4d ago in General discussion
Origins of Branding
I’m going to unfold some basic human behavior concepts that I think you can appreciate.
In algebra we learn the use of letters in math. These letters are literally symbols. We use symbols in math. Math. Symbols.
Symbols are the basis of Branding, as by definition, because historically a brand is an applied symbol to denote ownership.
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Symbolism is no mere idle fancy or corrupt degeneration: it is inherent in the very texture of human life.
Alfred Whitehead – British Mathematician and philosopher
After all, we did not invent symbolism; it is a universal age-old activity of the human imagination.
Sigmund Freud
Edwin Powell Hubble was an American astronomer. He played a crucial role in establishing the fields of extragalactic astronomy and observational cosmology. Hubble proved that many objects previously thought to be clouds of dust and gas and classified as “nebulae” were actually galaxies beyond the Milky Way. He has a telescope named after him, btw. Here’s his take on symbolism:
All nature is a vast symbolism: Every material fact has sheathed within it a spiritual truth.
Edwin Powell Hubble
I could go on, but let me get to my point:
We are created to view and interpret symbols.
Nature is not complete without symbols of important meaning.
Brightly colored animals are either the most lethal, poisonous, dangerous, etc, OR they are using their color to pretend to be poisonous and dangerous. Either way, brightly colored animals should be handled with care and concern.
Tigers have stripes. Lions have terrorizing roars that shake the ground. Gold shimmers in the light.
Now to colors and color psychology…
Colors are electromagnetic waves that vibrate at different frequencies. These frequencies are picked up by the brain and have an actual measurable effect.
Colors can also increase our visual memory (Spence et.al 2006) and our arousal level. Research suggests that physiological arousal was higher during the viewing of the color red than it was for green (Wilson, G.D. 1966). Other research suggests that the effect of emotion on memory depends on the color type (Kuhbander& Pekrun, 2013). The results indicated that the color red strongly increased memory for negative words and the color green strongly increased memory for positive words. – Taken from an article written by Barbara Koltuska-Haskin, Ph.D. published in Psychology Today magazine.
Shapes – Recognize these?
Fractals are best described as a non-linear pattern that infinitely repeats in different sizes. The uniformity of a fractal is the repeating shape, although the form may appear in varied sizes. Examples of fractals observed in nature include snowflakes, the branching of trees and blood vessels, or a peacock’s plume.
Examples of types of fractals are meandering (snakes, rivers), lines (cracked river bed dry mud, cracked ice, snowflakes), bubbles and foams (soap bubbles, bubbles and foams on water, chemical reactions like carbonation), wave patterns (clouds, ocean or river waves, ripples, etc).
Then there are mathematical symmetries, patterns, which become sysmbols in nature, such as the spiral. Double helix DNA pattern, the golden spiral, etc. You can even calculate the length of a spiral, here’s the formula: multiply the number of rings by pi, then multiply by the average of the OD and ID
Let me tie some of this random info together: Brains in humans and animals all perceive nature in patterns of color and form.
“Our brain encodes visual information efficiently using circuits that are smartly designed. Contrary to what is taught in the classroom–that color and form are processed separately in the early visual cortex and then integrated later by unknown mechanisms–the brain encodes color and form together in a systematic way,” says Peichao Li, co-first author and postdoctoral fellow in the Callaway lab.
a 4k photograph of an Archimedean spiral, made of light, clearly defined, in space – MidJourney AI
Alright, now that we’ve laid a scientific basis for the elements of branding in nature, human and animal, let’s tie it to a faith based belief system, and give it some depth as it pertains to humans, creation, and God.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being.
The word ‘word’ in this context is translated from the greek ‘logos’. The author’s implication is that God used Jesus as the blueprint for all creation. The human being who fed the poor, healed the sick, and “went about doing good…”.
All that we respect and admire, and all that some hope to become (Ghandi, Mother Teresa, etc) the “goodness” of our civilization, was exemplified in the human whom we now refer to as Jesus.
From my point of view, God built a universe (full of symbolism) based entirely on the pre incarnate Son of God. Talk about a proud father!
Let’s get back to the symbolism, might I point out that symbolically, we mark the year of Christ’s birthday as the year 0.
SYMBOLISM, continued;
The symbolism here, the lesson, repeated throughout the bible, and in nature, in so many ways and forms, is that God made us to see or hear or taste or touch or smell a “snapshot”, a sample, a tiny bit of something, to help us understand, learn, know, familiarize ourselves with, the larger thing.
Our brains were designed to see, hear, taste, touch, feel, samples of things that give way to certain feelings, thoughts, actions, etc. The stripes of a tiger represent danger. The bright colors of an animal represent poison. The heat of a fire represents danger. All these things are “small to big”. Small heat could mean big fire. Small color could mean big pain. Small stripes, big danger.
We grow from cells to babies to adults.
We say mom and dad, before we learn to speak in complete sentences.
It’s all small to big. Seeds to trees.
Nature grows and increases itself, through growth, birth, wind, sun, etc.
Jesus is the seed that all of creation came from and is now the full grown tree.
We use that same word, logos, because, it fits.
a LOGO is tiny snapshot of what is to come.
The visual representation of the “brand” of a tiger is it’s stripes, of a lion, it’s roar. Of a shark, it’s dorsal fin, an oak tree’s brand- visually represented, is an acorn. When you see an acorn, if you’re familiar with it, you know it’s potential is an oak tree.
This is why we see dorsal fins as logos for brands, we see the head of a lion and it’s roar as a trademark, we see nuts as logos and icons, leaves falling off of trees indicate a temperature change and a season, we work mentally based on symbols.
a painting in the style of van gogh of leaves blowing in the wind, because it’s the season fall – made by MidJourney AI
We’ve even gone beyond nature and started using symbols that are iconic and powerful visuals of things we’ve created. The instagram logo is based on a camera. Best buy uses a price tag, Taco Bell uses a bell. All still symbolism.
I’m hoping that by now I’ve overwhelmed you with evidence which convinces you of 1 thing:
BRANDING IS BASED ON THE POWER OF SYMBOLISM ON THE HUMAN BRAIN
So let’s go further, to practical application, which must include yet another layer.
Color psychology has gone beyond the science of the electromagnetic waves. We’ve gone so far down the path of manipulating the brain through logos that there are now color associations with industries. Check this out – British tea company Twinings has the oldest logo that has been in continuous use with no alterations made to the logo’s design. It was created for the tea company more than two centuries ago, in 1787.
The first recorded logos go back to the 13th century. We’ve been doing this awhile. Now we have whole industries there the majority of logos fall into a single, or a small handful of colors.
Fast food – Red. Tech companies – Blue. Apparel – Black.
These associations are loosely based on the psychological impact of the colors, but by now, even if the color psychology doesn’t quite match exactly, it’s cemented in our minds, and the impact of industry association is now potentially as great or maybe even grater than the mental impact the electromagnetic waves of those colors have on our brain.
I haven’t even touched on typefaces and fonts yet. Don’t even get me started on words.
Let me get back to my original statement – Branding originated in the beginning. I mainly say that to say that God pre-engineered all of this, and God resided in heaven at the time. There’s an entire book in the bible dedicated to symbols, called Revelation. The colors, shapes, and symbols used to describe heaven make a pretty good case for the theory that heaven was the ideological birthplace of our universe. Either that or the author, John, was the most visually and symbolically gifted person the world has ever known. I guess you could argue either could be true. Or both.
Let’s wrap up, don’t create a brand out of ignorance. A shape, color, image, picture, that strikes your fancy might end up being EXACTLY what you need for a logo, or it could be the dumbest idea you’ve ever had.
The apple logo represents humanity’s bite from fruit of the tree of knowledge. The pepsi logo has a 27 page document explaining it. All of it. Most likely it took 27 pages to document the inception and gestation of it, helping to justify the 1MM price tag. The American Airlines logo is the one that has stood the test of time, lasting longer than all competitors’ logos.
There’s a path forward from creating the brand to creating the logo. Once you know what the brand is, making the logo is a matter of time and effort, but it’s not shooting in the dark.
How do you define a brand, and the perfect logo for that brand? Here’s the process, it’s super easy- think of the brand as a tree, then define the tree, in all it’s glory, at it’s highest potential, then you can create the nut from whence it came.
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Origins of Branding
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