Brand Identity and Development of a Luxury Heritage Hotel

Credit: Ken Kochey/ Sarah Laird & Good Company

Brand Identity | Brand Strategy | Content | Website Development | Events

In celebration of its 25th anniversary and recent refurbishment, Sarah Miller & Partners was commissioned by The Datai Langkawi to create and lead the brand strategy, visual identity, marketing collateral, photography and videography and build and develop the new website.

Brand Strategy and Identity

Sarah Miller & Partners worked closely with the Datai Langkawi team and our partners Simon Paterson and Micha Weidmann Studio to create a new visual identity which reflected the resort’s heritage, culture, and harmonious relationship with nature. We produced a new logo, which would provide the keystone for all visual assets and collateral moving forward.

We also produced a bespoke brand strategy for the Datai Langkawi with our partner Paterson Associates. This encompassed its mission, vision, values, positioning and purpose, which we then built out into a comprehensive set of brand guidelines. Our holistic approach to the brand strategy and identity was completed with a set of tone of voice guidelines and photography guidelines, to be used in the creation of all assets and collateral for the Datai Langkawi brand.

Collateral

The Datai Langkawi also commissioned Sarah Miller & Partners to design relevant print and digital collateral, for use both at the resort and across external marketing, communications and sales.

We implemented the work carried out in our brand strategy and identity to produce collateral which was consistent with the new brand identity, and that reflected the brand’s core values, and all design, copy and photography were informed by our style guides. Print collateral ranged from business cards and luggage tags, through to branded uniforms and umbrellas. Digital collateral included newsletter templates and brochures.

Photography and Video

As part of the new brand identity and strategy, and to highlight the refurbishments carried out across the resort, Sarah Miller & Partners orchestrated the production of a new photography and videography bank for the Datai Langkawi with our photography director Caroline Metcalfe. This encompassed lifestyle and editorial shots, for use in guest and press-facing communications, as well as the interiors and aerial drone shots of the resort. We also created a short video which was released to coincide with the Datai Lankgawi’s relaunch. Food and beverage, wellness, staff portraits and experiences were all taken into account to capture the essence of a stay at the Datai Langkawi.

Website

We also worked with the Datai Langkawi team to deliver a new website, the launch of which was timed for the resort’s relaunch. With partners Lewis Orr of Aphinitee and 80 Days, we led consultations into the user journey, design and requirements of the website, including booking platforms and recommended CMS platforms.

We oversaw the transfer, build, design and content creation of the entire website, and also hosted remote training sessions for the Datai Langkawi staff in how to use the custom-built CMS.

The new website design was informed by the new brand identity, with photography and videography from the shoots we had produced.

Credit: Ken Kochey/ Sarah Laird & Good Company

Partners:
80 Days (Digital/ Web/ Mobile)
Aphinitee (Digital/ Web/ Mobile)
CMC Consulting (Art Direction, Photography, Film)
Paterson Associates (Brand Definitions, Brand Positioning, Tone of Voice, Customer Journey/ User Experience, Storytelling)
Micha Weidmann Studio (Art direction and design for the visual identity, photography, film and marketing collateral)