We don't make meaning, we signal meaning and society decides what it actually means. Reality is subjective and meaning is not fixed. For some, a cow's leather has no intrinsic meaning; for others, it's dinner or deity. The same thing goes with brand communications: meanings interpret in the minds of the people.
"Meaning," says Marcus Collins ("For the Culture") in today's episode, "is culturally mediated based on how we see the world. Understanding how people make meaning will increase the likelihood of understanding who they are and how they navigate the world."