Go Logo! A Handbook to the Art of Global Branding

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39

Chapter 4

The Power of Myths and Archetypes

M

any years ago, Marshall McLuhan, an often quoted 1960s societal behav-

ioral philosopher, coined the phrase “the medium is the message.” One

could immediately guess that this phrase was going to become a staple in

many learned discussions about our changing times. The essence was easy

enough to grasp; McLuhan was stating as a practical fact that technology,

not what we do with it, alters our culture, society, relations, and dialogues. The technologies

of communications cause change in our societies, regardless of their content or how individ-

uals think about them and use them.

Was he right? Absolutely. Television itself

was pretty simple; you bought one, turned

it on, and watched whatever was available.

But electronic media today is not simple. Its

uses are complex, they change rapidly, and

no one is sure just how much our societies

are affected as a result.

My branch of the creative global warrior

tribe doesn’t worry about this anymore.

We believe that the medium is just the mes-

senger; the messages are still the point. Of

course, as noted earlier in this book, the

definition of what content is has changed

dramatically. YouTube and MySpace are

examples of how accurate McLuhan’s

prediction has proven to be.

But the creative brand warrior’s task is gen-

erally not to just create new major content

(films or folk operas, for example), but to

persuade others to buy a client’s wares or

buy into a societal persuasion cause. And

the proliferation of message delivery sys-

tems is almost irrelevant; a good, inventive

selling proposition will work across any

medium. Capturing the magic is what still

counts with clients—if it works in the mar-

ketplace. The branding goal should always

be the creative adaptation of a timeless

story, the capture of the essence of a uni-

versal myth, or the clever use of the arche-

types that lie at the center of all longing and

belonging brands.

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Go Logo! A Handbook to the Art of Global Branding40

The familiar over-the-top logo of the 20th Century Fox movie

studios has been simplified and cleverly redesigned for Fox

television and cable usage. (Design: Bright Strategic Design

& Branding)

The Disney event calendar is a reminder of

the good times at Walt Disney World. (Design:

AdamsMorioka)

Essentially, a myth is human action that has

been transformed into a story, or, to say it

another way, it’s the verbalization of human

action. For designers and other visually ori-

ented creatives, the challenge is to visually

dramatize the verbal story into new formats,

without straying from the defining myth.

Chanel has developed many ad campaigns

over the years, but it’s the spirit and the

mystique of Paris, along with the mythical

story of the founder’s life, that has allowed

the brand to diversify and keep the allure of

Chanel very much alive. The Disney brand

also lives on in the imaginations of millions

of global citizens. The brand has traveled

a long way from the mouse with big ears,

but its continuing association with animated

stories, thrilling but ultimately safe adven-

tures, and childhood innocence ensures that

the cognitive unconscious of generations of

families holds nothing but positive images

about the brand. Rarely, if ever, has a brand

extension into three-dimensional form been

more successful. There are many imitators,

but only one Walt Disney World experience.

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