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Let's talk about how to build and label your own brand properly in order to create less friction in brand marketing and engagement. With our help, you should be able to get a better sense of your brand in order to market it to your members.
Putting together a cohesive brand for your organization is a lot of work. And if you aren’t fully aware of the brand you’re creating, you may not know how to market it to target audiences when the time is right.
Brands are complex, ever changing, and animated. They can almost be looked at like a living, breathing thing- and be given just as much attention as one too. In fact, nurturing your association’s brand and paying it the attention it deserves can do so much for your engagement rates. We’ve discussed the importance of branding for associations in the past, but we’ve never really focused on the different types of brand personalities that your brand could emulate. There are so many options, and one that could definitely work in favor for your association, so we’d like to take some time to introduce you to the word of brand archetypes.
With the help of Nonprofit Hub’s article on branding strategy, we’d like to talk to you a bit about how to build and label your own brand properly in order to create less friction in brand marketing and engagement. With our help, you should be able to get a better sense of your brand in order to market it to members and potential new members alike. Let’s dive in!
There are a hundred and one ways to create a brand. And therefore, there are a hundred and one different types of brands in the world to compete with (this may be a drastic under exaggeration). But regardless of the infinite possibilities for a brand, there are ways to narrow down what your brand is, how it functions, and how consumers see it to make things a bit easier to manage. This is what we call using “brand archetypes”- figuring out key words and traits about your brand to better build it up and shape it into what you want to see. It helps you define the personality of your brand in a tangible way that marketers can use to enhance branding. A brand archetype is an “image” or representation of a specific type of brand- think of the way a tarot card is an archetype of a feeling or concept. The card may have an image of a wizard on it, which we know from our experience to be a person of mysticism and power. Or, it could have a queen, which we associate with femininity and power. These are examples of archetypes that help us use describing words that resonate best.
So, how do archetypes play a role in company and organization branding? They can help you put a label on what you’re doing and better develop your brand strategy. Many marketing strategists and marketing agencies use archetypes to help their clients figure out what they’re trying to achieve with their brand and how to keep that focus incorporated into all they do. So now that we’ve gone over the overview of brand archetypes, let’s talk about a few that your association might find resonates with the image you want to promote.
First, let’s start with the hero archetype. The hero archetype represents a brand that is looking to make a difference in their industry in a way that fights against injustice and for advocacy. For associations and nonprofit organizations, this is an archetype that you may want to use. Depending on what your industry is, fighting for change for members and your community may heavily resonate with the brand you’re creating. The hero brand archetype is a little less boisterous despite the name. It seeks to help others without the accolades that come with it. It wants to work more for its consumers and less for the gain of acknowledgement. Again this is a great archetype for nonprofit organizations of all types to take on for their brand.
As we mentioned before, the power and mysticism of the magician archetype brings a higher sense of excitement to the table. A magician archetype brand wants to bring new, exciting, and amazing experiences for consumers. This brand wants to accomplish the impossible, just like a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat. This could be an archetype that resonates with your association if you like presenting members with amazing benefits and offers that they can’t find anywhere else. Do you want your brand to represent something larger than life and exciting? Do you want consumers to see your brand and think of how they can make things more exciting for themselves? If so, this archetype is for you. The magician archetype can be assigned to your brand and incorporated in the way you market your benefits and offers. You can market to potential members the focus of you making things happen for them- be it career advancement, professional resources, goal achievements, etc. Show them you’re here to create magic with them.
Are you an association that deals mostly with taking care of members in their time of need? If so, the caregiver archetype could resonate with your brand. Just as it sounds, the caregiver archetype brand seeks to show consumers that it’s here to take care of them and keep them safe on their path towards whatever they want to achieve. This brand is one that values trust and wants consumers to know that they have their best interest at heart. If your association is one that deals with taking care of its members, no matter the type of care being given, you may want to use this archetype to better grow your brand. You can do this by building up your mission statement and slogan around providing care and comfort for members. You can also do this by branding your benefits to market their value in a caregiving sense.
If you’d like to learn more about archetypes and find one that resonates with your association’s brand, you can find a more detailed list here. Strengthening your branding strategy by using a brand archetype for guidance can help you get a better sense of the reality you’re creating for your association.
