Applying Semiotics for Brands

"Our partnership with Leapfrog Strategy has been among the most fruitful associations.  Their expertise in leveraging semiotics to mine consumer insights aided multiple projects ranging from brand repositioning to packaging designs and led to tangible business impact."

“Semiotics has often allowed us to not just go deeper to unarticulated or even unrealised motivations, it has allowed us to be faster and more practical in terms of implications on business. Leapfrog has played an instrumental role in that, not just as a semiotics agency, but as a cherished collaborator on problems as diverse as redrawing the Indian SUV market, unpeeling rural Indian business models, developing nascent middle eastern intimate hygiene markets, etc.”

“Semiotics is a lesser known and practiced field of consumer research but an important one as consumers interpret brand messages through symbols, signs, colours, etc. in addition to explicit advertising. Many brand decisions are taken on these semiotic elements without having put sufficient thought on the meaning behind them.  Hamsini & the Leapfrog team have helped GCPL with interesting work on understanding the meaning derived out of semiotic brand assets that helped us with taking key decisions on the brand. Their understanding of the science of semiotics is great!”

“I have found that semiotics adds a richness and a detail of insight that helps craft finer mixes that resonate at a deeper level with the consumer. And this is why, we have relied on Leapfrog to provide the semiotic input on our innovations. Working with Leapfrog is a delight – they are true partners who see their role as far beyond providers of insight to partners vested in our mixes and design, end to end.”

“Categories are becoming more complex by the day and unravelling brand growth requires a deep understanding from all dimensions. For us at Vaseline, this was brilliantly led by Hamsini and Rasika with pathbreaking semiotic work which went on to guide our entire marketing mix. Their unique style of decoding the semiotic codes coupled with years of experience, shines through every aspect of their work. It is such a fundamental piece that we keep coming back to it!”

“Strategy presentations and excel sheet calculations do not result in conversions.  When a consumer is making a purchase, it is design that helps that decision – the packaging, the logo, the advertising, the store experience.  It is semiotics that makes design effective – ensuring that the meaning is conveyed with precision.  Hamsini has been an early proponent of semiotics in India.  The Leapfrog team bring a masterful understanding of the underlying structures of visual design to construct meaning in them.”

“I have strongly believed that humans communicate emotions much more genuinely through visual cues.  In this regard, the application of Semiotics as a tool of discovery and deep insighting has proven to be very valuable in the work that we have done with Hamsini and her team at Leapfrog. Setting up a foundational structure to communication by defining its various components and their value has helped us a lot in bringing in the application of Behavioural Sciences therein and we have seen material business impact of these initiatives at Airtel.”

“Having long worked with a leading European multinational on various worldwide markets, I have read many in-depth brand consultancy analyses and recommendations.  Leapfrog’s work is exceptional in its ability to unlock brand potential.   Their semiotic approach is broadened and balanced with pragmatic consumer expertise and deep brand cultural knowledge.  Beyond profound analyses, Leapfrog brings rare finesse, subtlety and creativity to its research and review.  The team treats brand problematics with daring holistic thinking and concludes with spot-on articulation of evolving context and trends. Their insights and recommendations defined a clear new direction, online and offline, strengthening our ability to gain share by leveraging our brand’s authentic identity and values in order to better apprehend the changing social moment and market.”