The meaning of the logo from its semiotic construction and its reliance on new formats of digital communication: The case of Apple

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4185/RLCS-2021-1529

Keywords:

Semiotics, Logo, Brand, Corporate visual identity, Sign, Digital environments, Apple

Abstract

Introduction: The importance of logos has underpinned the existence of a corporate semiotics as a general code to which weakly codified local semiotics respond, due to the high symbolic load of these visual signs. Methodology: This research aims to delve deeper into the semiotic construction of logos and to analyse their process of signification supported by new forms of communication. To this end, an interpretative analysis is proposed based on a categorical model linked to recognised previous theories, which is applied to the case of Apple as an example of a benchmark brand at an international level. Results: The results suggest that online brand communities (whether they are owned or earned media) provide these signs with meaning and make logos to become cultural icons; to a large extent, thanks to the collaboration of the consumers themselves. Conclusions and Discussion: Corporate logos present a simple structure if we only look at the expression, but relationally they show a high degree of complexity. It is precisely these relationships that give signs a significance that is constantly evolving, and which currently finds the best support in in online communities of brand followers. Furthermore, these conclusions allow us to identify new avenues for research into corporate semiotics and the processes of semiosis involved, either by implementing methodological techniques that enable us to complete this exploratory research, or by addressing new challenges in the management of brand communication.

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Author Biographies

Carmen Llorente-Barroso, Complutense University of Madrid

Department of Applied Communication Sciences. Universidad Complutense de Madrid.

Ph.D. in Advertising and Audiovisual Communication from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) and Extraordinary Doctorate Award 2009-2010. Her lines of research are focused on the study of the visual keys of brands, and communication aimed at active aging and the inclusion of people with disabilities. Currently, she participates in the PROVULDIG2-CM (H2019 / HUM-5775) and COMPENSA (PID2019-105398RB-C21) projects. Her research has been disseminated in international conferences and publications in SPI, WoS, and Scopus. In 2014, she carried out a research stay at Haas School of Business (UC, Berkeley), financed with a “José Castillejo” Grant (CAS14/00052). Her research career has been recognized with a six-year research period by the CNEAI. Currently, she is a PDI at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM).

Olga Kolotouchkina , Complutense University of Madrid

Department of Applied Communication Sciences. Universidad Complutense de Madrid.

Ph.D. in Communication Sciences and professor of Communication and Branding at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. She is a member of the American Academy of Advertising, ECREA, and the International Place Branding Association. Her research interests include the field of place branding, disability visibility, citizen participation, and public diplomacy. She participates in the projects “The Public Diplomacy of Ibero-American Mega-Cities: Communication Strategies and Soft Power to influence global environmental legislation” (RTI2018-096733-B-I00), and “Rise Women with disabilities in social engagement” (H2020-MSCA-RISE-2015-690874). Her research has been disseminated in international congresses and publications in SPI, WoS, and Scopus. She has been a visiting professor at the University of Toronto and Waseda University in Tokyo.

Department of Applied Communication Sciences. Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Ph.D. in Communication Sciences and professor of Communication and Branding at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. She is a member of the American Academy of Advertising, García-García, Complutense University of Madrid and Icono 14 Scientific Association

Department of Theories and Analysis of Communication. Universidad Complutense de Madrid and Icono 14.

Emeritus Professor at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM). His lines of research are linked to Audiovisual Narrative, Advertising, Creativity, Rhetoric, ICT applied to Communication and Education. Director of more than 180 Theses, he has been a professor of all educational stages. He directed the National Center for Educational Information and Communication of the Ministry of Education, Culture, and Sports (23/10/2000-31/12/2004). National Award for Educational Research (1978). President of the Icono14 Scientific Association and co-editor of the scientific journals Icono14 and Prisma Social. He has been the CR of several projects and the SOCMEDIA Group (UCM). Furthermore, he has coordinated numerous books in SPI publishers and has written several books, chapters, and articles in SPI, JCR, and SJR publications.

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Published

2021-12-03

How to Cite

Llorente-Barroso, Carmen, Olga Kolotouchkina, and Department of Applied Communication Sciences. Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Ph.D. in Communication Sciences and professor of Communication and Branding at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. She is a member of the American Academy of Advertising, García-García. 2021. “The meaning of the logo from its semiotic construction and its reliance on new formats of digital communication: The case of Apple”. Revista Latina de Comunicación Social, no. 79 (December):333-56. https://doi.org/10.4185/RLCS-2021-1529.

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