The starting point: a specialist, not a building
Evin Koç Alakuş graduated from Marmara University’s Faculty of Dentistry in 2009 and completed her orthodontic specialisation at Marmara University in 2014. She is a member of the Turkish Orthodontic Society, the Turkish Aligner Society and the European Orthodontic Society. She has no practice of her own: on set days of the week she sees patients in Gebze and Gölcük, and she also takes appointments from Istanbul.
That is a case where classic clinic branding does not work. Instead of a sign, a building or an address, the thing that has to carry trust is the specialist herself. It was also the first goal we wrote into the project roadmap: a digital identity independent of her current or future place of work.
So the brand had to express the same person, the same approach and the same care across different cities and clinics. Wherever a patient came from, the first contact had to feel the same.
First, clearing the confusion
The brief was clear: a website. But what the site should say, who it should speak to and how it should look were still open. We started with a project intake form covering her professional background, treatment priorities, the questions patients ask most and how she describes herself.
The answers were short but very clear. She described her communication with patients as “ethical, open and clear”; the three qualities she wanted to be remembered for were “disciplined, solution-focused and successful”; she summed up her approach as “solution- and patient-focused”; and she wanted the brand to convey one thing above all: trust. There was no colour or symbol to avoid. That was both a great freedom and a great responsibility: a handful of words had to become a system that works the same way everywhere. It was here that it became clear the site needed to be the storefront of a brand.
Sometimes the most valuable work is not doing what was asked straight away, but finding out together what is actually needed.
A path that grew out of the logo
The brand grew from a single idea placed inside the logo: a stylised tooth outline for expertise, a four-pointed sparkle at its centre for aesthetics, and two human silhouettes at the top for the trust between specialist and patient. Those three values guided every decision on colour, typography, photography and tone of voice.
- Burgundy and warm off-white instead of clinical blue: a calm, premium language far from cold healthcare imagery.
- Editorial photography instead of sterile shots; crystal 3D renders instead of graphic tooth icons.
- A four-part voice: scientific and clear, refined and elegant, empathetic and attentive, innovative and transparent.
- A 26-page brand book that brings all the rules together.
The website: from brochure to experience
The site was designed as the digital counterpart of the identity and became an experience through AI. With the Smile Mirror, visitors can see an illustrative preview of their smile after treatment; with the 360° crystal dental model they can rotate and inspect alignment and bite from every angle.
- Fifteen pages including treatments, process, articles and FAQ, with a page for every treatment.
- Pre-filled WhatsApp messages carrying the treatment name instead of forms: the shortest way to get in touch.
- Patients from Gebze, Gölcük and Istanbul reach the same information with the same clarity.
Trust within the limits of healthcare communication
Healthcare communication rules do not allow patient reviews, ratings or promised results. So trust had to come from the design itself, from clear and understandable language and from transparent information. Wherever relevant, the site states that images are representative and content does not replace a diagnosis.
Social media: the brand, continued
Instagram was designed as a natural extension of the site and the guidelines. The launch feed told the story of the personal approach, treatment planning, paediatric orthodontics, clear aligners, the first examination and the Smile Mirror in the same visual language and tone. Patients move from social media to the site and from the site to the appointment without a break.
Next: growth
Dr. Koç Alakuş was delighted with the brand that came out of the process, and we are now moving into the growth phase together. The brand, site and social channels are in place; the focus is turning that foundation into visibility. In the coming period, our SEO and social media work concentrates on:
- Being visible in searches by people looking for orthodontic treatment in Gebze, Gölcük and Istanbul.
- Answering patients’ most common questions (aligners or braces, treatment length, discomfort, retention, jaw expansion at any age) reliably through the article library.
- Having the specialist’s name and expertise described accurately by AI search engines.
- Building awareness with regular, guideline-led social content.
Lessons for specialists without a practice of their own
- Tie the brand to the person, not the address; name, title and approach should match exactly on every channel.
- Make the website the hub that gathers the scatter of working across several clinics.
- Keep one short contact path, so patients reach you the same way wherever they come from.
- Build trust with transparent, rule-abiding language and a consistent design.
You can see all the visuals and details on the case study page. If you are considering a similar path for your own practice, get in touch.