12 Classic Archetypes in Branding
There are 12 classic archetypes according to psychologist Carl Jung and understanding their role helps to create a deep connection with their target market. These archetypes cover the spectrum, from those that convey comfort to others to those that create excitement and push boundaries.
Choosing the right archetype for your business or personal branding is essential. Today we talk about the Creator, or the Artist archetype that is also known as Inventor, Innovator, Musician, Writer and Dreamer, with a few examples from the history and nowadays. We will also explore if the creator archetype fits your brand and how you can apply it to create a stronger brand identity.
Creator Archetype Characteristics
“Every child is an artist, the problem is staying an artist when you grow up.” — Pablo Picasso
Motto: If you can imagine it, you can do it
Basic desire: to create things that remain in time
Objective: to realize a vision
Greater fear: poor vision or performance
Strategy: developing artistic skills
Weakness: perfectionism, poor solutions
Talent: creativity and execution
Essential qualities: authentic, visionary, passionate, expressive
Call: Daydreams paired with flashes of inspiration and a capacity for deep focus. An adversity to stasis. A desire to do things beautifully. A need to change. A desire to express oneself.
Setting: Imaginative, beautiful, well designed, full of art, music, abstract ideas, inspiring things, freedom, thinking out of the box, unusual, different, metaphoric, stylish. Heaven.
Shadow: Irrelevant, irresponsible, or destructive creativity. They may ignore reality. They may do everything for their art. They may want to play God.
Stages: Creativity is limited by what is known. Following own voice. Creation expresses personal genius.
Characters: Iris Apfel, Willy Wonka, Alexander McQueen
Brands: Lego, Adobe, Apple, Sony, Swatch, Crayola, Canon, Nintendo, youtube, Pinterest
Creator Archetype: Examples from History
The Creator archetype is one of the most exciting archetypes with loads of vibrant examples among brands and personas. Think Pablo Picasso and Vincent van Gogh, both of whom have developed unique through their self expression and dedication to art. Regardless living rather difficult lives and often balancing on the edge of madness, both of them have become prominent figures in the history of art.
“Don’t think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. It’s self-conscious and anything self-conscious is lousy. You can’t try to do things. You simply must do things.”- Ray Bradbury
In other artistic spheres we can think of fashion illustrators and fashion designers like Alexander McQueen as well as celebrities like Adele and Bjork. Composers like Ludwig van Beethoven, Amadeus Mozart and Johann Sebastian Bach shared the compulsion to be continually working and creating and constantly nurturing their talents and creativity.
Technology innovators like Steve Jobs are revered in modern culture, although they seem very different from the artistic heroes.
“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while.”-Steve Jobs
Creator Archetype Example: Mr. Doodle
Mr Doodle is definitely one of the most vibrant modern examples of the Creator archetype. Not only he has created a strong personal brand around doodling, he successfully incorporates his brand in everything he does. Just one glance at Sam Cox is enough to recognize him – all of his clothes, his backpack and anything else he wears are covered with doodles. He is surrounded by spaces he has decorated with doodles and even his travel photos become canvases for his art.
He skillfully uses social media to share his final work as well as the process of creation and we get to see him as a performer. His time lapse videos are mesmerizing and his playful character and red hair just add to his image of a modern creator. His unique and recognizable style Has gained him worldwide recognition collaboration and collaboration with brands like Fendi, Hello Kitty and many others.
The creator archetype may be right for your brand if:
- it promotes self-expression, gives customers choices and options, helps foster innovation or is artistic in design
- you want to differentiate it from a “do-it-all” brand that leaves little room for the imagination
- your product has a do-it-yourself aspect that saves money
- your customer has the time to be creative
- your organisation has a creative culture
- help customers express or create, and foster their imagination.
Resume:
The Creator archetype is great for brands that encourage self-expression, foster innovation, are artistic, have an element of ‘do-it-yourself’, are related to learning and development, or are in creative fields like marketing, public relations or the arts.
Does the Creator archetype fit your brand? If not stay tuned for other great examples coming soon.
Stay creative,
Slava Noor
