A SPEECH ACT ANALYSIS OF TAGLINES OF BRANDS IN SHAPING THEIR CULTURAL IDENTITY

Abstract

      This study aims to perform a speech act analysis of taglines of national and international brands to shape their cultural identity. Taglines play an important role in shaping a brand’s customer loyalty and increasing its popularity through the use of language and vocabulary. This study reviews the use of language by applying a speech act analysis: illocutionary acts on taglines from different national and international brands from five different industries. Qualitative research methodology has been employed to identify which acts are dominant within national and international brands that make them popular locally and worldwide. Using language on a cultural scale has helped identify why certain international brands are more famous, as their identity is shaped by the correct use of language. The analysis was done by categorizing one brand from each industry on a national and international scale in detail, while the rest were also analysed briefly. Moreover, the all-over analysis was done for each industry to identify the illocutionary acts and sub-acts that were dominantly visible in that certain industry. This would help different brands to identify the dominant type of vocabulary and the importance of illocutionary acts when creating their taglines for a better target audience.