In this crowded place where competition is high, how can you steal the attention of your audience? How can you place yourself distinctly so that you can find a way to people’s minds?
The answer is – through brand voice.
It’s the style of your communication as to how you talk. The brand voice adds the human touch to communications. It acts as the personality of your brand. In other words, the brand voice is how you sound to your target audience. By making you unique, your brand voice helps you stand out in the crowd. And that’s not all it does. There’s more to it.
So, what else?
Why do you need a brand voice? How can brand voice drive your success?
Definitely, we will see that. But before that, a point worth noticing is that your brand voice should be consistent throughout. And here, another important point that comes into the scene is tone.
What do you think about these two: brand voice and tone? Are they the same? Or is there any difference between brand voice and tone?
Actually, these concepts can be confusing. But by deeply pondering over these, you will find that brand voice and tone are two different things. You can’t use these words interchangeably. So, what’s the difference between brand voice and tone?
As mentioned above, brand voice is the way you communicate. It remains the same every time. You have to be consistent with that irrespective of the situation or occasion of communication. Otherwise, you will go off-track and fail to derive the benefits that brand voice offers.
‘Okay! What could be the voice of my brand?’
Oh, that depends on numerous things. We will talk about developing an appropriate brand voice in the later section of this piece. Stay tuned. But some examples of brand voice are – formal, casual, friendly, empowering, conceptual…and the list continues.
On the other hand, the tone varies according to the situation. Like it can be funny, aggressive, etc.
“A brand without a voice is like macaroni without cheese.”
Erin Butler Woolf
We believe this statement says all.
A unique brand voice sets you apart from your competitors. Being the language of your business, it lets you present yourself (the thoughts, values and message of the brand) to your target audience in an understandable manner. Also, it enables them to remember you. How? The consistency in the communication allows you to mark an impression on their mind. And a time comes, they can quickly recognize your brand.
The brand voice helps you connect better with your audience. Also, it makes it easier for people to relate themselves to you. They start feeling connected with your brand, thereby paving the way for loyal and trustworthy relations.
Brand voice is a great medium to evoke emotions, which in turn enables you to bring like-minded people together. And you have a community.
By having a brand voice, you can ensure that your communication style is in line with what you are. Otherwise, getting diverted is no big deal, and that can be dangerous.
Here comes the most critical question, and dealing with this calls for genuine efforts as even a small disturbance can take you to an entirely different place.
Well, you need not worry as we are gonna assist you with this.
So, how to develop a brand voice? Let’s find out.
The key to developing an excellent brand voice! While creating a brand voice, it’s significant to consider who you are. If you miss doing that, you can end up creating an inappropriate brand voice. And in that case, delivering the messages effectively will become a tough task.
So, while developing the brand voice, pay heed to your brand statement. What you do, how you do, your values and objectives are crucial elements demanding your attention.
You have already decided on the target audience, but do you know their preference? Have you ever thought about the way you can communicate with them so that you can leave a lasting impression? Or the way they would love to hear from you? Without knowing this, how can you decide the brand voice?
No way. And even if you do, that won’t make sense.
Suppose you are a software company providing solutions to MNCs and dealing with top-level executives. Now, you have to take time to analyse what would be an appropriate brand voice. Your brand might have young professionals who like a fun-filled atmosphere, are jovial and prefer the casual way of communication. But you have to see the other side of the table. Being at the top positions, belonging to the middle or senior age group, they might not like this style. So, your task is to find out the style your target audience likes and go well with your offering.
Knowing your audience won’t suffice. You also have to identify what’s working in the industry to which you belong. Check what’s the general preference, how people communicate and whether that way is helping them get results or not, etc. For this, you can conduct surveys, trend analysis and can do other such activities. Now, compare the findings with the outcome of the previous steps. Do you have something in common? Possibly many! But you can’t use them all. So, bring down the number of alternatives through selection or elimination.
Pick the most appropriate and relevant voice for your brand.
Congratulations! You’re done deciding your brand voice. Document it. And ensure that you stick to it and present yourself consistently. All your communications should embrace your brand voice so that people can identify you quickly and easily.
Important – If you’re not a new entrant, don’t forget to audit your existent content. That’s important to eliminate gaps and disassociations.
