The way a customer views your brand holds a lot of power.
When they see you as someone who can help them live a better life and become a better version of themselves, they’re much more likely to become a long-term, loyal consumer of your products or services.
To connect with your customers like this, you need an overarching brand personality that deeply resonates and makes you more memorable to your target audience.
Enter: Brand Archetypes.
Rooted in personality psychology and derived from the work of Carl Jung, brand archetypes are based on human core desires, motivations, and emotions.
They’re essentially a personality profile for your brand. As such, archetypes provide a framework to connect your brand with your ideal audience in more meaningful ways.
The goal of archetypes is an emotional connection. Tapping into a customer’s deeply-held ideals and aspirations helps humanize your brand and make it more important in your customer’s eyes.
Here’s a quick overview of the 12 brand archetypes.
Motivation: Provide structure
Core desire: Service
Strategy: Put others before self; sacrifice for the greater good
Called to action: When someone is in need
Tone of voice: Caring, warm, reassuring, conveying inner strength
Caregivers are nurturers, altruists, and supporters. They’re parent-like, strong, and reliable. They naturally care for themselves, their loved ones, and the wider world, and their basic desire is to serve people and protect them from harm.
Caregiver brands tend to be nonprofits in fields like healthcare or education, but can also encompass products that are nurturing.
Brand examples: St. Jude, Campbell’s Soup, Salvation Army, Unicef, Johnson & Johnson, Pampers
This archetype connects to a customer’s need for compassion, care, generosity, and safety. In marketing, it looks like:
Motivation: Provide structure
Core desire: Innovation
Strategy: Unlock imagination and pursue originality
Called to action by: Inspiration and vision
Tone of voice: Aspirational, posing different perspectives, connecting concepts to encourage new ideas
The Creator archetype is entrepreneurial, artistic, and innovative. They’re inspired storytellers, imaginative visionaries, and daydreamers. Naturally creative, they seek to bring their vision to life and to build the structures that shape society. They want to create something valuable and enduring.
Creator brands are generally in creative fields like arts, marketing, design-focused technology, or toys. This archetype is ideal for products that encourage self-expression and innovation.
Brand examples: Apple, Etsy, Lego, Squarespace, Adobe, GoPro, Crayola
This archetype seeks to spark inspiration and instigate feelings of creativity, critical thinking, and a longing for answers in the customer. In marketing, this looks like:
Motivations: Provide structure
Core desire: Control
Strategy: Exercise leadership and show superiority
Called to action: When there is a lack of resources, order, or harmony
Tone of voice: Invitational, exclusive, superior, authoritative
The Ruler is a leader, boss, judge, and diplomat. This archetype is naturally responsible and believes they’re masters of their own destiny. They’re Type A, achievement-oriented, elite executives. Their basic desire is to gain control and to create prosperity.
Ruler brands are often high-priced luxury brands with high-status products that enhance power and prestige. This archetype can also encompass classic products that promise predictability or stability.
Brand examples: Louis Vuitton, American Express, Mercedes-Benz, Rolls Royce, Hugo Boss, Rolex
This archetype seeks to draw out feelings of pride, confidence, responsibility, and drivenness in customers. It connects to customers who want to be perceived as special or elite. In marketing, this can look like:
Motivation: To explore life’s journey
Core desire: Freedom
Strategy: Break new ground in search of liberation and self-discovery
Called to action by: Restlessness and yearning
Tone of voice: Exciting, daring, aspirational
The Explorer archetype is an adventurer, pioneer, and seeker. They’re rugged individualists and natural explorers who love the open road, waters, and skies and seek out challenges with the resolve and confidence to confront those challenges.
This archetype lives outside the comfort zone. At their core, the Explorer desires the freedom to explore the world and figure out who they are. They’re driven by fulfillment.
Explorer brands tend to be related to the outdoors or to seeking out adventure.
Brand examples: Jeep, GoPro, REI, NASA, Subaru, National Geographic, The North Face
This archetype seeks to inspire feelings of empowerment, ambition, and an urge to break free from constraints. In marketing, this looks like:
Motivation: To explore life’s journey
Core desire: Purity
Strategy: See the beauty in everyone and everything; Display a wholesome, virtuous life
Called to action by: A seen or felt need for simplicity or goodness
Tone of voice: Cheerful, optimistic, clear, and to the point. Never guilt-inducing.
The Innocent archetype is often described as an idealistic dreamer and a naive traditionalist. Ever the utopian, this archetype is idyllic in their desire and expectation for clear, simple paths. They’re honest, simple, natural, and trustworthy, and always see the sunny side of things. At their core, they desire purity: to be good, enjoy simplicity, and feel positive.
Innocent brands tend to be nature-oriented, like organic foods and skincare. But this archetype can also encompass products that accentuate simplicity.
Brand examples: Dove, Aveeno, Hasbro, Coca-Cola, Volkswagen, Chobani, McDonald’s, Disney
This archetype relates well to customers who see themselves as virtuous, positive, and happy. In marketing, this looks like:
Motivation: To explore life’s journey
Core desire: Understanding
Strategy: To engage in lifelong learning and show the path of wisdom to others
Called to action by: Confusion and doubt
Tone of voice: Articulate, explanatory, philosophical, academic, use of symbolism, trusts the audience to grasp concepts
The Sage archetype is contemplative, scholarly, philosophic, and evaluative. They’re researchers, teachers, experts, and translators. Self-reflective critical thinkers, they’re committed to lifelong learning, pursuing personal growth, mastery, and influence. They want to discover the truth in order to better understand the world. They’re driven by the quest to learn.
Sage brands tend to be teachers, mentors, thinkers, and guides who pass on information and education.
Brand examples: PBS, Morgan Stanley, Rosetta Stone, TED, Discovery Channel, Mayo Clinic, Harvard, New York Times
This archetype seeks to initiate curiosity and reflection in its customers. It relates to consumers who desire objectivity, who seek truth and clarity. In marketing, this looks like:
Motivation: To leave a legacy
Core desire: Mastery
Strategy: Become stronger and more powerful, prove others wrong
Called to action by: A challenge, such as someone who needs their defense
Tone of voice: Challenging, empowering, bold, aspirational, unafraid
The Hero archetype is a rescuer, warrior, competitor, team player, and superhero. They’re wired toward mental and physical fitness to become as strong, competent, and powerful as possible. They tend to be idealistic and strong-willed.
Courageous and determined to achieve, this archetype rises to the occasion. Their core desire is to prove their worth through courageous action. The Hero is driven to improve the world with their strength and competence.
Hero brands are often athletic brands who help people achieve peak performance. This archetype can also encompass products that have a big impact on the world.
Brand examples: Nike, Olympics, FedEx, Adidas, BMW, Gatorade, Duracell, Marvel
This archetype seeks to give customers feelings of empowerment, strength, readiness, and accomplishment. In marketing, this looks like:
Motivation: To leave a legacy
Core desire: Power
Strategy: Create and live by vision and transformation
Called to action by: Their “sixth sense”
Tone of voice: Mystical, fantastical, imaginative, informed, believable
The Magician is a charismatic visionary, an innovative catalyst, an engineer, alchemist, scientist, or healer. They’re eager to recognize serendipity and magical moments.
Influential trend-spotters, they strive for win-win outcomes and inspire people to dream bigger and to defy common beliefs and natural laws. Their core desire is for power and knowledge of the elemental laws of the universe. They’re driven to make dreams come true.
Magician brands offer a transformation of some kind, with products and services that expand consciousness or have a spiritual element.
Brand examples: Make-a-Wish, Disney, Xbox, Polaroid, Dyson, MAC Cosmetics
Magician brands seek to inspire feelings of hope, excitement, intrigue, and willingness in their customers. In marketing, this looks like:
Motivation: To leave a legacy
Core desire: Revolution
Strategy: Disrupt, shock, or destroy what isn’t working for themselves or for society
Called to action by: Powerlessness
Tone of voice: Passionate, rebellious, bold, disruptive
The Outlaw archetype is a rebel, activist, gambler, revolutionary, misfit, and risk-taker. They’re often nonconforming, fearless, and shocking. This archetype disdains rules, is anti-status quo, has righteous anger, and takes control, yet is confident and good at heart. They desire revolution that liberates themselves and others or abolishes what isn’t working.
Outlaw brands leverage rebellious, revolutionary anger to right the wrongs of the world. This archetype can also include products that are perceived to be not in the customer’s best interest.
Brand examples: Harley-Davidson, Virgin Records, Jack Daniel’s, Uber, Greenpeace, Red Bull
The Outlaw archetype seeks to spark feelings of restlessness, empowerment, freedom, and confidence in their customers, inspiring them to embrace change. In marketing, this looks like:
Motivation: To pursue connection
Core desire: Belonging
Strategy: To line up with basic values and be a part of a welcoming space
Called to action by: Feelings of loneliness or alienation
Tone of voice: Friendly, approachable, practical, humble, authentic
The Every Guy/Gal archetype reflects the common man or woman, the neighborly citizen, the girl or guy next door. This archetype is naturally amiable, realistic, resourceful, down-to-earth, stable, and moral. They are faithful friends who want to belong, who are driven to connect with others and fit into the group.
Every Guy/Gal brands tend to encompass functional, commonly used, moderately-priced products.
Brand examples: Chevrolet, Home Depot, Old Navy, Ford, Levi’s, Ikea
This archetype seeks to inspire feelings of acceptance, understanding, trust, and willingness in customers. In marketing, this looks like:
Motivation: To pursue connection
Core desire: Laughter
Strategy: Joke, play, be funny, and lighten up the world
Called to action: When they’re bored
Tone of voice: Fun, irrelevant, light-hearted; emphasizes belonging
The Jester archetype is, as its name suggests, the entertainer, clown, prankster, and comedian. They’re naturally clever, socially intelligent, and great conversationalists. They live in the moment. The Jester is the life of the party: an optimistic jokester who doesn’t take themselves too seriously. Their core desire is to laugh and to make others laugh. They’re driven to lighten things up and have a good time.
Jester brands encompass fun-loving products that help people have a good time or products that have a community aspect.
Brand examples: Doritos, Dollar Shave Club, M&Ms, Budweiser, Skittles, Old Spice
The Jokester inspires feelings of joy, silliness, positivity, and happiness. In marketing, this looks like:
Motivation: To pursue connection
Core desire: Intimacy
Strategy: Affirm love and beauty in relationships, work, experiences, and surroundings
Called to action by: Infatuation or seduction
Tone of voice: Enticing, irresistible, indulgent, descriptive, sensory
The Lover archetype is a companion, friend, and partner. They’re harmonizers, matchmakers, romantics, and hedonists. They seek relationship and fall in love easily. They’re driven to become more attractive and indulge in luxury, pleasure, and passion. They’re driven toward sensual pleasure.
Lover brands often encompass products that accentuate beauty and celebrate love, such as perfume, cosmetics, or jewelry.
Brand examples: Hallmark, Tiffany & Co, Lancôme, Godiva, Chanel, Victoria’s Secret
This archetype inspires customers to feel passionate, beautiful, connected, appreciated, and indulgent. In marketing, this looks like:
Brand archetypes can help you bring your brand to life by giving you structure and guidelines for creating marketing that truly reflects who you want to be in your customers’ lives.
What archetype (or archetypes) does your brand reflect?
To learn more about how to determine your brand’s archetype and apply it to your marketing, download our FREE eBook: Brand Archetypes 101: How To Bring Your Brand to Life With Personality.
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