Before the First Patient Walked In
Before the First Patient Walked In
Columbus Hand Institute didn’t exist when we met Dr. Sean Blake. There was no building. No brand. No website. No sign on the door. Dr. Blake had a vision, a lot of conviction, and enough trust in his own instincts to bet on himself. One day he was at the hospital; the next, he was on his own. Our job was to make sure Columbus could find him.
Dr. Blake’s practice opened in May 2025 and has grown faster in its first year than most practices grow in five.
How it Started
Dr. Blake came to us through a referral from a trusted client, and before we ever talked about logos or websites, we talked about patient care. About philosophy. About what kind of practice he wanted to build and what kinds of patients he wanted to serve. The early conversations covered a lot of ground—theoretical, strategic, personal.
Before we do anything, we listen. With Dr. Blake, that meant real conversations that were organic, unhurried, and purpose-driven. The kind that can’t be manufactured. The kind that build something.
The Name Was the Easy Part
One of the first strategic conversations was about naming. The question wasn’t “what sounds good?” It was more specific: Did Dr. Blake want patients to follow him out of the hospital system, his name and reputation front and center, or did he want to introduce something new to Columbus, something that stood on its own while he also maintained his hospital relationships?
The answer was easy: “Columbus,” because community matters. “Hand,” because that’s the work. “Institute,” because this is a destination. Columbus Hand Institute. CHI. It fit.
Getting the Baby Born
Branding a first-time practice owner is its own kind of work. Our designer wanted to honor the Columbus connection from the start, the local identity, the community roots. What emerged was a bold, modern three-letter mark. CHI. Clean. Confident. Built to define the future of hand care in Columbus.
Getting there took patience. Dr. Blake cared deeply about every decision, and our creative director worked closely with him and the CHI team throughout the process. We helped them visualize the brand in action and see how it would work.
From there, every element of the brand—the visual system, the voice, the details—required care. By the time CHI was ready to open, the brand was ready too.
Seeing It Come Together
Before CHI opened, we were able to visit the new space while it was still coming together: final touches being installed, equipment arriving, the team settling into their spaces. The thought that went into the flow, the patient experience, and the details was obvious. The build matched what we were creating for them on paper and on screen.
A brand only works when the experience can support it, and walking through that space before a single patient arrived reaffirmed everything we had heard from Dr. Blake and his team.
Built to Be Found
The website launched along with the practice itself. Content written from scratch. SEO strategy built in from the start with a challenge specific to CHI: Dr. Blake had name recognition in Columbus from his years at the hospital. Patients knew him. But Columbus Hand Institute was unknown. No one had heard the name yet. There were also restrictions on how and when he could reach out to his former patient base.
The answer was content that did double duty. We wrote about the practice, the conditions CHI treats, the equipment, the non-surgical options, and the specialty care— from fractures to nerve repair to wrist reconstruction. Symptoms and solutions, written for the patients searching for them. And throughout every piece, Dr. Blake’s name was seen alongside the CHI team. So that anyone who knew him could find him, and anyone who found CHI could get to know him.
Getting the messaging right took time—actively listening, being engaged, and asking the right questions each step of the way. The result is a voice on the site that is distinctly CHI’s: conservative-first, team-forward, and honest about what patients can expect.
A Practice Built to Last
The brand is doing what it was built to do: carry a philosophy forward, introduce a name to a community that was ready for it, and ensure patients can find the right care.
Columbus now knows the Columbus Hand Institute name. And Dr. Blake is doing what he has always done: taking care of his patients, his team, and his community. We built the brand to reflect everything he stands for, and his openness to the process made it possible.
