TRIPOM Branding for medical students

Dr Sam Bampoe and Dr John Whittle approached graphic design studio Superfried to help them with the brand identity and brand strategy for a non-profit, education resource. The platform would serve students in Perioperative Medicine – medical care of patients from the time of contemplation of surgery through the operative period to full recovery. They required a new brand identity and web development services for a modern, vibrant website platform to connect with their target student demographic.

Called TRIPOM [TRainees with an Interest in PeriOperative Medicine] their existing DIY logo design played on the pun TRI [Three] + POM [Apple in French]. This was a creative idea and established standout from the usual medical clichés. Design experimentation led to numerous design iterations and illustration styles, but a triangular / rotational form was selected for its chemical, and medical diagrammatic feel.

With the creative solution for the logo design in place, I looked into typographic designs for the logotype. Uppercase bespoke typography was designed with the subtle addition of dots to reaffirm the initialism of the name. The holding organisation, EBPOM, had requested the brandmark convey a connection to their branding. To achieve this, the circle of dots that surround the 'O' in their logotype were employed in the same fashion for TRIPOM – the best compromise available to appease all parties. The final logo design and wordmark were tested thoroughly. Stacked and horizontal logo lock-ups were developed and a light and heavy version of each was designed to ensure versatility across all digital and print media.

For the styling of the graphical communications for marketing and the website, based on the name I employed a versatile 3-column grid system. To maximise usability and speed, the homepage focused on 6 quick access icons linking directly to the key site content. To maintain a visual connection with the logo design, an outline illustration style was adopted for the icons.

The site would be complex and required to feature an eclectic mix of searchable content including PDF tutorials and research, resource links, podcasts, videos and details of fellowships and courses. Consequently, delivery of information was key, so with this in mind, clean layouts and simple usability were strictly maintained throughout the design process. Images were also kept to a minimum to avoid distraction and ensure simpler updating for team members short of time and appropriate software.

To create vibrancy without compromising the data, the page backgrounds were coloured, ensuring content remained minimal without looking dull. A pastel palette was selected ensuring each brand colour did not become overbearing. Rather than assigning a separate brand colour per category – the number of which may change or increase in the future – an alternative creative strategy was sought.

The desired ambition of Perioperative Medicine is for all patients to experience the same consistent care and smooth transition from pre-op through to recovery.

What if this could also be reflected in the user experience?

A system was developed to ensure that the user path through the site always follows the same sequence of page colours regardless of the route taken. The palette was based on a perpetual spectral loop – blue – green – yellow – orange – pink – purple and then back to blue, ensuring the brand colour transitions were less abrupt or obtrusive.

The client had previously created monthly tutorials in Word. To ensure the brand application remained consistent, the existing files were re-created on new, brand-led, template designs. This would also enable the team and guest academic contributors to maintain brand consistency without the requirement for extra software or designers. All future files would be saved and uploaded to the site in PDF format to maximise user accessibility and ensure formatting is maintained.

The new brand solution was applied to Keynote presentation template designs and a simple animated logo ident. Additional printed marketing material in the form of event flyers, posters, banners and branded lanyards was also designed and produced.

You can view the site here – TRIPOM site.