The archetypal audience motivators you need to know
Your brand is likely already addressing one of those core audience desires, whether you know it or not. All brand archetypes stem from these four core needs when it boils down to it.
While the expression of this will vary in a myriad of ways (humans are complex creatures of course); most of our efforts and urges are geared towards the desire for - and duality between - safety (control) and risk (reward), connection with others, and exploring ourselves by seeking more.
In the words of Carl Jung, an early thought leader on archetypes:
“Archetypes are, by definition, recurring themes and motifs of the human psyche. They express our basic human motives, desires, and behaviors and are ingrained in the collective unconscious.”
Jung’s notion of the "collective unconscious" aligns with the idea that we are drawn to archetypes because they represent ancient, universally recognizable roles. Brands that tap into these archetypes connect with us on an almost instinctual level.
If you really want to connect with your audience on a primal level, your brand should clearly articulate (visually and otherwise) the delivery of this need to truly tap into your audiences desire. If you’re not aware of your real brand power, you probably aren’t harnessing it properly. It can be a rich source of inspiration visually, in your written copy, company culture, brand experience - it can totally shape how your brand moves about in the world and give you a very clear path on how that should be.
Where do these needs come from?
If one looks at evolutionary psychology it’s clear that these need stem from our need to survive over thousands of years (and so they aren’t going anywhere). The term relates to the idea that many of our responses—like fear of the dark, tribalism, or a tendency for certain types of decision-making—stem from adaptations that were useful for early humans. While modern environments are vastly different, some researchers argue that these ancient tendencies still influence our choices, habits, and social dynamics today.
The need for safety is an obvious one; as well as our desire to be accepted by the group (also stemming from a need for safety); our need to be romatnically desirable (no doubt originating from our mating instinct), and our desire to take risks (for example, when we run out of food and need to leave the safety of our cave?), achieve greatness (be crowned as leaders in our tribe) or break away from the group to find ourselves (enter spiritual experiences, individualism, developing our own trades). These needs can be traced back to aspects that are fundamental to human existence.
An important thing to keep in mind is that your archetypal need doesn’t necessarily have to relate literally to your product or service. Eg. Not all University brands need to have a Sage (knowledge) archetype and not all luxury brands should have a Ruler (leader) archetype.
In the past perhaps these more simple, “obvious” archetypes resonated well due to their simplicity, but the world is changing and our approach requires more nuance now. We have room for shades of grey because we know that life is not so black and white. And so archetypes evolve, and how we use them should too.
And how should I determine which needs my brand taps into?
The archetype wheel can seem overwhelming at first but it is really split into these four quadrants. To begin to determine your archetype, begin with the simple questions: