Is hot chocolate masculine or feminine? When is it appropriate for men to drink hot chocolate? A digital story by Joanne Mendel and Jan Yeager of Cheskin Added Value illustrates how visual media is analyzed to interpret evidence of narrative discourse in the culture. The plethora of imagery available in the public domain is our raw material for identifying cultural cues.
We take viewers through an analysis of hot chocolate using a visual language framework that reveals product attributes and characteristics, consumer behaviors and context for consumption. We offer some potential ways this method can be paired with other consumer and market research methods to address a variety of business questions. As designers, our work in this area ranges from brand messaging and positioning to product concept generation.
