What is a spirit animal?
According to the Collins Dictionary, a spirit animal is a spirit in the form of an animal that embodies an individual’s character and acts as a personal guardian.
Brands with animal instincts?
Brands have been tapping into their animal instincts for years to shine a light on their brand values and to help create a brand name or logo that’s instantly memorable. Animals have characteristics that people can easily identify with. Penguin, WWF, Lacoste, Red Bull, Twitter, Jaguar, PlayBoy and Bacardi all feature animals or birds in their logos.
Animal loving nation
The UK's deep affection for animals remains strong. Businesses that adopt animal friendly policies from pubs to restaurants and cinemas are experiencing significant growth as a result.
Customer focused brands
Brands create customer avatars using real data and insight to understand the characteristics of their ideal customers. As a result, they create more aligned marketing, products and services. Brands that put customers at the heart of their business outperform those that don’t. Thinking about your ideal customer, which spirit animal characteristics align with your ideal customer?
Understanding spirit animals
1 Fox - Curios, intelligent and resilient
2 Owl - Wise, intuitive and knowledgeable
3 Pigeon - Peace-keeper, loyalty, navigator and guide
4 Penguin - Adaptable, loyal and resilient
5 Bat - Intuitive, transformative and adaptable
6 African Grey Parrot - Communication, intelligent and social
7 Lioness - Power, courage and leadership
8 Sloth - Patience, contentment and conservation of energy
9 Elephant - Wise, strong and patient
10 Eagle - Freedom, vision and strength
11 Wolf - Strength, loyalty and freedom
12 Maine Coon Cat - Curiosity, independent and loyal
13 Alpaca - Gentle, community and resilient
14 Stag - Noble, gentleness and protection
15. Magpie - Intelligent, problem solvers, community focused
16 Racoon - Mischievous, playful, curious, resourceful, adaptable and clever
All the images are fictitious, created using AI to conceptualise each spirit animals. Choose a spirit animal to reflect the qualities, attributes, traits and behaviours of your ideal target audience. They are non gender specific.
Fox
- ‘As sly as a fox’ is an English *idiom that comes from **folklore. Our neighbourhood foxes are confident and curious. One in particular enters homes unannounced using a cat flap
- The fox is clever with the ability to solve problems and think strategically
- Foxes thrive in a multitude of different environments and adapt to changing situations
* Idiom = English phrase that has a special meaning different from the literal meaning.
**Folklore = Traditional beliefs, customs, and stories of a community passed through the generations by word of mouth.
*** Cat flap = a hatch for house to come and go as they please without knocking on the front door
Owl
- The idiom ‘As wise as an owl’ can be traced back to Athena the goddess of wisdom who in Greek mythology is often depicted as an owl or with an owl on her shoulder
- Owl spirit animals signify wisdom and knowledge. Their gargantuan eyes and with a neck that turns 360 degrees means they have the ability to see beyond what us mere mortals can visualise
- Owls do their important business at night - this is when they hunt and during the day they sleep. Their night vision provides heightened intuition and an inner awareness of unrevealed insights
- When an owl ‘hoots’ it can be heard for miles around. Unlucky if you're trying to sleep. In spirit animal terms an owl hooting signifies transformation, guidance, protection and rebirth
Pigeon
- In recent years, pigeons have suffered unduly from a bad wrap. As a child, I ran as fast as I could in the opposite direction when my Dad arrived home armed with a pigeon pie. Flocks of pigeons were kept as pets. In war times, their ability to ‘always’ find their way home due to an internal sat nav ‘homing’ system made them invaluable. Today, their recent resurgence can be traced to a cult following #pigeontok on tick tock and also a newly erected statue in New York
- Pigeon spirit animals signify reliability, commitment and dedication forming lifelong bonds with their mates and using their internal compass to get home
- Their internal compass represents a sense of purpose, direction and guidance.
- A dove (same family as pigeons) with an olive branch’ symbolises peace, harmony and co-operation
Penguin
- Penguins are adaptable and resilient and living in extreme icy and sometimes harsh conditions
- They signify emotional balance. As flightless birds, penguins co-habitate equally well on land and sea water.
- Known for strong family bonds, they are a represent loyalty and community
- Did you know.. a group of penguins is known as a waddle?
- Energy conscious, penguins conserve energy by waddling due to their short legs and large feet
Bat
- In different cultures, bats symbolise completely different things from fear to fortune and happiness to good luck
- Bat spirit animals represent intuition, their senses are highly tuned into their environment.
- As creatures of the night, bats symbolise transformation and rebirth and personal growth. In popular culture ‘Batman’s’ universal appeal is about resistance and overcoming evil with good
- Bats can thrive in diverse environments and embody adaptability and flexibility in difficult situations
African Grey Parrot
- African Grey Parrots are among the world’s most intelligent animals
- They are highly effective communicators and have busy social lives
- African Grey Parrots represent emotional intelligence and empathy. They are sensitive to human emotions and with a lifespan of 60-80 years they can outlive their human owners
- They love to travel, are happiest in their natural environment where they can travel up to 10 km a day
- Witty and wise, African Grey Parrots are known as problem solvers due to their cognitive abilities
Lioness
- Courageous and fearless. Even in the face of adversity, the lioness stands firm to protect their beliefs
- As ‘Queens of the Jungle’, they exude authority and signify powerful leaders
- They represent loyalty living in close-knit communities ‘prides’
- Protective, loyal and family orientated, living in close-knit communities
- Did you know, the nickname for the England Women’s Football team is ‘Lionesses’? They were crowned UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 champions following a dramatic 2-1 extra-time victory against Germany
- The Lioness embodies the spirit of a trailblazer
Sloth
- As ‘slow as a sloth’, the English *idiom does have lazy connotations. However, slow moving shouldn’t be deemed negative. Research indicates we are at our most creative when we are doing nothing. This is the exact opposite of the UK’s popular workaholic culture
- Sloths value rest and relaxation, they are energy efficient and choose to prioritise conserving their energy
- Sloths find joy in stillness. They represent simplicity and happiness.
- Sloths embody mindfulness, living in harmony with nature means they are environmentally conscious
Elephant
- ‘The elephant in the room’ is an *idiom that means the big issue that no one wants to talk about
- Elephants symbolise intelligence with remarkable memories, wisdom, knowledge and understanding. They are also associated with patience and insightful decision-making
- Elephants represent physical and emotional strength, resilience, stability, and groundedness. They carry a sense of quiet power and are capable of overcoming challenges with grace.
- Elephants have strong social bonds and a deep sense of loyalty, especially toward family members. They represent compassion, nurturing, and dedication to loved ones and community
Bald Eagle
- Recently in the news, in December 2024, after 250 years, the Bald Eagle was officially declared the US national bird. The bald eagle is native to north america and symbolises strength, freedom and uniqueness
- The English idiom ‘as bald as an eagle’ relates to being bald or hairless. According to wikipedia, bald eagles are not bald; their name derives from an older meaning of the word ‘white headed’, adult males have a white head
- Eagles have extraordinary eyesight, symbolising vision, focus, and the ability to see the big picture
- Majestic in flight, eagles embodies freedom, independence, and a high perspective on life
- Fierce hunters, Eagles are determined in achieving their goals
- Eagles symbolise perseverance and strength of purpose
Wolf
- ‘Keep the wolves from the door’ is an English idiom that means to have enough money to live
- Wolves are wild animals representing freedom and intelligence
- In indigenous cultures they signify strength, intuition, intelligence and leadership
- Wolves are strong, both individually and in packs, representing resilience, power, and inner strength
Maine Coon Cat
- Maine Coon cats are powerful, inquisitive and love to explore, symbolising curiosity and a playful spirit
- They are known for being both sociable and independent representing the balance between companionship and autonomy
- Loyal to their owners and symbolise trustworthiness and dedication
Alpaca
- Alpacas are highly social and known for their calm nature, gentleness and tranquillity. The alpha leader watches over the herd and influences the others
- They thrive in herds, symbolising unity, cooperation, and community
- Alpacas adapt to high altitudes representing resilience and adaptability in challenging environments
Stag
- Stags are regal and dignified, representing a noble spirit and a high moral character
- Despite their power, stags embody gentleness, grace, and a calm demeanour
- They are protective, often linked to guardianship, especially of family and territory.
Magpie
- Highly intelligent, magpies can mimic human speech better than parrots with more words and phrases. Once they’ve seen your face they will remember you forever. They are drawn by curiosity, exploration and love learning
- Brilliant problem solvers, they have a set of rules relating to interaction. In general they are kind but unforgiving of rule breakers. They hold a magpie court and peck at the poor victim in turn.
- Magpies are loyal with a tendency to mate for life
- They have strong social bonds, they work and live together
Raccoon
- The raccoon is mischievous by nature, their opportunist ways help them to live successfully just about anywhere from
- Clever, creative and resourceful, Raccoons are known for their problem solving abilities
- Raccoons are ‘dexterous’, with five long fingers and nails but no thumbs they use both hands to do things - they can use their paws to open doors, unlock gates, untie knots and can hold objects
- Their extra sensory abilities comes from having four to five times more sensory skills in their paws
- They symbolise ingenuity and thinking out of the box to solve complex problems
* Dexterous = good with hands
