IdentiType — Brands in search of a typographic voice.
What is the most repeated element in a brand’s visual identity?
The logotype? Colors? Type?
If you thought of type, you’re right. Save for very few exceptions, every brand message in every touchpoint is sprinkled with textual messages. Paul Watzlawick states that no matter what, it’s impossible not to communicate.
Psychoanalyst Carl Jung and other thinkers before him identified what he called archetypes: well-defined, repeatable personality structures that permeate the collective unconscious.
The diagram shows 12 possible archetypes. The creator’s archetype, for instance, manifests itself in one’s search for innovation, which in turn is part of a larger intention of leaving a mark in the world and possibly changing the status quo. Each one carries its own motivations and larger purpose to exist.
Archetypes: what do they do?
Archetypes are surrounded by stories and imagery that allow people to connect with each other in a deep level, for they represent emotions which all of us can easily identify with.
People have personalities, and so do brands
Brands by definition are people’s perception of what company, product or service represent for them.
Branding professionals learned what the best brand makers knew intuitively: in order to connect brands with people, they should somehow act like people. Margaret Mark and Carol Pearson understood this from working in global brands, and in their book The Hero and The Outlaw described what became known as brand archetypes following Jung’s lead.
Bingo! A new tool for managing brand meaning and forging human relationships with brands was born.
By way of consistent, clear, inspiring stories and actions, certain brands were able to amass a huge, passionate following. Take Nike, which clearly and for long has dominated the Hero archetype. They enforce their personality with bold athlete imagery, impactful messages of one’s journey beyond human limitations towards victory. And they do it from their name — a nod to the Greek goddess of victory — to their biggest budget advertising.
It doesn’t matter if we are stuck to a desk or just sit as a couch potato and watch sports. Nike can make us feel stronger, faster, cooler. It plays with our deepest desire for glory.
By doing this time and again for a long time, a brand can reach icon status, a true representative of a specific archetype which resonates in people’s hearts and minds almost permanently.
Uhm, ok, but what do these archetypes have to do with typography, anyway? The name explains it all: Arche-Type.
ArcheType–Letters have personality, too.
Letters, through their forms, counter forms and style, are just as powerful as any other element to convey meaning and reinforce a brand’s personality. That’s not accidental: type is a direct extension of one’s written expression. It comes from the very basic human need to spread knowledge and to inspire the generations that follow.
There’s obviously a possible downside to it all: sometimes we can confuse archetypes with stereotypes and use typography in a way that detracts, rather than enhances a brand’s message. Mixing archetypes may also lead to a diluted brand message: think about using Nasa using Comic Sans to introduce a breakthrough discovery: weird and totally out of place, right?
In the following paragraphs I tried my best to describe some possible typographic expressions for each archetype in the following structure: Archetype > Quick Archetype Description > Example of archetypical brand > Possible Typographic expression.
Remember, there are many other factors that com into play to shape the message, such as your own sensitivity, cultural considerations, industry clichés and other factors that you should always consider when making a font selection. In other words: go deep, learn as much as you can and then do it on purpose. Let’s get to it then:
Innocent > Glass is always half full > Pampers > Handmade lettering, simple, soft shapes, scripts.
Example: Manu, Omnes, anything by Pintassilgo Prints
Wise > Spread Knowledge > Google > Straightforward, rational, geometric. On the other hand cerebral bookerly fonts that represent knowledge and wisdom.
Example: Silva, Garamond, FF Scala, FS Brabo.
Explorer > Living is the biggest adventure > Timberland > Letters with a rustic finish, textures, daring and peculiar shapes.
Example: Anything that looks like it was run over by a 4x4, Founders Grotesque, Roves. Alert! Steer clear of searching for explorer fonts at MyFonts, I got terrible results from that :).
Rebel > My way or the highway > Harley Davidson > You can go crazy on the shapes, make the type shout, or go to a cool-as-hell demeanor. Please check Harley Davidson’s brand expressions for the perfect example.
Example: Brother, Haltrix
Magician > Make dreams come true > Disney > Optical Illusions, unexpected shapes, defying legibility are all game. Make the reader think: how the heck did they do it?
Example: Karol, Macula, layer fonts sucha as Bungee or Paintlay, peculiar shapes such as Lancelot Pro orSuttura
Hero > Victory and Glory > Nike > Speed, impact, presence. Bold condensed, oblique, inverted oblique may help in adding a proper sense of urgency that permeates the hero personality.
Example: Tungsten, Geogrotesque, Nitro.
Lover > Multi sensory experiences > Victoria’s Secret > Curvy, calligraphic shapes, high contrast Didots and Bodonis. Please check the realm of Perfume and Fashion Magazines for a quick lesson in lover brand expressions.
Example: Young Finesse, Didot, Bodoni, Ninfa, Tenez
Jester > Live for a laugh > Pepsi > Fun shapes, irregular baseline (think advertising lettering from the 50s), wonky curves.
Example: Anything by House Industries, Sorvettero, anything by OhNoTypeCo.
Everyman > To blend in is to stand out > Obama > Workhorse typefaces that don’t call too much attention for itself. They must live happily with expressive fonts and be ok with receding rather than standing out.
Example: Gotham, Myriad, Motiva Sans.
Caregiver > For the greater good > Always > Scripts, rounded shapes, delicate calligraphic structure. Think hygiene products, food packaging and the such.
Example: Anything by Alejandro Paul.
Ruler > I lead, you follow. > Mercedes Benz > Trajan, trajan, trajan. Roman capitals, Egyptienne fonts, bold black weights.
Example: Trajan, trajan, more trajan, Garamond, Sabon, Ardina.
Creator > Innovate and leave a legacy > Apple > No-frills shapes, humanist sans-serifs, friendly serifs.
Example: Dolly, FF Scala Sans and anything else by Martin Majoor, any typeface that Peter Biľak made or sponsored.
It is important to emphasize that one’s interpretation of what “Innocent” or “Lover” means may differ drastically from another one’s point of view. Our experiences, the places we live, the stuff we care about all change the way we see the world and that affects our choices and perception. The examples I show above represent how I perceive these concepts and how western brands tend to communicate these archetypes. I encourage you to defy these suggestions and find typefaces that speak to you, your culture, client and audience. I tried hard to mix subtle and nuanced suggestions with more obvious choices whenever possible.
Last things last
Associating typographic personality with the archetypes is one in many ways to think about font choices for a brand’s voice. This approach is useful for logotype and visual identity designers seeking to match a type to a brand’s basic essence. Of course, “rules” should be broken broken beautifully. Please note the emphasis on the quotes as I don’t think of these as rules, more as guides. It does take sensitivity and a lot of help to build a visual vocabulary worthy of trust.
To find a brand’s DNA and purpose is a worthy journey. Choosing a typeface or a set of typefaces deliberately and with a purpose can be the stem-cell to great communication and perhaps the start of a long relationship with your costumers or your clients' costumers.
We recently spoke about IdentiType at DiaTipo RS, part of one of the biggest type events in Latin America: here are the slides.
There is an upcoming workshop: IdentiType. It's this October in Campinas, check out LogoBR School's website to sign-up.
Need help finding a typographic voice for your brand? I'd love to help.
Rodrigo Saiani is a type designer, founder and creative director at Plau, a brand foundry and type identity studio.
Plau’s fonts can be licensed through our website, MyFonts, Fontspring & YouWorkForThem. Thanks and credits: Daniel Rocha, Flora de Carvalho, Lucas Campoi, Carlos Mignot, Edmour Saiani & Stephen Coles.
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