Top Tips : Establishing A Brand Tone Of Voice
Tamarin Fountain is one of our creative partners. She is an experienced and superbly articulate copywriter with experience spanning the arts, travel and public sector. Here Tamarin shares with us her top tips for establishing (and maintaining) a brand tone of voice.
More Than Words
Your brand tone encompasses far more than just text. Imagery, social media posts and design all contribute to your brand’s personality, along with the words you choose. And keeping these various components consistent is vital. With that in mind, here are some of the questions you should be asking, to establish and maintain a brand tone of voice.
Who Is Your Audience?
This may sound simple. But it can be easy to stereotype or pigeon hole groups, when in fact it’s far more nuanced. Who is your typical consumer, client or customer? Break it down by writing their personal and career bios. Where do they shop, eat, socialise and with whom? How old are they and where do they live? It can be helpful to use someone you know personally and imagine speaking to them about your brand. What words would you choose and how would your voice sound? Then consider whether it’s more relevant to use the widely adopted plain language, or whether to opt for something intellectualised, creative or verbose.
What Do You Want To Say?
Consider your intention. Dial down to the nitty-gritty of whatever it is you’re sharing at this moment. But also, don’t neglect the bigger picture. Keep your brand’s purpose in mind at all times. This gives your campaigns a sense of stability, as well as leaving room for new ideas and concepts to emerge.
Where Are They?
Location considerations are two-fold: where are they when reading or viewing your content (on the train, at work, chilling out)? And where are they geographically? This helps to identify their needs and how they’ll want to engage. Geography affects language too. Some regional campaigns might incorporate local vernacular, making communications relatable and relevant. But if you want to achieve a national or global reach, standard English is essential.
Why are they coming to you?
Creating a memorable and recognisable tone of voice will help your brand to get ahead. This is where your USP meets their requirements. Perhaps you’re a family-run community focussed business best represented by a friendly approachable style. Or your brand is a bold innovative startup, that’ll benefit from a striking presence and colloquial punchy copy. At this stage, it’s also worth compiling a profile, as you did for a typical member of your audience. If your brand was a person, who would they be? What would they stand for, and what would be some of their world views? Having a point of view can help add colour, realism and dimension to your tone.
Hiring a good copywriter is a cost-effective shortcut to establishing and maintaining a brand tone of voice. It can be an instinctive process, and as with anything, skill grows with experience. A professional writer/content creator will quickly identify your brand’s personality, give it a voice and maintain that voice through articles, posts, newsletters, pull quotes and more.
If you’re part of a very large organisation or plan to use several different copywriters, the next step is to create written guidelines for communications. This ensures the all-important consistency that’ll bring familiarity to your communications and engagement with your audience.
Learn More About Tamarin
Website: tamarinwrites.wordpress.com/
Twitter: twitter.com/tamarinfountain
Insta: www.instagram.com/adventuresoftamarin/