Archetypes Part II: Uncovering Brand Archetypes

October 2014

Don’t be a Hero (or an Outlaw…if you aren’t one)

Client

Brand as hero no matter the product, clients believe it is the best in the category, well-made and loved by

fans, they often see it as a hero archetype

Agency

Broadly speaking many clients are drawn to the hero archetype and many agency folks are hoping to uncover an outlaw brand.

Brand as outlaw no matter the brand, agencies frequently

hope it will be disruptive in its category and creatively daring in its communications

There is no good or evil type

Every archetype has strengths and weaknesses. No single archetype is better than any other.

For branding purposes focus on the common positive attributes and only consider the negative elements of the archetypes as possible missteps to avoid.

Maleficent Merlin the Joker Ace Ventura

Magician Jester

Elizabeth Godfather

Ruler

Don’t shy away from an archetype because it seems less cool than others.

This isn’t the school dance

Everyman

It is okay to be more like Tom Hanks than Tom

Cruise

Innocent

Being an innocent archetype doesn’t mean you are exposing weakness

Maytag Pillsbury

Gender doesn’t have anything to do with it

Archetypes can be portrayed in both feminine and masculine forms.

The brand does not need to choose an archetype that reflects their target audience.

Caregiver

Dove Men + Care Dove Men’s line connects

caring for men with the caregiving men do

Outlaw

Dollar Shave Club a disruptive business model and advertising approach

show that it is a brand willing to break all the rules

Lover

Tom Ford for men in this extension of

the brand Tom Ford maintains the lover

archetype

How to uncover brand archetypes

ONE: Revisit the origin story and valuesTWO: Spend time looking at category codes (semiotics) THREE: Look at your role in the competitive set

ONE: Explore the origin story

Who founded the company? Why? How did it grow? What changed over time?

Created for Royalty 1850s Louis Vuitton is the personal box maker and

packer for empress Eugene, wife of Napoleon III

For a brand that has over a 150 year history its issues are startlingly consistent. An association with royalty and the upper class, simple design

and struggles with counterfeit competitors remain true today.

Fighting Impostors Monogram created by his

son in 1892 to combat knock offs by competitors

Simple Design Creates rectangular flat shaped trunks that are easier to tack than the

curved trunks of the day

Example: Louis Vuitton

TWO: Looking into Category Codes Tumi & Louis Vuitton

TWO: Category Codes Victorinox, Mulberry, Rimowa & Globe-Trotter

TWO: Semeiotic deep dive, make the implicit explicit

• Examine signs and codes (textual codes like camera work and social codes like body language).

• Identify paradigm sets and structural relationship between signifiers.

• Construct analysis as a whole. How does it naturalize it’s perspective? What assumptions does it make about its audience?

Absence Less is more

Separate when together

Entitlement & exclusion

Example: Premium and Luxury luggage

THREE: Competitive Evaluation

What archetypes exist?

How does the category leader communicate?

Which brands are you most like?

Which brands are you least like?

Yearn for paradise

Leave a mark on the world

Connect with

others

Provide structure to

the world

safety

understanding

freedom

liberation

power

masteryintimacy

enjoyment

belonging

service

control

innovation

Innocent

Sage

Explorer

Outlaw

Magician

HeroLover

Jester

Everyman

Caregiver

Ruler

Creator

Example: Premium and Luxury luggage

How to Start Fresh

Not all brands have a long history to reference

23andMe - Searching for the type

The brand 23andMe presented a few challenges

• It was a silicon valley start-up created in 2006, at the ripe old age of 7 it explored advertising and creating a consumer facing identity

• There wasn't an existing category (personal genetic info) for comparison

• Information we had

• Founding principles - empower individuals & accelerate research, allow everyone to contribute to improving human understanding.

• Goal - be the worlds trusted source of personal genetic information

• Product - kits sent to homes for $99 that allow individuals to get a much better understanding of their genetic info

23andMe - Using the Archetype

• Sage - unlocking knowledge

• the core desire- the discovery of truth

• goal - use intelligence and analysis to understand the world

• Advertising - visualized the amount of information that we have inside and highlighted the importance of self-knowledge

Happy Branding. !

Questions? Suggestions? Ask @emilylizb