It has long been held that consumers tend to prefer a product that has some sort of visual device as part of its identity. That's as long as it's easy to recognise and remember. Apparently, if the mark is something that's easy to process, in thinking terms, you're more likely to feel warmly towards it (rather than being challenged by it). See it, understand it, recognise it, remember the connection. 
It all sounds obvious enough, but apparently, the trick is using devices that people already know and identify in areas that they wouldn't normally (initially) think of them. And, especially interestingly, having no connection at all to what's being represented may be the best idea of all. A recent study by the Professor of Marketing at Michigan's Ross School of Business, along with colleagues at the University of Chicago and Yale University, showed that what they called 'unique arbitrary identifiers' can offer a real advantage to a product. It's especially relevant to traditional branding elements. For example, instead of using grapes on a wine bottle, putting a frog on it may offer substantial benefits.
Sounds crazy but apparently it works. It's all to do with creating distinction on one hand and using images that consumers are already primed to in their lives, and therefore find easy to process mentally. This priming component makes an animal something that can become a strong branding device. People easily recognise and remember animals.
This is true for events and occasions as well as brands. Hence the Easter Rabbit. In a similar way you've got reindeers at Christmas and black cats at Halloween. While they have some connection, even more powerful can be seemingly unrelated partnerships. Think of the Esso Tiger, Spuds the Budweiser dog, the Coca-Cola Polar Beers, the PG Tips chimps, the NBC peacock...
Animals are easy to identify and remember. Watch out for the Glass Tower dragon.
Intellectual property can be a tricky legal area. And these days the term 'property' more than applies... 
Sometimes your computer needs a reboot, why not your brand? It's going back and looking at the core values... 
So what's the story with the Easter Rabbit and all those other animal icons? There's a long tradition of using symbols we know in branding... 
So what are the trends that are speeding towards us from the horizon? Some have already reached us while others are looming... here's our pick. 
Tactile media rules! So come to your senses. All of them. Touch, smell, feel - it's not just what you see and hear any more. 
