Archetypal Branding
Archetypes are the embodiments of timeless, universal human needs and desires. They are the recurring forms and images found in art, literature, myth and religion and have been present throughout all ages, all over the world.
When a brand comes to fully embody and express an archetype, it becomes so meaningful to people that it is able to transcend demographic and cultural boundaries because it speaks to something deeply and powerfully human.
Hundreds of brands build their meaning from what’s popular at a particular time and place, or from something that resonates on a cultural level. They are likely to be “shooting stars” – short lived, vulnerable to competition and to changing cultural norms.
Archetypal brands source their meaning differently, drawing from a deep well of human meaning and motivation which, of course, can then be translated in contemporary and culturally relevant ways.
The Archetype Motivational Framework links most closely with Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Within each of the four basic human needs, it lays out the Archetypes most important to the fulfilment of that need:
Archetypal Brand theory was created and popularized in the early 2000’s by Margaret Mark and Carol S. Pearson in their book “The Hero & The Outlaw: Building Extraordinary Brands though the Power of Archetypes”. It is a great read, I highly recommend it.