Archetypes in Branding and Brand Voice
In today’s competitive market, standing out requires more than just a logo and a catchy tagline. To truly connect with your audience, your brand needs a well-defined personality. It need to feel authentic and memorable. This is where archetypes in branding and brand voice come into play. When these two elements are aligned, they create a consistent and compelling message that fosters trust and strengthens brand recognition.
How to Create a Cohesive Message
However, many brands struggle to differentiate between these concepts. What exactly sets a brand archetype apart from a brand voice? More importantly, how can you ensure they complement each other rather than compete?
Let’s break it down step by step.
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What’s the Difference Between Brand Archetypes and Brand Voice?
Before we dive into the strategy, it’s important to establish a clear understanding of archetypes in branding and brand voice. Although these two elements work together, they serve distinct roles in shaping your brand’s identity and communication style.
Brand Archetypes:
Each archetype is a universal character model. Together they have been inspired by Carl Jung’s psychological theories back in around 1917. We use them in branding to help define a brand’s personality. Essentially, they serve as a blueprint for how your brand should behave, communicate, and connect with your audience on an emotional level. Archetypes provide consistency and relatability, making it easier for people to form an attachment to your brand.
Examples include the Rebel, the Sage, and the Lover. Each of them represents a different set of motivations, values, and messaging styles.
Brand Voice:
While archetypes define the overall personality of your brand, brand voice determines how that personality is expressed through language, tone, and style. Think of it as the way your brand “speaks” across different platforms. This happens in social media posts, in website copy and customer interactions. A strong brand voice helps reinforce your brand’s identity, making it instantly recognisable and memorable to your audience.
Working Together
To see how these two concepts work together in practice, consider this example: A Rebel brand, like Thinx, breaks social taboos and challenges industry norms with bold, unapologetic messaging. On the other hand, a Lover brand, like Glossier, takes a different approach, using a warm, intimate, and friendly tone. This fosters a sense of connection and community.
By ensuring that your brand archetype and voice are aligned, you can create a more cohesive and impactful presence that resonates with your audience and reinforces your brand’s identity at every touchpoint.
How Do Archetypes Influence Tone of Voice in Branding?
A strong brand begins with a well-defined archetype. The brand voice brings this personality to life through every interaction. When these elements are seamlessly aligned, the result is a brand that feels authentic, consistent, and memorable.
To see this in action, let’s explore how different female-led brands have successfully matched their brand archetype with a distinct and compelling brand voice. For each, we’ll examine how their chosen archetype influences the way they communicate and connect with their audience:
🛍️ Rebel: Thinx (Miki Agrawal, Co-Founder)
- Archetype: Rebel (Challenges the status quo, disrupts industries).
- Brand Voice: Bold, boundary-pushing, and unapologetic.
- Example in Action: Their marketing directly challenges period taboos with provocative language, unfiltered messaging, and disruptive ad campaigns.
🎨 Creator: Rifle Paper Co. (Anna Bond, Co-Founder)
- Archetype: Creator (Driven by artistry, uniqueness, and innovation).
- Brand Voice: Warm, whimsical, and storytelling-driven.
- Example in Action: Their brand messaging reflects their handcrafted aesthetic, with a focus on nostalgia and personal touch.
💡 Sage: Ellevest (Sallie Krawcheck, Founder)
- Archetype: Sage (Knowledge-driven, focused on empowering others through expertise).
- Brand Voice: Confident, data-backed, and empowering.
- Example in Action: Their financial content speaks directly to women with clear, no-BS language and educational resources designed to close the gender wealth gap.
❤️ Lover: Glossier (Emily Weiss, Founder)
- Archetype: Lover (Emphasises beauty, connection, and self-care).
- Brand Voice: Intimate, community-driven, and conversational.
- Example in Action: Their messaging feels like a trusted friend’s beauty advice, using soft, aspirational, yet accessible language.
👑 Ruler: Tory Burch (Founder)
- Archetype: Ruler (Authority, luxury, and elegance).
- Brand Voice: Polished, aspirational, and confident.
- Example in Action: The brand communicates exclusivity and prestige, but in a way that empowers women rather than creating unattainable luxury.
How to Align Your Brand Archetype and Tone of voice in Branding
If your brand archetype and brand voice feel mismatched, don’t worry. I promise you’re not alone. Many brands struggle to find the right balance. With a few intentional steps, you can create a seamless connection between the two. Here’s how:
1. Identify Your Brand’s Archetype
Before you can align your brand voice, you need to have absolute clarity on your brand’s archetype. This serves as the foundation for your messaging and helps guide how you communicate with your audience. To determine your archetype, ask yourself the following questions:
- What emotions do you want your brand to evoke? Should your audience feel inspired, empowered, nurtured, or challenged when they interact with your brand?
- How do you want your audience to perceive you? Should your brand come across as authoritative, rebellious, playful, or sophisticated?
- What brands inspire you, and what archetypes do they align with? Studying brands that you admire can provide insight into which archetype might be the best fit for your business.
Once you’ve identified your archetype, it’s time to shape the tone of voice in branding. That will bring your archetype to life. Here’s some more help about how to choose the right archetype for your goals.
2. Define Your Tone of voice in Branding
A brand’s voice is like its personality. It needs to be distinct, recognisable, and consistent across all platforms. To refine your brand voice, consider the following questions:
- Is your voice formal or casual? A luxury brand might lean toward a more polished and refined tone. A community-driven brand might take a more conversational and friendly approach.
- Do you use humour, or are you more serious? Some brands thrive on wit and playfulness, while others need to maintain a more professional and informative presence.
- Is your tone aspirational, informative, or playful? Depending on your audience, your tone should reflect how you want them to feel when they engage with your brand.
Like I always say, the real key here is consistency. Your audience should be able to recognise your brand voice instantly, no matter where they encounter it.
3. Test Your Messaging Across Different Platforms
Once you’ve defined your archetype and tone of voice in branding, the next step is ensuring that your messaging is consistent across all touchpoints. However, consistency doesn’t mean rigidity. While your core voice should remain the same, you may need to slightly adjust your tone depending on the platform:
- Social Media Captions: These are more conversational and engaging, using a tone that encourages interaction. In some cases, the tone changes from platform to platform yields better engagement results, too. Think about the overall tonality and energy differences between Linkedin and TikTok.
- Website Copy: A blend of authority and warmth, guiding visitors with clarity and confidence. Think as though they have entered your shop if you had a brick-and-mortar business. Even if you do operate in a physical location, your website needs to be an online extension of this.
- Customer Service Interactions: A friendly, reassuring, and solution-focused approach that aligns with your brand personality.
A Tip on This:
A great way to test this is by reviewing past content and assessing whether it truly reflects your intended brand archetype and voice. If some pieces feel out of place, adjust them to create better alignment.
4. Gather Feedback and Adapt
Finally, remember that branding is an evolving process. As your brand grows, so should your brand voice. Pay attention to how your audience engages with your messaging and be willing to refine it when necessary. Here’s how to do that effectively:
- Monitor engagement metrics. Look at how your audience responds to different types of content. Do they engage more with posts that are playful or authoritative?
- Ask for direct feedback regularly. Use surveys, polls, or informal conversations to understand whether your messaging resonates with your target audience.
- Refine without losing authenticity. If something feels off, tweak your tone and messaging, but always stay true to your core archetype and brand values.
Common Pitfalls with Archetypes & Tone of Voice in Branding (And How to Avoid Them)
Three common mistakes I see often with Archetypes and Brand Voice.
❌ 1: Choosing an Archetype That Doesn’t Align With Actions
- Example: A “Caregiver” brand that has a cold, corporate tone.
❌ 2: Copying Competitor’s tone of voice in branding. Instead of Developing Your Own
- Your brand needs a distinct voice to stand out. Try not to mimic others.
❌ 3: Being Inconsistent Across Touchpoints
- Ensure your website, social media, emails, and customer service use the same tone and messaging.
Take Some Inspired Action
Your brand needs to stand out and leave a lasting impression. To support this, your brand archetype and brand voice must work together seamlessly. When these elements align, your messaging becomes a lot more powerful. This helps consistency which allows you to attract the right audience with greater ease. As a result, you’ll create a sense of familiarity and trust. These are both essential for building long-term relationships with your customers.
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