Brand archetypes in business photography

Brand archetypes in business photography - I highly recommend this book if you'd like to find out more about this!

Your brand archetype is a powerful tool for connecting with your audience

Your brand archetype defines the emotional experience your brand offers and helps you stand out in a crowded market.

From your messaging to your visuals, your brand archetype shapes how people perceive you and your business.

And what exactly the heck ARE brand archetypes?

Brand archetypes are universal "personalities" that reflect the core characteristics of your business.

Based on Carl Jung’s psychological framework, these 12 archetypes represent distinct traits, values, and emotional connections.

Using an archetype helps you clarify your brand’s identity, attract your ideal audience, and get your unique story across consistently in your marketing.

If you don’t yet know your brand archetype, take this free brand archetype quiz by American brand strategist Kaye Putnam to discover yours.

What has knowing your archetype got to do with getting great brand photography?

In brand photography, understanding your archetype allows us to craft images that align with your personality and values, creating a visual identity that resonates deeply with your ideal clients. 

Your brand archetype is more than just a label – it’s a way of describing and categorising your business personality. It defines how your audience connects with you emotionally, shapes your messaging, and influences the way your brand is perceived. (Bit of a big deal, then!)

Brand photography that aligns with your archetype makes sure your visuals communicate your personality, values, and mission authentically. This creates a stronger connection with your audience and makes your brand instantly recognisable.

Let's have a look how the 12 primary brand archetypes translate into brand photography. Each archetype has its own distinct traits, goals, and emotional connections that can be captured through tailored visuals.

First: a warning!

Don't rely over-heavily on brand archetypes in your marketing. They're a "type", not a straitjacket.

Knowing yours can give you guidance and can spark ideas, yes, but if you pigeon-hole yourself too much you'll lose all room for nuance. For example, both you and "her up the road" could both be business coaches, you could both be (say) Magician archetypes, and yet your businesses, your personalities, and your approaches will almost certainly have huge differences, and your photography should reflect that. 

So take your brand archetype as something to throw into your branding mix. It mustn't dictate everything you do.

People are diverse and multi-faceted (thankfully!), and relying too heavily on guidelines for a single archetype might oversimplify your brand and make you lose your unique edge.

Your brand archetype isn’t just a personality label - it’s a powerful tool for shaping how your business connects with your audience.

By bringing your brand archetype into planning your business photography, you'll create visuals that feel authentic, memorable, and deeply resonant with the people you want to reach.

If you’re a service-based small business owner in Edinburgh or elsewhere in Scotland, and if you're ready to bring your brand archetype to life with photography that really shows off what makes your business unique, let's talk. We can work together to create photos that perfectly reflect your brand’s personality and connect with the people you most want to work with.

If you're not quite at that stage yet, you might find my Ultimate Guide to Brand Photography a useful read in the meantime though!