Making a lasting impression is every brand’s ultimate goal. But how can you achieve this?
Beyond creating a great logo, launching a fiery marketing campaign, and having a compelling brand message, a brand must have a distinct voice.
A brand voice draws people’s attention, helps you earn their trust, and makes you unforgettable. It’s that element that resonates with your audience every time they hear or interact with your brand.
So, how do you establish a great brand voice? Read on to find out:
What is a Brand Voice?
A brand voice is the distinct personality a brand adopts when talking to its audience. It reflects the company’s values and distinguishes it from its competitors.
A brand’s voice is consistent across all communication channels, including emails, social media, blog posts, and advertisements, regardless of the teams handling them.
It’s this consistency that creates loyalty and trust with an audience. A company selling formal shoes, for example, will adopt a more corporate voice compared to one selling streetwear shoes.
Why a Brand Voice is Important
A marketing guru called Morgan Brown once said, “Brands that talk to everyone speak to no one.”
This statement echoes the impact a brand voice has on its audience. Not only does it influence an audience’s perception of you, but it also ensures your presence is felt.
A brand voice allows you to convey your message clearly and effectively. Here are more reasons you need a brand voice:
01. Builds Connection
Customers are more inclined to trust and become loyal to brands they feel connected with. In fact, they develop stronger connections with brands that share the same values as them.
For example, a company that’s committed to recycling waste is likely to draw the attention of customers who share similar values.
02. Affects Perception
You want to develop a positive reputation with your target audience, and your brand voice helps you realize this goal.
Suppose you want your brand to be known for producing foods using organic ingredients.
Your brand’s voice cements this notion and positions you in the market as a company that values organic food production.
03. Makes Your Brand Recognizable
You already know Apple’s characteristic logo and slogan, “Think different.”
Every time customers see that slogan, there’s instant recognition and awareness that the ad belongs to Apple.
While this is true for the slogan, it’s also true for the brand’s voice.
How to Establish a Brand Voice
Developing a brand voice can be challenging when you don’t know where to start, but the following steps can help you:
1. Define the Company’s Mission Clearly
Your mission or value statement helps streamline key characteristics to include in the brand’s voice.
Say your company’s values consist of hard work, integrity, honesty, and transparency. These aspects must be embedded in every part of the company’s content.
They become key characteristics of the brand’s voice.
2. Define the Brand Personality
The next step is to define your persona.
The idea here is to define your target audience, what they need from you, and what distinguishes you from other brands to develop a voice that resonates with them.
Research your audience to understand their preferences, behaviour, and tastes.
Since your audience is at the core of developing your brand’s voice, they can help you determine if you’ve created a successful brand voice.
If your voice still doesn’t resonate with them, you should go back to the drawing board.
3. Study Your Competitors
Study your competitors to understand their brand voices and how they have established them over time. This insight will help you find ways to develop your voice.
For example, you could build a brand that sells flowers online and has already carved out your target audience.
Based on that information, you decide that your voice will be a mix of The Bouqs.com and Popy colours. This realization allows you to explore some ideas.
4. Get Your Creative Juices Flowing
You could mix the two identities you discovered in the previous steps and add a few elements to develop the right voice for your brand. Here are some questions to guide you:
- Which words would you use to describe your brand’s tone? Is it formal, casual, playful, strong, helpful?
- How would you describe a social media post about a product? Curate a copy that fits your brand’s personality
- Develop a write-up of your brand’s personality highlighting how the voices mix. Find out the words and phrases your brand’s voice would use to describe their products
- If your brand was human, how would it behave in a party? Would it be quiet and calculative, loud and present, or observant?
The answers to these questions will help you understand and develop your brand’s voice. Writing an About Us page could also give you an idea of what your brand is about and define how you would like to sound.
5. Define Your Unique Selling Proposition
Your unique selling proposition differentiates you from your competitors. This element will help you develop a powerful brand voice that resonates with your audience.
Think about what your brand has that others don’t and how your voice can communicate this feature.
6. Develop a Style Guide
This guide outlines the rules for developing your brand’s voice. Simply put, it’s the do’s and don’ts.
A style guide also ensures that the brand voice is consistent across all communication platforms.
7. Refine Your Voice
By now, you have the brand voice figured out. You could write down 3-5 characteristics that define it and how others can incorporate them in their writing.
You also want to evaluate it regularly to ensure it reflects any changes in your business. Apple’s brand voice, for example, is simple, classy, and straightforward.
It’s emphatic of the company’s design principles, focusing clearly on communicating its products’ benefits. And you’ll find the same voice across all its platforms.
Conclusion
These steps should give you a headstart in establishing your brand’s voice. As you may have noticed, this process requires a lot of experimentation, your audience’s input, and constant refinement. But if you’re struggling with creating one, you could enlist the help of a branding agency. Simpaul Designs is one such company. We’ll walk you through every step to help you define your unique voice. Get in touch with us today.
