Ad Sophistication and Brand Psychological Types

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Nick Dachris

8 Levels of Ad Sophistication and Jung’s Psychological Types in BrandMilton Keynes, March 2017

CONTENTSPreface: 2 Types of Branding

Introduction: Theoretical Basis

Juxtaposition: Types and Sophistication

Analysis: Case Studies

Conclusion: Nice. What’s it for?

Appendix: Tables of Reference

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2 Types of Branding

OUT → INAudit Focus

C O N S U M E R SD I S T R I B U TO R SM E D I AC O M P E T ITO R S

Business ObjectiveR I D E T H E T I D E

Brand StrategyP LU R A L I S T I C

Organisation CulturePUSHTHE COMPANY

Sales ForcePUSH PRODUCT

Marketing GameS E L L W H AT S E L L S

Public MessageBETTER CHEAPER FASTER

Brand CharacterEXTRAVERT No1“I know what ’s good for you”

Risk - YieldLow

IN → OUTAudit Focus

EMPLOYEESDIRECTORSOWNERSCOMPLEMENTERS

Business Objective S E T T H E T R E N D

Brand StrategyM O N O L IT H I C

Organisation CulturePUSHTHE MARKET

Sales ForcePULL CUSTOMER

Marketing GameI N N O VAT E

Public MessageNEW DIFFERENT SPECIAL

Brand CharacterINTROVERT Lux“I know what ’s good for me”

Risk - YieldHigh

- Polar extremes combined in various proportions - rarely found on their own. -

There are, in a manner of speaking, two schools of thought in Corporate Communications. One sets as its priority the market-place, the other the company. The Out-In school starts work from the side of the consumers and makes their needs the corporate mission. The In-Out school starts from the side of the company’s employees and makes their happiness the corporate vision.

Businesses usually take both perspectives into account, but there is an obvious attitude

distinction to be found in advertising, corresponding to those schools. The two, emerging brand characters are reflecting the personality of its stakeholders. One is more product-centered, the other more ego-centered.

In further analysis, each school produces both, rational and irrational, brand characters, corresponding to ads that make logical arguments and ads that make utter nonsense. The latter are commonly belittled on the grounds of judging irrationality

and nonsense as inferior communication, but often seem to be commanding greater brand equity than the former, and they tend to be telling better stories.

The same as in the field of Psychology, Branding can be inclusive and respectful of the character of each brand it is called upon. Creative Direction and Strategy can be part of an analytical treatment based on a very well defined typology. We can perceive brands, humanity and knowledge as one ecosystem.

P R E FA C E


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Sophistication by Level of Product Visibility T h e o r e t i c a l

b a s i sC.G. Jung’s Psychological Types

are an inclusive, binary model that distinguishes 8 types of character on the basis of two attitudes in respect to the self, Extraverted and Introverted, and four functions or approaches to reasoning, Rational Thinking and Feeling, and Irrational Sensation and Intuition. In his descriptions of the Types, Jung never states it but seems to be hinting to a scale of objectivity, from a maximum that is found in extraverted thinking to a minimum, in introverted intuition.

In Advertising there is a classification model of ads on the basis of their sophistication level. This is a scale of how symbolic the ad content is, or how far removed its meaning is from the object for sale, that is the literal point of reference for the advertiser. The farther from it, the more disciplined the audience is perceived to be, and the more sophisticated the ad.

In Information Theory, the deeper the encoding of a message is, the fewer the bits necessary for its transmission. Reversely, the more

the information carried by each bit of code, the higher the entropy, or inherent uncertainty, of the message, and the higher the level of abstraction. The bit carrying the message “tangible product” has lower entropy than that carrying the message “intangible brand”, because the tangible product is a more concrete object, of far less uncertainty as to its deciphering, than the intangible brand.

Finally, the creative process, itself, is governed by an instinctive scale of involvement with the subject of the creation, corresponding to a scale of semantic steps by which a message is removed from the literal meaning of the symbolic objects comprising the creative message, and/or from the creator.

On such a basis I did a little “home-lab” experiment, keeping the product for sale equal, altering just the sophistication and therefore the psychological type of the brand persona portrayed by the ad. I ordered the results, on the far left column of this page, accordingly, but when I looked closer I found that instinct had led me somewhat astray. Instinct is a drive for self-preservation, not a skill. The skill, communication, takes some work.

The Rosetta Stone(The British Museum)

The Rosetta Stone carries the same text in three ancient languages, three different encoding systems, arranged from the one with the fewest but largest symbols to the one with the most but smallest ones. The Greek at the bottom uses 10 times the amount of bits of the Egyptian at the top. It can be argued that the Egyptian is more sophisticated, and the Greek more analytical. The Greek code stood the test of time and was used to decipher the Egyptian when the Stone was found. Maybe the higher their entropy, the shorter the life-span of symbols.

I N T R O D U C T I O N


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Intellectually considered motives, Objective, Dogmatic, entrepreneurial, self-denying

1. IMMATUREProduct descriptionFactual, optimistic, rationalPack shots, product attributesConsumer as target for rote learning

Symbolically considered motives, Subjective, Holistic, theoretical, critical

5. SOPHISTICATED(advertising as focus)Ads as entertainmentBrand as symbolPoetic, allusory styleConsumer as critic

Morally considered motives, Compliant, Conformist, hysterical, loyal

2. DEVELOPING(product choice)Product attributes - competitiveDemonstration of superiorityRational argumentBrand name emphasisConsumer as target for persuasion

Value-considered motives, Reserved, Mysterious, sentimental, melancholic

Aesthetically generated motives, Realist, Sensationalist, impulsive, empirical

3. DEVELOPED(brand choice)Brand emphasisFocus on consumer benefitsCelebrity endorsements or “ordinary” consumer testimonialsAds straddle rational and emotionalConsumer as chooser

Empathy generated motives, Hypocritical, Hedonist, compulsive, self-alienating

Insight generated motives, Speculative, Opportunist, passionate, unstable

4. MATURE(brand involvement)Lifestyle-based brand storiesShorthand brand valuesIdentification and reinforcementConsumer involvement

Ego generated motives, Mystical, Artistic, psychotic, visionary

PsychologicalType (Jung)

Sophistication by Level of Rationality of Character

SophisticationLevel (overlaps)

J U X T A P O S I T I O N


EXTRAVERTED THINKINGIntellectually considered motives, Objective, Dogmatic, entrepreneurial, self-denying

1. IMMATUREProduct descriptionFactual, optimistic, rationalPack shots, product attributesConsumer as target for rote learning

PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE

SOPHISTICATION LEVEL1

THE PRODUCTDon’t laugh. Our dildo, a blunt sex supplement, of a tradition as old as humankind, to be taken as part of a balanced diet in human relationships, or to be used as a substitute for the real thing in various occasions, comes in three colours, and has no other special features, so we can concentrate on the brand differences that rely solely on ATL communication.

TYPICAL SITUATIONMonopoly. Our product is the only option, a category of its own. Spoilt for choice, pick a colour or collect all three. Advertising blunt. People get paranoid around sophisticated ads, content with their social order. The strictlier we adhere to fundamentalist piety, the blindlier we’re trusted. The advertiser, essentially, is a totalitarian State. Whatever it sells, we buy.

THE BRAND CHARACTERPious, straight-forward materialistic. No pleasure, just business. Owning an object doesn’t make you special. Just normal, well-adjusted. Dead boring. Smells of slave-labour.

COMMUNICATIONPlain and simple. White background, product and pack shot, functional name, price, that’s it. Mere reproduction of the display shelf in the shop, for display beyond the shop. To most people, this doesn’t even count as advertising. But a strictly conservative audience could find it honest and safe.

A N A LY S I S


EXTRAVERTED FEELINGMorally considered motives, Compliant, Conformist, hysterical, loyal


PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE


TYPICAL SITUATIONMonopolistic environment, no actual need for differentiation, but people have high morals and low morale, and they avoid purchasing our good. Context forbids a functional value proposition or a literal illustration of the product in use. But where there’s morals there’s mores, too. Mores are values. Pretending to be winning in value, in a category of various similar products of other vendors/manufacturers, boosts the urge to buy.

THE BRAND CHARACTERThe best buy for the best people. Impossible to evaluate beyond the self-fulfilling criteria the ad gives you beforehand. Dubiously manipulative but totally effective. The best is better than nothing at all.

COMMUNICATIONWake up call. White background, red jagged cartoon-balloon, pack shot, functional name, brain-numbing price-offer “only-something-99”, “The Best!” title, “unique comfort” tag-line. To most people, this doesn’t count as advertising, just as loud announcement, lacking imagination. The consumer reads it as a typo mistake, but, subtly, labelling the consumer, along the product, “the best”, creates a special kind of rapport. Innocent con trick. No harm done.

A N A LY S I S


EXTRAVERTED SENSATIONAesthetically generated motives, Realist, Sensationalist, impulsive, empirical


PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE



TYPICAL SITUATIONThere is some competition around and our product needs to stand out. Not necessarily in the same category. We need wallet-share if not market-share, too. There is an element of insight about what consumers are looking for, cannot reach, and our product is the next best thing. It’s basic market problem-solving, exploiting a weakness of the customer. Going with the dominant flow of prejudices and stereotypes pushing for identification of our product with those.

THE BRAND CHARACTEREven better than the real thing. It’s got a name and a mental image of something beyond the object, it stands for something, moving towards the symbolic but never touching it. Somewhat hilarious but also masculine and attractive. Sporty and irresistible. Guidance for those who don’t know what they’re looking for. Clueless but honest character. Almost childish.

COMMUNICATIONA simplistic system of associations. Product on one side, metaphor on the other. Boyscout name for title, boyscout tag-line, boyscout Call To Action. Blue skies, dark figure. Duty calls. The duty of self-pleasure, the duty to buy more than one piece. Titillating set-up, calling up on our imagination to complete the image.

A N A LY S I S


EXTRAVERTED INTUITIONInsight generated motives, Speculative, Opportunist, passionate, unstable

PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE



TYPICAL SITUATIONEither no competition around or a hell of a lot. Consumers are frustrated, in a self-conflict regarding their failure to get satisfaction. With all the problems in the world, the economic crisis, the depression and all that, the consumers will fall for anything associated with what they want to be, out of pure instinct for survival. Beside the girls, there are boys, too, buying gifts for their girlfriends, and can be tapped under the same premise. There is a window of opportunity for us to identify our brand with success and fulfilment if we appeal to consumer impulse. The feel-good factor has to be stressed in the advertising.

THE BRAND CHARACTERFriendly, happy and generically successful. Almost funny but too glamorous for laughter. Makes you smile, so, buy with confidence. You don’t have to be wanting in the satisfaction department. You’re safe. Enjoy yourself. Protective, playful, motherly character.

COMMUNICATIONAnother simplistic system of associations. Self-metaphor on one side, product on the other. Smile voluptuously and wink knowingly, and get Miss Success’s secret, half price, only today. Bright yellow over dull grey. Posh-looking slut-face, artfully composed product/pack shot. A mirror of happiness to identify with. Life is so simple. An opportunity too unique to miss.

A N A LY S I S


INTROVERTED THINKINGSymbolically considered motives, Subjective, Holistic, theoretical, critical

PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE



TYPICAL SITUATIONCompetition doesn’t count. The target audience is wanting for identity, something to give it a sense of character, while the company is so cocky it thinks its product unparalleled. Opposites attract. Authoritarian organisation, like a secret order. The staff is brain-washed and disciplined to a higher purpose. The brand script and the leader prescribe what we must think and it’s up to us to figure out how to think it. We have no means to resistance except hiding, so we might as well join the sect. This is the brand ruling over the earth like monotheistic religions do. The CEO is the godhead. The product is merely an artefact of faith, devotion and belonging. It’s not like you can belong without owning at least one dildo. If not, you’re scorned, like a heretic.

THE BRAND CHARACTERPredatory, totalitarian, dominant, absolute, godlike, impenetrable, irresistible, highly sophisticated, intellectual, autistic maniac. No empathy whatsoever. Judge and executioner of the universe.

COMMUNICATIONAbstract association system, pretty advanced, promoting the logo as symbol of everything the brand stands for. The product has neither priority nor significance, therefore no place in the ad, but the logo itself hints to it, and with the support of a minimal framing layout, it is very compelling. The single word, “fidelity”, under the icon of a glans, both within three, concentric, thin circles in the colours of the brand, and all on a plain black background - this is not so much advertising as territory-marking. The unspoken message is “you belong to me.” Intimidation into respect and loyalty.

A N A LY S I S


INTROVERTED FEELINGValue-considered motives, Reserved, Mysterious, sentimental, melancholic

PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE



TYPICAL SITUATIONThere is plenty of competition in the product category but there is a subculture of consumers that is not represented in it. The company is run by a bunch of goths and this is what they want to be doing. A business with like-minded customers. Ethno-psychographic research can verify that the target consumer is either on a Christian Catholic sex diet or in a revolution against it. Goths and emos, or wannabe goths and emos, prone to temptation, afraid of sin, always eager, never fulfilled. Also appreciative of avant-garde Art and music. A niche market, maybe, but a considerably large niche and a loyal one, too. You can’t go wrong with lifestyle identification.

THE BRAND CHARACTERWell, Gothic, what else? Clear cut. Voluptuous and innocent. Religiously sinful. Elegantly exotic. Pure and complex and wild and tamed at the same time. The silent type. The beautiful witch. Hiding a magic wand.

COMMUNICATIONAnother advanced system of associations, this time fairly concrete (opposite of abstract), identifying the product with a particular lifestyle, by personifying the brand as a hero/heroine representing the lifestyle, only subtly hinting at the product. A black and white portrait of a dark-haired woman in half-reserved ecstasy, in-between singing and having an orgasm, the word redemption next to her face and three dots in the colours of the product, in a plain white background reflecting our broken innocence.

A N A LY S I S


INTROVERTED SENSATIONEmpathy generated motives, Hypocritical, Hedonist, compulsive, self-alienating

PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE



TYPICAL SITUATIONA particular target audience with a clear common ground, in a very cluttered market. The brand, on a limited advertising budget, can hijack a fan base from a different product category. A play on attitude and semantics, with symbol distortion, can create a buzz to carry the ad further than any paid campaign. This may lead to law suits and negative media attention. By the time the law suit goes to court the sales will have paid off the lawyers. I use it here for the sake of illustration, for educational purposes only, not as recommendation for practice. It could be done by piggy-backing on a cultural element that is free, e.g. Christmas or Socialism, instead of a corporate brand, but it would be slower, more imperialistic, and easier to misunderstand in the present context. Placing the ad must be very precise, either way.

THE BRAND CHARACTERInformal, provocative, niche, controversial. Left-field, Punk, underdog humour, criticising the status quo. Naive, parasitical character. Counter-culture activist.

COMMUNICATIONInsider joke. For those in the know, only. Advanced association system. Introducing a mascot, hiding the product in plain sight, and making a pun out of the brand name, “TED-Talks”, with a teddy-bear that doesn’t talk. The set, in the colours of TED-talks stages, is made out of product packs. The slogan goes “imagine tomorrow in the colours in which our product is available.” The mascot-bear plays the jester, in a way granting licence to connect with the underdog within the mind of the consumer.

A N A LY S I S


INTROVERTED INTUITIONEgo generated motives, Mystical, Artistic, psychotic, visionary

PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE



TYPICAL SITUATIONThe company couldn’t care less for rational, marketing science arguments on consumer behaviour, as long as the brand is advertised on the media with the highest returns. If one competitor puts on a campaign, all the rest must do so, too. The creatives can do what they want with the brand, as long as it maintains enough consistency with past expressions to reinforce the brand character, which may have nothing to do with the product in rational terms. So the creatives can create a vision that seems to be from out of this world, stretching the narrative of the dream-sequence, that previous campaigns have created, to breaking point. And depending on the socio-economic context in which the ad will appear, they can adjust the depth of the dream or they can flow with it, or change it entirely.

THE BRAND CHARACTERExotic, calm, wish-fulfilling and fantasy-bright (or brilliantly dark). A source of inner strength and justification of unjustifiable experiences. An anchor of purpose in a purposeless life.

COMMUNICATIONThe most complex system of associations, one between the product and nature, in this case a tropical sunset. While the composition is standard, pack-shot over landscape, the connection is illogical. The print reads “Secret Jack, all the love, none of the heartbreaks”. The ad is like downright nonsense, except it communicates on the subliminal level, with symbols that target the endocrine controls of the brain and create a positive, irrational predisposition for preference towards our product. Like in the language of dreams. This is what most people would recognise as advertising, and its genuinely hypnotic.

A N A LY S I S


Nice. What ’s i t for?Clarification of three

issues. Creative Strategy, the relationship between Advertising and Brand, and the classification of brands according to advertising narrative/character.

Creative Strategy in Advertising is the most important thing in branding, next to the quality of the product or service advertised, and to the ethics of the advertiser’s company. It is mostly a personal matter of a decision maker, what approach should be taken, and the market has little say over it. The decision maker usually has to choose among a number of pitches, preliminary sketches or detailed proposals, most of which are wasted along with the work that has gone into them. The creative strategy, in other words, is based on someone’s whim and bias, instead of concerted, scientific effort. Jung’s Psychological Types are a start in understanding this whim scientifically. This helps us communicate better, make fewer wasted pitches, make better design decisions, be

less offended by ads that are opposing our type, and grasp the connection between Brand and Creative Strategy.

The brand character is a concept similar to brand narrative, brand story, brand personality, or brand script, but distinctive from brand equity, brand accounting and brand vision and mission. The character is that which is perceived by the public about the brand, comprising experience and hearsay of a business or a set of goods. In that respect, Advertising, along with Product-Design, Packaging, and Display-Architecture, constitutes the framing of the character, the principal expectations management of the brand. The Creative Strategy, defining that framing, inevitably determines the grounds for everything else about the brand in the mind of the consumers, including reception of other promotion methods as well as criticism.

A brand character is never complete without taking into account the business underlying

the brand, and its impact on the socio-economic environment. Nonetheless, what is displayed in Advertising is clearly falling upon those categories, Jung’s types, that are used in Analytical Psychology to classify people according to how they deal with reality. This, in turn, is based on an older, Philosophical distinction between objectivity and subjectivity, but whereas Philosophy may be a war of opposites, Psychology may be a path of inclusiveness, and peaceful diversity. I do not subscribe to that branch of Behaviour Economics that sees irrationality as detrimental. Self-interest is different in each of us and the point of rationality is to set conventions which include the acceptance of irrationality as one point of self-interest. Besides, the Creative Type is irrational by definition. There is no human progress without breaking away from rationality. There are many things not done for profit. Kids, for example. Love is irrational. And constant rationality is boring, anyway.

INTRO-VERTED

EXTRA-VERTED

R A T I O N A L I R R A T I O N A LT H I N K I N G F E E L I N G S E N S A T I O N I N T U I T I O N

Nick Dachris, Ad Sophistication and Brand Character (based on Jung’s Psychological Types)

C O N C L U S I O N


C.G.Jung, PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPES (1920, Routledge 1971)ATTITUDE-TYPE(direction of interest, relative to the self) *

FUNCTION-TYPE direction of libido, relative to the object) *

EXTRAVERT

Object-oriented stimulus-response. Open but shallow. Materialist. Stereotypes seeker.

[Market Audit, Consumer Trends, Best Offers]

RATIONAL - “The rationality of both types is object-oriented and dependent on objective data. It accords with what is collectively considered to be rational... Reason, however, is in large part subjective and individual.” (§603)

IRRATIONAL - “...whatever they do or do not do is based not on rational judgement but on the sheer intensity of perception. Their perception is directed simply and solely to events as they happen, no selection being made by judgement.” (§616)

Thinking Feeling Sensation Intuition

Intellectually considered motives, Objective, Dogmatic, entrepreneurial, self-denying

Morally considered motives, Compliant, Conformist, hysterical, loyal

Aesthetically generated motives, Realist, Sensationalist, impulsive, empirical

Insight generated motives, Speculative, Opportunist, passionate, unstable

INTROVERT

Subject-oriented stimulus-response. Closed but deep. Spiritualist. Archetypes seeker.

[Organisation Audit, Employee Beliefs, New Offers]

RATIONAL - “...the judgement of the introverted rational types is undoubtedly rational, only it is oriented more by the subjective factor. This does not necessarily imply any logical bias, since the bias lies in the premise. The premise consists in the predominance of the subjective factor prior to all conclusions and judgements.” (§644) **

IRRATIONAL - “The irrational introverted types are certainly no teachers of a more perfect humanity; they lack reason and the ethics of reason. But their lives teach the other possibility, the interior life which is so painfully wanting in our civilisation.” (§665)

Thinking Feeling Sensation Intuition

Symbolically considered motives, Subjective, Holistic, theoretical, critical

Value-considered motives, Reserved, Mysterious, sentimental, melancholic

Empathy generated motives, Hypocritical, Hedonist, compulsive, self-alienating

Ego generated motives, Mystical, Artistic, psychotic, visionary

** “The introvert is far more subject to misunderstanding than the extravert... because the style of the times [the Western cultural norm] which he himself imitates works against him.” (§645)

* The attitudes can and often do complement each other.

* Principal and Auxiliary FunctionsWhen the principal is a rational function the auxiliary is an irrational one, and vice versa. The pairs comprise mutually exclusive functions

R.White, THE FIVE STAGES OF ADVERTISING SOPHISTICATION, in ADVERTISING (McGraw-Hill 2000) *1. IMMATURE 2. DEVELOPING

(product choice)3. DEVELOPED(brand choice)

4. MATURE(brand involvement)

5. SOPHISTICATED(advertising as focus)

Product descriptionFactual, optimistic, rationalPack shots, product attributesConsumer as target for rote learning

Product attributes - competitiveDemonstration of superiorityRational argumentBrand name emphasisConsumer as target for persuasion

Brand emphasisFocus on consumer benefitsCelebrity endorsements or “ordinary” consumer testimonialsAds straddle rational and emotionalConsumer as chooser

Lifestyle-based brand storiesShorthand brand valuesIdentification and reinforcementConsumer involvement

Ads as entertainmentBrand as symbolPoetic, allusory styleConsumer as critic

* based on M. Goodyear, The five stages of advertising literacy, Admap, March 1991

A P P E N D I X

Nick DachrisCreative and Branding ConsultantDirector, Delta Salience LtdAuthor, Commanding Demand®

[email protected].(0)7790.685.181

LinkedIn, Facebook: Nick Dachris

Ad Sophistication and Brand Psychological Types

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