, it conveys safety and trust—essential elements in health that are especially valued by the elderly—while also being a calming color.
The font chosen is simple and elongated, expressing modernity and personality, with visually strong angles. The gray tone applied to the name 'Surtel' balances the weight between the two elements of the brand—the symbol and the name—helping make the identity lighter.
The brand stands out among others in the region, as it differentiates itself by presenting a unique positioning, unlike the common clichés in the hearing care field, such as sound waves and ears.
By being different, Surtel becomes irreplaceable—because "in order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different" (Coco Chanel).
The video SONIC WATER (https://vimeo.com/68768890) was used as the main reference, as it contains all the elements we explored in our thematic boards: water represents life, sounds and vibrations represent hearing, and the devices used to achieve the expected result represent technology.
