Brand Characters

Brand characters have been used many times by many companies. The goal of these characters is to give consumers a recognizable icon they can associate with a specific brand. Usually, these characters have distinct qualities that the advertising company wants people to associate with the brand.

A few you might remember:

1) Tucan Sam (Fruit Loops).

Sam is an exotic bird (like how Fruit Loops is an exotic cereal falling just outside standard cereal guidelines). Sam asks us to "follow his nose" (which is huge) and it will lead us to Fruit Loops cereal. This illustrates the specific fruity smell people have come to associate with the cereal. He's adventurous and confident, and he's always up for fun. These are qualities the cereal company wants consumers to associate with the Fruit Loops brand.

2) The Geico Gecko (Geico Insurance)

Here is a small gecko touting insurance. At first, the animal choice doesn't make a lot of sense when representing Geico's brand of insurance. Upon closer inspection, however, we find that the gecko is well-mannered, thoughtful, a little timid yet reasonable, and he even has an English/Australian accent. These characteristics epitomize Geico's approach to insurance and targets the type of consumer looking for insurance. These consumers want insurance, but they don't want someone pushy or overbearing to sell it to them. They want to buy from someone who has a quiet confidence, someone who knows what they're talking about. They don't want to buy insurance from someone who jumps on ideas; instead, they want to meet with someone who's thoughtful and reasonable .. someone who won't take advantage of them. This brand character is especially good because the gecko is very recognizable (no other company uses it) and the name gecko is very close to the company name (Geico).

3)Snuggles the Bear (Snuggles fabric softener)

This is one of the most successful brand characters in my opinion. Not only does Snuggles epitomize softness (a benefit of the product), but it also carries subtle messages about how the product is used. A cute voice with laughter brings a tone of family (kids) to the laundry process. The bear even represents stuffed toys everywhere that get thrown in the wash because they've been lugged around everywhere by their adoring owners (kids). Snuggles is very effective because it carries a feeling with it that parents doing laundry want to associate with their values.

Some brand characters take on the qualities of the brand while others focus more on the connection between the brand and the target demographic. Some symbolize the creator of the brand (Orville Redenbacker). Some brand characters fall in between which seems to hinder the goals they're trying to achieve. Because of a lack of focus, the character sends out mixed messages about what the product or brand should be trying to convey. Some brand characters are very effective if they simply demonstrate an alignment of values or core beliefs that the brand also embodies (like Michael Jordan and Nike).