What makes a semiotician tick? SEMIOVOX’s Josh Glenn has invited his fellow practitioners in the field of commercial semiotics, from around the world, to answer a few revealing questions.

London…

SEMIOVOX

When you were a child/teen, how did your future fascination with symbols, cultural patterns, interpreting “texts,” and getting beneath the surface of daily life manifest itself?

EMILY HAYES

My great-grandfather was a bookbinder and my dad worked in book production, so we had a desk full of their materials — including a stack of old Letraset letter transfers in different fonts. I was fascinated by how the same word could communicate such different things just by being a slightly different shape.

Another formative experience was, as a teenager, attending a ‘business dinner’ in Singapore hosted by Chinese associates of my dad’s. The two arch-rival ‘kings of pop-up books’ were at the table, both from Latin America, both very passionate, expressive, beautifully dressed and utterly charming, alongside Singaporeans, Chinese, and one very obnoxious American — who refused to eat the exquisite multi-course banquet and demanded a burger. I was mesmerised by the cultural differences around the table in terms of body language, conversation style, and conduct.

SEMIOVOX

Describe your first encounter(s) with the theory and practice of semiotics.

EMILY HAYES

I studied English Literature at Sussex University in the ’90s and came across semiotics there: Barthes, Saussure, Baudrillard, Eco, probably some Peirce too. I hated it — far too theoretical for me. But applying post-colonial and feminist theory to Shakespearean texts and modern Caribbean literature was hugely exciting, so the fascination with cultural studies and how language and visuals work together stuck.

SEMIOVOX

How did you find your own way to doing semiotics?

EMILY HAYES

I originally worked in teenage and women’s magazines as a journalist and editor, which I loved, but could never understand why the words and pictures departments were so separate. I used to sit with the designers to make sure headlines worked with the imagery and text.

At that time, I presented one of my university essays at an advertising and consumerism conference on ‘Barbie, feminism and post-modernism’. (I was obsessed by Barbie as a cultural icon, obviously ahead of my time!) There I met Greg Rowland and Malcom Evans: Greg was working on Impulse Body Spray, and as I was imbedded in teen culture, I moonlighted for him for a while. Semiotics was a lot more fun, intellectually challenging, and better-paid than magazine journalism… so I never looked back.

I started my own consultancy, Semiotics for Brands, in 2011.

SEMIOVOX

What are the most important attributes of a good semiotician?

EMILY HAYES

• Joining the dots across multiple cultural and sensorial data points. I still get excited by this: how can something in one category provide inspiration or illumination for another? How does one form of cultural behaviour impact pack design, usability or appeal of a product?
• Asking the right questions of a client as to what will really help them solve their problems. Culture is vast, so really pinning down ‘where to focus’ at the beginning of a project is vital.
• Weaving insights into a narrative that inspires rather than drowns people in too much detail. Semioticians are an obsessive bunch — we love detail. But it’s crucial to communicate a clear story and razor-sharp recommendations in a way that allows clients to actually use our work.

SEMIOVOX

When someone asks you to describe what you do, what is your “elevator pitch”? How do you persuade a skeptical client to take a chance on using this tool?

EMILY HAYES

‘I analyse popular culture for brands — enabling them to stay culturally relevant.’ We all live in a cultural ‘soup’ that affects consumer beliefs and behaviours. It’s my job to find patterns within culture that can be applied to brands to ensure they stay relevant, and communicate what they want to communicate.

Consumers can tell you what they do, but often not why, because a lot of their decisions are subconscious. Semiotics can get you to the why, which allows you to communicate, innovate, and strategize better.

SEMIOVOX

What specific sorts of semiotics-driven projects do you find to be the most enjoyable and rewarding?

EMILY HAYES

Projects that lead to positive cultural change for brands — especially around gender, kids, teens, and parenting. I ran a project for De Beers diamonds, for their United Nations He for She initiative, which provided positive gender guidelines for all their global advertising. It shifted the imagery they use from a very white, heteronormative space to a much more age-, race-, and sexuality-inclusive area. LEGO is a fantastic client too: working on positive boyhood and girls’ friendship spaces, and tapping into the power of play (for creating well rounded future-humans) across different markets has been inspirational.

It’s always a pleasure to see my recommendations appearing in actual pack designs on shelf. I never won’t get a buzz from that.

SEMIOVOX

What frustrates you about how semiotics is practiced and/or perceived, right now?

EMILY HAYES

To do semiotics properly takes time, which = money. I worry whenever agencies offer commercial semiotics or cultural insight (usually based on AI) that can be done within a super-fast timeline.

AI is a fantastic tool, and can definitely be incorporated into semiotic practice, but five days is not long enough to analyse a category in multiple markets and get deeply relevant, highly targeted recommendations. If clients get ‘meh’ semiotics delivered, it can put them off the methodology for life.

SEMIOVOX

Peirce or Saussure?

EMILY HAYES

I’m a huge advocate of semiotics explained in consumer-friendly language, versus semiotics that makes people feel ‘less than’ if they don’t have an academic background or understand the jargon. I’ve worked out ways to communicate with different clients depending on what resonates for them, and what bests answers their brief — versus being tied to a rigid framework applied regardless of the client’s specific questions. Sometimes a semiotic square is useful, sometimes brand archetypes help communicate ideas. Tensions, shifts, or sticky-contradictory bits of culture are where the magic lies.

SEMIOVOX

What advice would you give to a young person interested in this sort of work?

EMILY HAYES

• Be endlessly culturally curious and fascinated by brands, packaging, and all forms of multi-sensorial communication.
• Read the academic stuff if it interests you but don’t get hung up on it.
• See every trip through duty free or to your local super-market as a semiotic safari: what’s changing, what stands out? How does that connect to broader ideas you’ve noticed in culture?
• Learn by doing. Ask to be included in semiotic projects for a reduced rate (never work for free!) in exchange for being shown stages of the process, from initial client brief to proposal to final debrief.
• I’m always looking for new analysts who are immersed in parts of the cultural soup where I’m not.  

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