Your Brand Voice Matters - Here’s How To Find It
Branding is an important component of business success, yet many people only have a vague notion of what it is. When we speak with potential clients and ask them if they’ve done any branding work, they usually reply “Oh, I’ve gotten someone to create a logo and have some colors picked out for the website.” But a logo is just one way to communicate your brand message.
A brand isn’t just your logo
Your brand is all the ways you convey what you’re about, from the fonts you use to the tone and messaging of your copy. Sure, Coca-Cola’s brand includes its iconic logo and distinctly shaped bottle, but it also consists of images of people drinking Coke on the beach, slogans like “Have a Coke and a smile,” commercial jingles, celebrity endorsements, and the copy and images on social media posts and advertisements. It is everything that tells people how they should feel about Coca-Cola.
As writers, we focus on voice: the words and phrases that make up a brand. Explaining clearly and effectively who you are and why you’re unique can set you apart from your competitors and help build your business.
When we polled our LinkedIn followers on the types of content that they’d like to see from us, “finding your unique voice” was the top vote-getter. Here are three important ways you can start.
Three Ways to Find Your Brand Voice
Find voices to like and learn from (but don’t copy them)
We’ve had clients ask us to imitate the copywriting style of well-known brands such as Marie Forleo, Seth Godin, or Crate & Barrel rather than go through a process of building their own voice. But imitating someone else’s voice is no way to stand out in a crowd.
Still, other voices can be a great inspiration. If you like a brand voice, don’t try and copy it, but do think about what in that voice draws you in. Is it upbeat or sober, educational or breezy, soothing or rousing? Think of the qualities you like, rather than the words and phrases you think are neat.
Don’t copy someone else’s voice. Instead, aim to create a voice so distinct and effective that others will want to copy you!
Determine your true competitors
When we help our clients create their brand voice and messaging, we always ask them to point us to the websites of three competitors. Your competitors' branding can give you a better sense of what might work for you and what gaps you might fill in.
It’s important to find genuine competitors. Don’t just Google your service and pick the top three names. Dig deep; you want to find the people whose customer base overlaps with yours. If a client worked with someone before you, that’s a competitor. If someone in the same area offers similar services at a similar price point, that’s a competitor. Do some market research and see whose names keep coming up. Once you find your true competition you’ll be better able to compete with them.
Get feedback from your Ideal Clients
If you’re Coca-Cola, every change in branding comes after massive focus group testing of consumers. If you don’t have the budget for that, you still have something else; your clients.
When we work with our clients on revealing their brand, we always recommend that they run their mission statement, taglines, and other messaging by some trusted former clients to see how it lands with them. Note that we didn’t say EVERY client. Stick with the clients who most closely represent those you want to attract more of.
It’s great to get solid feedback before investing a lot of money in implementing a brand that doesn’t resonate. But be selective about who you ask. Sure, your nephew or your hairdresser might be happy to offer an opinion, but if they aren’t people who would ever want your services then they can’t really tell you what would appeal to your ideal clients.
So think about what you like in a brand voice. Find out who your closest competitors are. Consider which clients and potential clients could offer useful thoughts. Then you’ll be in a better position to reveal your own unique brand voice.
Finding that unique, authentic voice is a journey. We often start our clients on that journey with our brand archetype quiz, which offers insight into what that voice will be. And if you need more help finding that voice and revealing your brand, contact us!