snap2objects

Semiotics: A Powerful Communication Tool For Designers

estefany — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:44:15 +0000

There is an important thing present in advertising and other design uses, that we call semiotics. Actually, it’s present in everything in our lives, so deep that we don’t always pay attention and it happens naturally. So, what is this thing that surrounds us and is so important for design and advertising? The semiotics is the study of signs, and through them, it studies the origins of meaning in different languages of communication.

It goes deep into communication languages, verbal or non-verbal, to even understand why we think about the image of a rose when we hear the word “rose”. Why is this sound or theses letters connected to this object? What is the relation between them that makes the meaning? And more, why do we think about passion when we think about the rose? Though? Just a little, but we’ll talk more about it and show how to use this knowledge for communication and persuasion.

What do we need to know to make use of semiotics?

First, know what is a sign and its kinds. A sign is anything that makes meaning. Anything? Sure, if you see/hear something and understand that, it is a sign. They are the mediators to the world. According to Saussure, the signs have two aspects: signifier and signified. The first one is the material that has a meaning and the second one is the meaning. For example, the open sign is the signifier, while the signified is that you can go in.

The use of semiotics in our lives

Now let’s see the kind of signs according to Peirce and then analyze some things in our lives on which we can see the use of semiotics.

The three kinds are:

Icons – a clear representation of the object itself, keeping its characteristics. There’s no distinction between the icon and the real object. Examples are: photos, drawings, imitations, onomatopoeias and others.

Index – They indicate something. The index connected with its meaning (not arbitrary) but unlike the icon, it’s not the object itself. As examples, we can say that smoke indicates fire, smiles indicate happiness, fresh coffee smell in the morning indicates that someone preparing breakfast. Even medical symptoms and measuring instruments are indexes, because they indicate something.

Symbols – They have no resemblance to the real object, it’s a result of a convention. A symbol can only make meaning if the person already knows that, so, this is a matter of culture and previous knowledge. We all know that a dove represents peace, but there’s no connection between the animal and peace, it’s just a convention. Letters and words are examples of symbols. The graph sign (words) has no direct link to the thing itself, but for each culture, they make meaning. For us, the mourning is represented by the color black, but this color changes for different countries and cultures.

Let’s analyze a common object, some cell phone “icons”:

Here we can see some real icons (representation of the object itself) like the calendar, the camera and the clock. Also, some indexes (signs that have a connection with the object, but it’s not its real representation) like the stocks, You Tube or mail. If they were real icons, there should be a photo of a stock exchange, a thumbnail of a You Tube video and an electronic mail image. Finally, we see also a symbol, for Flash. There’s no visual connection from the Flash “icon” to the real meaning.

There’s no specific indication of what is that, but we know, because there’s a previous knowledge that Flash is an application for animations (ok, this image – flash – is not real, but useful for educational purposes). The designers who projected this screen were aware of the signs and its meanings, as we all shall be when designing anything. It is important because it’s the base for communication, which is the final purpose.

Semiotics in advertising

Thinking about these three kinds of signs, what do you think is the most used in advertising? Symbols. The symbol is the last step of comprehension, which brings on subjective ideas and concepts. Of course, the signs in general belong to these three categories, but each one has its predominance, so we are ignoring the less predominant kinds.

Example I: Words hurt too

Let’s start with this clever ad about verbal violence (click to enlarge). The main element is the boy’s picture. So, you instantly think: “it’s an icon, because icons are real representations like photos”. Ok, but no. It is surely an icon, yet more than that. As we said that all signs can belong to the three kinds, this one is more symbolic. See, the boy looks upset, looking down, pale colors, showing sadness. These perceptions are primary indexes, because the eyes looking down, for example, is an indicator of sadness. BUT when we understand that this boy has suffered violence, it becomes symbolical and subjective.

The “words/blood” coming out from the boy’s nose is another index (indicating violence) that becomes a symbol. There’s no real blood, the written words are giving this idea, again, subjective. If I didn’t know what is this about I wouldn’t understand the image, it was important to have a previous knowledge about the concept “words hurt too”.

Example II: Opera to punk rock mp3s

Here we see the same woman, with same hair and same position creating a totally different look only by changing the clothes, from opera style to punk rock style. Obviously, the main sign is the clothes, and again, symbols. There’s the convention that the first style of the woman (composed by a long red dress – all symbols in this ad) is more classic adequate to opera, while the last look is more rebel, according to the punk rock style (boots, pantyhose, mini skirt and top). The transition between them illustrates the concept “opera to punk rock mp3s”.

Example III: If you pay a prostitute, you’re financing human trading

Now see this ad about prostitution. The main elements are a meat package and a woman inside of it. Why is this combination so strong? First, this kind of package is known as meat package, distributed largely in supermarkets, as a common commodity. When they put the image of a woman instead of the meat there’s a clear comparison with the woman – a prostitute – and a piece of meat. The woman becomes a symbol, provoking feelings like surprise, repulse, shock and impact. Nobody would like to treat a human being as a piece of meat, that’s when we read the concept “if you pay a prostitute, you’re financing human trading” and the whole idea clears up.

This article is just a brief view about semiotics and interpretations, the real thing is much more complex and complicated. We indicate some good books to go deep into semiotics concepts like “This Means This, This Means That: A User’s Guide to Semiotics” by Sean Hall, Theory of Semiotics by Umberto Eco (largely known name in semiotics) and Semiotics and the Philosophy of Language also by Umberto Eco. To conclude this article, there is a nice video that explains in an easy way some aspects about semiotics.

Video: Semiotics, The stuy of signs.

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9 Free Sports Vector Silhouettes

mao — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:02:12 +0000

I´ve never been a sport kind guy, but do luv vectors! In this pack we have 9 Sports Vectors from diferent sports activities: Tennis, Gold, Football, Soccer, Basketball among others. As always we hope you find them useful in your projects.

Preview

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Photo Objetcs: 16 Vintage Radios

mao — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 19:22:09 +0000

In a former post we offered 20 Vintage Cameras this time the old radios, before the ipods, even the walkmans were the radios. However I don´t remember the last time I listed to one (unless I am in a car) here we wave 16 Photo vintage radios photo objects for your projects.

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9 Free Vector Animal Farm

mao — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 20:59:32 +0000

When was the last time you saw or a Cow or a chicken? I mean a real one, not those that comes in a bucket! Maybe you have not seen one yet. Maybe for others, their first guess is the George Orwell novel, but none of these. I am talking about the real deal :).

Here we have 9 fresh and meaty animal farms, Cow, goat, duck, chicken, rooster, chick even a rabitt. As always hope this dudes help you in your proyects or at least to fix a tasty dish.

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Free Vector Design Elements: Emo

mao — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 20:53:13 +0000

Emo: is a genre of music that originated from hardcore punk early on, and adopted pop-punk influences later on in the 2000s when it became mainstream.

I personally find emo aesthetics kind of cute (please guys hope I don´t cut my head for saying that) so here I offer 12 free design emo elements.

Enjoy.

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9 Horses Vector Silhouettes

mao — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 17:40:01 +0000

9 Horses Vector Silhouettes for your projects. As you have seen we are posting several animals vectors I found them very useful in several types of projects they are always a nice reference. This time the mans best friend before the dog, not beer horses!

Well hope you find them usefuls.

“Hi-yo, Silver, away!”

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Photo Objects: 20 Vintage Cameras

mao — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 19:44:29 +0000

I luv flickr! you can find almost what ever you fancy there. I have search for vintage cameras and found these beauties and made .psd and .png isolated HR photo objects. Sure they will be helpful in you projects when you need that retro chic element.

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23 HR Natural Textures

mao — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 19:41:40 +0000

23 High Resolution Natural Textures taken in by my colleague stephany at her beautiful city Belo Horizonte in Brazil. There are pebbles, wood, sand, grass and a couple of things I am not sure how to say them in English.

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Starting Your Own Business: When? How? Why?

estefany — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:27:23 +0000

The idea of working for yourself and administrating your own time is, at least, interesting. Thinking about some advantages of being your own boss, many professional designers are trying to get their slice of the market. Let’s discuss when is the best time to start a business, if it’s really worth, how to get started and other relevant issues.

This is such an important decision to take, there are many aspects to consider. Why do people start their own business? Some are trying to get their best, some can’t find a good job, some are just tired of working in agencies. Whatever is the reason, you must be sure that you can handle it. It’s great to think that you won’t have a boss anymore, that you can control your time and work and that all the incomings are only for you. On the other hand, it’s not that good to know that you have to take care of everything, that there will be no more free weekends (you’ll always take work home, even if it’s not really working, you’ll have too much to think about, now it’s all about you and YOUR business) and you have to pay all the expenses. The more power you have, the more responsibilities you have too.

How far is it good?

Be sure you are prepared to this big project in your life. Many recent ex-students get away from college and start their own business. But even being great designers, it’s not enough for business. You must have some experience working on agencies to learn about the work flow and the issues of a company. It’s not good to skip steps. But if you’re sure that it’s possible to go ahead for your own, go fight for it!

One of the important things to do, before starting the process, is a viability study. You must know if your service is really needed in your area, this will ensure that you will have work. Learn more about the expectations and needs of your target audience. Check competitors to see what they offer and what you can innovate. If you are not going to make something new, some point must stand you out from your rivals. Think about what could you do to make the difference, getting rid of being common ground.

Make your business stand out

Start making a business plan, a document with the proposal of your business. There will be everything since the explanation of services/products to the marketing strategies. It’s a good way to organize your needs and check if everything is running according to the plan. Here is a good article about How to write a business plan.

After making the business plan, you must know how much you are going to invest at the moment. This time you may need help from an accountant, a bank or even the government if you don’t have the cash to start. There are many options for getting this help to launch your project. Ask professionals to indicate you the best for your business.

The rest is up to you. Work hard to make it go well, use marketing strategies and do not give up. The start is always the hardest part, but once you went through this, the return will come naturally. Keep the ethics and give your best.

We would like to hear your own experiences and how you took this decision. Share your story with us.

Four Vector Floral Ornaments

mao — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:35:35 +0000

Four Vector Floral ornamnets to give that vintage organic feel to your projects.

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