Why does this post exist? I want to have a good understanding of the various brand archetypes in existence. I want to be able to talk about them confidently. I want to have reference material that I can revisit and share with others. I also want to develop increasing familiarity with the motifs that are commonly used in discussing archetypes.
There are 12 brand archetypes. What are archetypes? Jung coined the term in 1919. Joseph Campbell popularized it in The Hero With A Thousand Faces. Margaret Mark brought it to branding with The Hero and the Outlaw.
Why should anybody care about any of these? Well, if you’re making something that you want people to look at, and you want them to take some kind of action, it helps to be comprehensible to them. Trying to be everything to everyone is a recipe for incomprehensibility, which leads to inaction. So, it helps to know what kind of archetype you or your product or your service fit into, and then emphasize that. I’d also add that you don’t necessarily always need to commit to a particular archetype forever. Different projects can have different archetypes. Musical artists often switch up archetypes between albums, for example. Stanley Kubrick famously made movies in at least 7 different genres. But I’ll say again– and I’ve learned this from painful experience– trying to be too many things at once just gets people confused. So pick whatever resonates most, and then deviate from it as you deem fit.
Lots of brands do overlap with more than one archetype– Ben & Jerry’s for example is arguably both Jester and Everyman.
Finally– all models are wrong, some are useful. Use this in a ‘squinty’ way– you don’t need to force yourself too hard to fit perfectly into any one archetype. For starters, just have some of your assets and aesthetics and presentation in alignment with one.
1. 😊 Innocent (Safety)– Barbie, Winnie the Pooh, Hello Kitty, Pikachu
To be happy, simply. Dalai Lama. Winnie the Pooh. Child-like. Blissful. At peace.
Sense of comfort, nostalgia. McDonald’s?
Winnie the Pooh, incidentally, is worth about $6,000,000,000. Hello Kitty.
2. 🔭 Sage (Understanding) – National Geographic, Economist, Google, BBC, WSJ
Trustworthy, wise. Plato. Aristotle. Socrates. The Oracle. Source of knowledge. The great teacher.
Einstein was a sage with a bit of cheeky trickster/jester energy. He was a “cartoonist’s dream” .
3. 🧭 Explorer (Freedom) – GoPro, The North Face, Johnnie Walker, Jeep, Red Bull, Land Rover, Corona
Marco Polo. Neil Armstrong. Wanting to go somewhere new. Travel. See the world.
Indiana Jones, whip. Discovery. Rugged. Adventure. Let’s explore and discover what’s never been seen. Boldly go where no man has gone before.
4. 🦹♂️ Outlaw (Liberation) – Harley Davidson, Marlboro, Levi’s, Diesel, Ray Ban’s
Rules are meant to be broken. Clint Eastwood. Top Gun. The Joker? Jack Sparrow?
Fuck You I Won’t Do What You Tell Me / Fuck The Police
Catch Me If You Can
Admiration for great heists.
America loves the Outlaw – America has always been a nation of outlaws.
5. 🧙♂️ Magician (Power) – Disney
It can happen! Houdini, Walt Disney. David Copperfield. Tell a story.
Apple as a brand I think is more creator than magician, but Steve Jobs did lean into the Magician archetype personally. He admired Walt Disney but also Edwin Land, the Polaroid guy. Magician and Creator seem to intertwine (creation is magic, magic is creation)
Dali. Make dreams come true.
6. 🦸♂️ Hero (Mastery)– Nike, Duracell, FedEx(?), Under Armour
Michael Jordan. Adventurous, brave. Rocky…? Wanting to overcome. Warrior mindset.
Red Bull has both Hero and Explorer elements, and I’d argue the Explorer bit might be more significant – because extreme sports, because wings. Contrast with Nike, which is straightforward Hero.
7. ❤️🔥 Lover (Pleasure) – Victoria’s Secret, Magnum, Haagen Daz, Chanel, Bailey’s, Godiva
Desirable, sexy. Intimacy. Marilyn Monroe. Catwoman.
Hot-blooded and sensual.
Escape. Eroticism. Sirens.
8. 🤡 Jester (Fun, enjoyment) – Old Spice, M&Ms, Ben & Jerry’s, Lyft(?)
Fun, Playful. Charlie Chaplin. Jim Carrey.
9. Everyman (Belonging) – IKEA, VISA, Volkswagen(?), Ben&Jerry’s, Volvo, Muji, Kit Kat, Airbnb?, Starbucks?
Connection with others. Captain America…? Ted Mosby. Paul Rudd. Everyday regular normal guy.
10. 🤰 Caregiver (Service) – P&G, Colgate, Johnson&Johnson, Ford, Dove, Campbell’s
Generous, caring. Protect people from harm. The brands that mums love to trust.
11. 👑 Ruler (Control) – Rolex, Hugo Boss, Mercedes, AMEX
In control, assertive. Louis XIV. The Godfather. I’m in charge here.
Can be bossy, authoritarian, tyrannical at worst. Ideally brings out the best in his people. King archetype. Tywin Lannister. T’Challa.
12. 👨🎨 Creator (Innovation) – Apple, Lego, Canon, Adobe, Dyson
Edison. Tesla. Benjamin Franklin. Make something that matters. Tony Stark.
Perfectionism, miscreation