As Defined by www.dictionary.com:
brand
(brašnd) n.
1. a. A trademark or distinctive name identifying a product or a manufacturer.
b. A product line so identified: a popular brand of soap.
c. A distinctive category; a particular kind: a brand of comedy that I
do not care for.
Example: Coca-Cola's bottle is shaped like a vase / vessel because it remind's us of the female form. Sales plumeted when they moved to the can in the 50's. The classic bottle is a shape that brands their product with sex on a subtle but well established symbolic form. |
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The Branding Effect:
Designers
aim to Persuade an audience. There are many ways to
persuade an audience. Given a limited time to persuade in an ad,
designers use devices like branding and attacking the senses to
illicit an emotional response with their viewer. Branding works
when the audience says:
"I'll buy product A because it reminds me
of my favorite rock star".
"I' need to shop at Store B because
if I don't, I will feel about about myself. If I go, I will feel
better"
Basically, emotions sell products and branding is an important tool in getting people to feel.
The Coke bottle was designed to stimulte the heterosexual male, it's shaped like a woman's figure, thus is is branded by a sexy woman.
- Activity:
- Select an ad or a products packaging. Ask questions of it:
- Describe it: What is the tag line? Any other text? What is the Composition (Principles of Design)? What is the colour pallette?
- What does this remind you of?
- What is the mood of the ad? Or, what senses or emotions is this design trying to activate? What devices deliver this mood o rplay on your emotions?
- What are they trying to sell me?
- What audience is this design meant to attract?
- What event, product, feeling, place, or quality is this aim mainly trying to use to associate thier product with?
- In simple terms, this design is branding itself with ___________________. I know or suspect this because_______________________________________________.
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