What is Holy Water?
"In Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and some other churches, holy water is water that has been sanctified by a priest for the purpose of baptism, the blessing of persons, places, and objects, or as a means of repelling evil."
Therefore, physically, it is just water. The difference is the semantics; the ritual and the belief. This water has a different purpose than 'normal' water does. I found it interesting that something as fundamental as water can suddenly have a completely different meaning to a group of people when it has been blessed by a person.
It posed the question, what if holy water was marketed/branded?
It could be sold as a drink, a way to bless people on the go, a skincare product or a perfume. I found relating holy water to a perfume as the most interesting route. Perfume is marketed in a very particular way, usually adopting some of Packard's 8 Hidden needs. I began to write out mind maps to draw both holy water and perfume together, establishing similarities and differences:
Here, I identified key aspects such as the 'icon' - those who promote or are the key face to the brand. Here I related someone such as the Jesus or the pope to popular celebrities which promote perfumes, e.g Cara Delavigne or Johnny Depp.
Will the perfume be promoted by someone holy, or would it be aimed more at pop culture and use someone who is well known in that sphere?
Secondly is the Logo. For holy water, the obvious answer is the cross, alongside archaic inspired type to fit the holy aesthetic. For perfume logos, it really does depend on the product. Usually, the logo will include a brand name's logo e.g Dior, or even a celebrity name and name of the product if it is created by a celebrity, or something iconic in relation to them. E.g ARI by Ariana Grande, or Purr by Katy Perry. Their persona is captured within the product.
Consumers are those who buy/consume the product. Although both items have consumers, the meaning and setting is much different, however both fulfil a purpose. Holy Water is used within a baptism:
"the Christian religious rite of sprinkling water on to a person's forehead or of immersing them in water, symbolizing purification or regeneration and admission to the Christian Church. In many denominations, baptism is performed on young children and is accompanied by name-giving."
As for location, the only setting Holy Water usually resides is within churches, cathedrals or chapels. Its function is only really relevant here. In pop culture and fictional writing and movies, holy water is also used as a repellant for vampires. This theme has been used in films such as Van Halsing.
Perfume is found within many department stores such as boots, and malls. It can also be found in designer retailers and specialist perfume shops. The audience for perfume is much wider as it is a commodity. I must now begin to think of ways I can advertise Holy Water as a commodity in the form of a perfume or other relevant product. It will be interesting to include methods that Vance Packard has wrote about which feature in my essay.
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| Holy Water mindmap |
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| Perfume mind map |
Here, I identified key aspects such as the 'icon' - those who promote or are the key face to the brand. Here I related someone such as the Jesus or the pope to popular celebrities which promote perfumes, e.g Cara Delavigne or Johnny Depp.
Will the perfume be promoted by someone holy, or would it be aimed more at pop culture and use someone who is well known in that sphere?
Secondly is the Logo. For holy water, the obvious answer is the cross, alongside archaic inspired type to fit the holy aesthetic. For perfume logos, it really does depend on the product. Usually, the logo will include a brand name's logo e.g Dior, or even a celebrity name and name of the product if it is created by a celebrity, or something iconic in relation to them. E.g ARI by Ariana Grande, or Purr by Katy Perry. Their persona is captured within the product.
Consumers are those who buy/consume the product. Although both items have consumers, the meaning and setting is much different, however both fulfil a purpose. Holy Water is used within a baptism:
"the Christian religious rite of sprinkling water on to a person's forehead or of immersing them in water, symbolizing purification or regeneration and admission to the Christian Church. In many denominations, baptism is performed on young children and is accompanied by name-giving."
As for location, the only setting Holy Water usually resides is within churches, cathedrals or chapels. Its function is only really relevant here. In pop culture and fictional writing and movies, holy water is also used as a repellant for vampires. This theme has been used in films such as Van Halsing.
Perfume is found within many department stores such as boots, and malls. It can also be found in designer retailers and specialist perfume shops. The audience for perfume is much wider as it is a commodity. I must now begin to think of ways I can advertise Holy Water as a commodity in the form of a perfume or other relevant product. It will be interesting to include methods that Vance Packard has wrote about which feature in my essay.
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