Case Study 4

Customers Archetype and Customer Personas

1. What are archetypes and why are they important to branding AND design?

Archetypes are characteristics that provide a deep structure for human motivation and meaning. They can imprinted in everything from art to literature to advertising and so on. Archetypes are used within companies to create a brand identity that is aligned with the strengths and values of the specific characteristic. There are said to be twelves archetypes, each one standing for a different human attribute: the innocent, the everyday man, the hero, the caregiver, the explorer, the outlaw, the lover, the creator, the ruler, the magician, the sage and the jester. By establishing one of these archetypes with a brand, consumers will be able to identify with values that they can connect with. It will then be important to focus all aspects of design with the archetype in mind, to create a sense of cohesion within the company.

2. What is the relationship between branding, personas, and archetypes?

In short, it is the archetype which creates the persona of a brand. A brand is made up of how the public view it, and the personality that it is perceived to have. An archetype can help focus a brand's identity and provide a persona that the public can identify with the company. As an example take Red Cross. As a charitable organization they have linked themselves with the caregiver archetype. Their personality can be said to be gentle, caring and considerate. Consumers then relate this personality to the brand.

3. How can archetype help deal with the “intangible” elements of a brand such as contextual values, emotions, aspirations, and projections?

Archetypes can help create an emotional connection with a brand. This emotional bond is then carried on to the products that a company sells. The consumer feels they have a connection with the brand and therefore a sense of loyalty is formed. This then leads to communities of brand loyalists such as avid Apple fans and loyal Nintendo gamers.

4. What is the relationship between brand core essence and brand archetype?

It is the brand archetype that defines the brand core essence. The essence of a brand is what the brand stands for and is the basis for all brand designs and how the brand wants to be perceives by the public. Attaching an archetype to a brand helps define what the essence of the brand is. For example Sharpie has adopted the creator archetype. This archetype gives them the persona of being fun, imaginative and creative. This in turn becomes the essence of the brand, and everything that the brand is about must revolve around that and reflect it in everything they do.

5. As you begin to develop Branding Project #5, how can archetypes and personas aid you in the development of your brand? What are some examples of how brand archetypes have been used to brand similar brands? Provide detailed examples for support.

Deciding on an archetype for our brand can help give us a personality that we can try and stick to throughout the design process. It is more useful to establish an archetype at the beginning of the process instead of coming up with designs and then trying to figure out what personality they fit best. If every member of the team has an understanding of the archetype that we want associated with our brand then it will be easier to create cohesive designs. To give an example of how another beer company uses an archetype to help establish their brand, I'd use Corona. Corona is a beer company that has adopted the explorer archetype. Through it's commercials and advertising it creates a feeling of travel, of distant places. It links the beer to the beaches of mexico, an idyllic scene where the consumer can envision themselves. By using the explorer archetype, Corona can suggest that they are bringing you a little adventure with each purchase.

6. What archetypes and personas do you feel are appropriate for the motion and interactive aspects of the brands you are developing for Project #5?

I feel that our brand is leaning towards the archetypes of the jester, the explorer, and the everyday man. Our company is focusing on the outdoors, the mountains of Colorado, so the explorer helps get that feeling across. I believe that our brand is actually focusing on a mix between the explorer and the every day man. We are aiming to sell our beer to the every day Coloradoan who adventures into the mountains and possibly sees themselves as an explorer. By combining these two together it is possible to create a lot of humor and that is where the jester archetype comes in. By putting the everyday man in an explorer's situation and showing how disaster can happen leaves a possibility for humor. We want our brand to be perceived as not being serious about surviving out in the wilderness but to be seen as making fun of the situations and laughing at the everyday man. It is this humor aspect that can set us apart from the other Colorado microbreweries that we would be competing against.