Devilish Duo: Why brand mascots still have their place

Brand mascots (just like advertising jingles) have grown a bit passé. As one marketing expert says, “Brands in the digital world can now connect with their customers directly through social media. They don't need a mascot as a middleman.”

But, just like with jingles, marketers may be underestimating the power of a good mascot. In the case of Duolingo, its mascot isn’t a middleman for the brand. It is the brand.

A recent WARC article discusses how Duolingo has deployed Duo, its green owl mascot, as the madcap face of the brand on TikTok.

There is nothing inherently funny about learning a new language, but the brand uses humor as a staple of its communication. As the article describes, it took a minute to figure out what kind of humor would work best, and it turns out Duolingo’s “anarchic” approach (as the article dubs it) works best.

The green owl is this smartass character who jumps off balconies when you ignore its notifications, has an unhealthy obsession with Dua Lipa, and roasts people in the TikTok comments section.

Gen Z consumers love Duo and share its videos widely.  And Duolingo has found that shared content leads directly to new users.  Embodying the brand as a mascot seems to provide the brand unlimited flexibility and a playfulness that wouldn’t be possible otherwise.