“Too many companies want their brands to reflect some idealised, perfected image of themselves. As a consequence, their brands acquire no texture, no character and no public trust.” – Richard Branson
By definition a brand archetype is a powerful identity you assign to your brand. It is an universally familiar character or situation that transcends time, place, culture, gender and age. The idea behind using brand archetypes is to anchor your brand into something iconic— something that is embedded and relatable to a person’s core subconscious mind and heart. Having a brand archetype does not make your brand personality an illusion or a lie, it represents an eternal truth that starts from the very beginning until the finishing line.
The brand archetype gives a brand a more human feel. Brand archetypes include the pioneer, the wizard, the scientist, the sage and the artist. A lack of understanding in the application of brand archetypes has caused this strategic tool to be dismissed. The truth is that brand archetypes harnesses the power to place your brand front and centre.
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Undisclosed Facts of The Most Loved Brands
Ask yourself a question: What is the one brand that I use, where its alternative just won’t do it?
I’m confident to say that we all have an emotional connection with at least one brand. Think of at least one brand, maybe it’s your iPhone or Adidas sneakers, or something that you buy to define who you are. Little did you know, your favourite brand has managed to successfully create an emotional bond with you, through strategic communication and positioning.
Why We “Adore” Our Favourite Brand
You adore your favourite brands because they understand you better than other brands. They made it possible for you to feel human connections for inanimate objects that they manufacture. They construct their communication (through how they present their personality) to evoke your desire towards them and capture your emotions.
The Key Is Not In The Mind, But In The Heart
A study made by Gerald Zaltman, a professor of Harvard Business School showed that 95% of our purchasing decisions are made in our subconscious. He goes on to say that we never actually consider the alternative of our favourite brand when we are actively comparing competing brands. This is surprising because we always assumed that we are logical and calculated people that considers all the options on the table before making an informed decision. This proves that long before the point of purchase, our decisions have actually been made.
Desire Is The Mother Of Brand Archetype
A psychologist named Carl Jung, who first came up with the term “archetypes” has quoted that all of us have a “collective unconscious” that channels emotions and experiences resulting in repeated, typical patterns of behaviour.
There are 12 distinct personalities (12 Jungian archetypes) which evokes 12 core human desires. This personalities or archetypes are all instinctive. These archetypes that act as the primary colours for all desires and personalities can be utilised to create strategic emotional connections. Certain personalities will be effective in evoking your desire for freedom, safety, power, intimacy, or understanding. In other words, there are specific personalities that we instinctively and subconsciously understand, that evokes specific desires within us.
How Can I Use This in My Branding Strategy?
Brand archetypes should be a core part of your brand and positioning strategy. It will take further understanding and investigation to know which archetype is affective for your audiences.
Knowing what your audiences desires, fears, aspire and expect will guide you to the archetype that will best appeal to them. Take note that your position and how you want to differentiate your space will be influenced by your industry and competitors.
Being aware about your competitive space will give you insight into the position, emotion and desire you want to evolve. You will be enlightened to the brand archetype that will bring your brand back to life.
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Interested in establishing your brand archetype to get the results you desire? Click here!
