Marketing

Shaelyn Digos

Manufacturing Belonging: Brand Voice and Implicit Communication in Fashion Branding

A close-up headshot of a young woman with dark, wavy hair parted in the middle, smiling gently. She has fair skin, prominent eyelashes, defined eyebrows, and reddish-brown lipstick. She is wearing a black blazer and a delicate gold chain with a small cross pendant around her neck. The background is a soft, neutral grey.

Shaelyn is a fourth-year Professional Communication student at Toronto Metropolitan University with a strong interest in branding, digital media, and audience engagement. Through her studies, she has developed skills in strategic communication, content creation, and media analysis. Shaelyn is particularly interested in how brands communicate identity and cultivate relationships with audiences across digital platforms. Her work explores how visual aesthetics, messaging, and brand voice shape audience perception and influence how consumers interpret belonging and identity in contemporary brand environments.

This research examines how fashion brands use explicit and implicit communication strategies to construct identity and cultivate audience belonging. Focusing on Brandy Melville and Aritzia as comparative case studies, the project analyzes TikTok content to identify patterns in brand voice, visual tone, and messaging practices. Through discourse and visual analysis, the study explores how aesthetic consistency, tone, and strategic omission shape brand identity and influence how audiences interpret brand culture. The research aims to highlight how belonging is communicated through both overt messaging and subtle visual branding strategies.

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