Some brands are fighters, wheres others are lovers. What they will become depends entirely on the audience they seek to attract.
Certainly, there are very few things that inspire customers more than love, the idea of being wanted and desired.
Fortunately, there is a way for brands and companies to utilize their desire for their product positioning. The key to fully utilizing the potential of branding; therefore, lies in the archetype your business will embody.
After all, purchasing decisions are overwhelmingly motivated by emotions. No matter the logical reasoning consumers may provide for them.
In this article, we are going to show you why and how to implement the Lover brand archetype to your brand strategy, and how to use the subconscious desires of your customers to attract them to your business.
What Are Brand Archetypes?
Often, we think of branding as a set of visuals and vocabulary we must utilize in our messaging. However, that hardly covers the essence of what branding truly is.
When you want to create a brand for your business, what you are truly aiming to create is a set of values and characteristics your customers can relate to.
Chanel is not well-known and beloved because they offer high-quality clothing; they are beloved because they offer a representation of what their customers will become after buying their products.
They are sleek, elegant, and embody the Lover; they are universally loved and quietly promise that their customers will be universally loved, as well.
All of this is due to the brand archetype they embody; a set of shared characteristics present in the human experience and first described by Carl Jung.
According to Carl Jung, there are 12 archetypes which describe different motivations behind human behaviors:
- The Sage
- The Lover
- The Hero
- The Everyman
- The Creator
- The Ruler
- The Caregiver
- The Outlaw
- The Explorer
- The Magician
- The Jester
- The Innocent
Each archetype speaks to a certain kind of person and follows on to provide the sorely necessary “why” of a business: its raison d’etre.
It is this “why” that ultimately helps a business secure significant market share through not only the quality of their products, but also the emotions they evoke in their customers.
A business may use multiple brand archetypes for their brand development and brand strategy. However, the Lover archetype is best suited for the brands which aim to attract hedonistic, perhaps even slightly narcissistic customers.
The Lover Brand Identity
The Lover brands speak to customers who want to feel special. Out of this desire come other desires, such as intimacy, feeling wanted, treasured, basking in pleasure.
As a result, businesses that embody this archetype are often in the fashion and beauty industry, or even in the food industry. You can easily recognize them by careful phrasing and visuals they select so every message contains vivid promises of pleasure should you buy their products.
The Lover embodies hedonism and attracts hedonists.
However, the Lover is not as shallow as it may seem. Its true purpose is creating connection as well as experiencing pleasure – bodily or spiritual.
A Lover brand like Häagen-Dazs strives to help its customers experience pleasure through extraordinary ice cream and confectionery. Other brands renowned for ice cream follow suit; their advertisements often depict the slow-motion movement of chocolate, the physical sensations of delicious ice cream.
Sensuality is Key to the Success of the Lover Brand Archetype
Often, businesses choose to embody the Lover archetype because they seek to attract aesthetes. Chanel values elegance, Victoria’s Secret values femininity and eroticism; both attract people whose eyes are their portal to pleasure.
In addition to sensory pleasure, the Lover brands can also aid their customers in showing appreciation for their significant others or families. This type of brand is beloved by people who are no strangers to expressing affection and appreciation; the product is simply a way of doing so.
Therefore, brands should utilize the Lover archetype if they seek to attract customers in pursuit of beauty and happiness.
A less orthodox example of the Lover archetype can also be found in certain celebrities, for example, Beyonce and Kim Kardashian.
Both have built brands based on the pursuit of love and beauty; Beyonce sings about it and embodies a highly erotic persona, whereas Meanwhile, Kim Kardashian highlights her physical appearance and sells beauty products.
How to Use the Lover Brand Archetype
Having the tactics of notable Lover brands in mind, if you want to attract customers who seek beauty, acceptance, and intimacy you should include the following elements in your brand strategy:
- A romantic color palette; crimson reds, powder pinks, and rich chocolate browns
- Elegant typography (ordinarily, serif typefaces)
- Careful word choices which convey sensuality
- Flirting in messaging and advertising
- Sensory experiences
- Elegant visuals
The lovers were made to love. So, why not make them love your business?
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