| Pub. Date | : Dec, 2018 |
|---|---|
| Product Name | : The IUP Journal of Brand Management |
| Product Type | : Article |
| Product Code | : IJBRM11812 |
| Author Name | : Olutayo Otubanjo |
| Availability | : YES |
| Subject/Domain | : Marketing Management |
| Download Format | : PDF Format |
| No. of Pages | : 23 |
A number of financial institutions are hung on the use of pictorial metaphors of animal marks in corporate logos as tools for creating meanings, even though such logos are no longer fashionable. The paper deconstructs a few of these logos. Specifically, this study examines how corporate logos with animal marks create and institutionalize meanings in the minds of customers. A modified McCracken’s Meaning transfer model and a three-phase interpretive framework comprising literary criticism, semiotic method and interpretive interviews form the framework of the study. The findings from the deconstruction of corporate logos with animal marks—belonging to First Bank Plc and Union Bank Plc, two of the largest banks in Nigeria—indicate that meanings that are adduced to these banks evolve through a collaborative system of continuous or uninterrupted exposure of animal marks and customer habitualized beliefs.
The use of animal figurative marks in corporate logos has played a significant role in corporate communications over a long period of time. For hundreds of years, animal marks have been used to symbolize, communicate and express the personality of business organizations. A quick review of a variety of corporate logos, especially those belonging to a number of large, reputable financial institutions, suggests that there has been a shift from the use of animal marks (such as horses, bulls, bear, eagles, lions, tigers and similar ferocious faunas, see Appendix) towards more simplified versions of currently fashionable and expensive works of art. Figure 1 support this argument.