Carl Jung developed his theory of the 12 archetypes in 1947 as a manner to explain people’s behavior. It wasn’t until 2001 when Margaret Mark and Carol S. Pearson formalized the use of these archetypes in branding and marketing with their book. Although this is considered the first publication overlapping the archetypes with marketing, they undoubtedly influenced brands and campaigns before that. There are tons of articles and books explaining the 12 archetypes in depth—we’re not going to tackle that here. But to get up to speed, let’s quickly run through the names and grouping of the archetypes. There are four overarching themes, within which three different archetypes fulfill a specific, unique human desire.
Spirituality
The Sage > Understanding
The Innocent > Safety
The Explorer > Freedom
Structure
The Ruler > Control
The Creator > Innovation
The Caregiver > Service
Legacy
The Magician > Power
The Hero > Mastery
The Outlaw > Liberation
Connection
The Lover > Intimacy
The Jester > Enjoyment
The Everyperson > Belonging
Labels Not Your Thing?
I get the desire to buck labels, but in regards to branding and marketing, I think there is something to be said for a strong structure and consistency in how we approach our messaging and concepts.
Archetypes in Action
As I said up top, there are already tons of articles going in-depth on all of the different archetypes, and I thought to myself “does the world really need another article copy-pasting the archetype descriptions?” No—no the world does not. Instead, let’s look at how a few different archetypes can be applied across the same industry—the automotive industry.
The Innocence
The archetype of the Innocent fulfills the human desire for safety, both physically and emotionally. Subaru is a great example of an Innocent brand with their commitment to safety in their vehicles, but also their “Love, It’s What Makes a Subaru a Subaru,” and their series of real customers recollecting serious crashes that they walked away from due to the physical safety of their car.
The Creator
The Creator archetype speaks to innovation, creativity, and bucking norms in a progressive manner. A strong front-runner in the past decade has been Tesla’s branding post-roadster. Quite often, as with Apple products as well, Creator brands can sometimes wield a higher price tag and an air of status. However, they can also exude creativity to their core, like Legos.
The Outlaw
While the Creator speaks to bucking norms in the name of progress, the Outlaw bucks norms in pursuit of liberation and rebelliousness. A great example of this archetype is BMW. Beyond rebelling against using turn signals, BMW offers uniqueness to the standard status symbols of Mercedes and Audi.
The Jester
Lastly, let’s look at the Jester archetype, which plays to the desire for fun and enjoyment. Quite a few great car brands are operating here, but I think the most ubiquitous is MINI’s rebirth 20 years ago. Capitalizing on the fun and agile nature of the original model, BMW created a brand experience that brought that aspect to the personalization level of buyers’ cars with custom roof and mirror graphics.
Room For Everybody
The auto industry is a unique one in that 93% of American households have access to a car, so there is a lot of room—and need—for brands to create space between themselves. These brands, which go beyond the logos approach of marketing based on logic and reason, tap into consumers’ identities to build loyal buyers for life.
Flip The Script
Another industry we’re starting to see this separation in is insurance. The big players have opted for humorous campaigns (Caveman, Mayhem, Flo, etc). However, these generally fall within the realm of marketing, rather than branding. The insurance companies that are starting to separate themselves on the brand level are ones like The Zebra, which takes a stripped-down, approachable take on the branding of an age-old industry.
Find Your Archetype
Even if you haven’t consciously defined your brand’s archetype, there’s a high probability that you’re already gravitating towards one. When you’re living your brand day in and day out, it can be difficult to take a step back and identify what that archetype is. However, through conversation, brand analysis, and market research I can help you solidify your brand’s archetype to supercharge your marketing efforts without having to rebrand.
