As human beings, we are pre-wired to identify patterns. This allows us to understand relationships between cause and effect. Without this ability, brands would not exist. Brands are metaphors made up of patterns. We “skim” the world around us without consciously reading or listening. We recognize the patterns and instantly equate A to B. Even as you read this post, your mind equates each word form to its respective meaning. Brand signals work the same way. They provide mental shortcuts as they directly equate to the brand.

To illustrate how we assign given meaning to abstract symbols, we have scrambled the word forms in the following paragraph. However, you may be surprised by how easy it is to read.

Rereahsrecs at Cbamrdige Unevistiry hvae porevn waht trpyeapoghrs have kownn for yraes. We dno’t raed ecah letetr iuilndaivdly, rhaetr we see ecah wrod as a whloe. We tehn eqaute ecah wrod to a gievn mneaing. Our aitilby to raed wdors is besad on our frmilaiatiy wtih the lungaage. It dnoes’t meattr waht oedrr the leetrts are in, so lnog as the wrod froms are ricagenzolbe.*

Because your brain recognized the unique pattern of each word form above, you were able to read the paragraph. While the words were scrambled, the first and last letters remained constant. This formed a recognizable pattern. Your brain didn’t unscramble each word. You simply recognized the pattern and equated it to its meaning.

Just as your brain equated each of the above word forms to their given meaning, your brain equates shapes, sounds and other sensory inputs to their respective meanings. In the case of brand signals, the input equates to a specific brand.

Brand signals are multi-sensory cues that can take the form of a visual, sound, touch, taste, smell or action. These signals provide the tangibility necessary for consumers to identify and differentiate a given brand as well as drive consumers’ perceptions of the brand. That’s why we can recognize the shape of a coke bottle through the frost covered glass of a refrigerator door, the Nike swoosh out of the corner of our eye, the iconic design of an Apple product at a distance, or even hear the exhaust note of a Harley Davidson and equate each of these signals to their corresponding brand.

Patterns and signals allow us make sense of the world around us. As consumers, they allow us to make sense of the marketplace. Without brand signals, brands would hold no value in the eyes of consumers.

*In case you did have trouble reading the encrypted paragraph above, here it is in its deciphered form:

Researchers at Cambridge University have proven what typographers have known for years. We don’t read each letter individually, rather we see each word as a whole. We then equate each word to a given meaning. Our ability to read words is based on our familiarity with the language. It doesn’t matter what order the letters are in, so long as the words form are recognizable.

Categories: Brand Expression, Brand Identity, Brand Signals