ABSTRACT
If a consumer’s eyes meet an advertisement across a crowded room and he/she immediately understands the message conveyed, this might be as a result of the use and recognition of the signs or symbols used in the piece of communication. This use of signs and symbols is known as semiotics. Semiotics is the study of the meanings and interpretations associated with signs and symbols. An example of how we use and interpret such signs in marketing communications would be if the male and female models in an advert were depicted standing close together, the assumption most observers would make is that they were ‘intimate’. Or if a solitary model were standing in the rain, this might suggest loneliness. Of course, not all cultures translate messages in the same way and organizations are beginning to differentiate their brand from that of the competitor by demonstrating they are aware of semiotics. HSBC are currently running a campaign that shows how different signs and symbols have alternative meanings in different cultures. For example, if children raise their hands in the UK it is a sign of the child trying to attract attention, but in other cultures it is a sign of rudeness.
