Creating a brand voice is not as easy as putting pen to paper. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, small business owner, or copywriter, getting your brand tone of voice is essential if you want your target audience to trust you and engage with your messaging.
If you get the tone wrong, your audience won’t believe in your brand values, they won’t understand your humor, or worse, you might get offended!
By following these key steps, businesses can develop a tone that reflects their values, builds trust, and reinforces brand identity across all communication channels.
7 Steps to Finding Your Brand Tone
Following these steps will help you connect with your potential customers on an even deeper level and establish you as a trustworthy and reliable brand.
This list is intended to provide you with a step-by-step guide to help you identify a distinctive tone of voice that aligns with your brand values and appeals to your target audience.
Define Your Brand’s Core Values and Identity
Your brand’s tone of voice should reflect its core values (innovation, trust, creativity) and personality (playful, authoritative, empathetic).
These values form the basis of how your brand “speaks” to your potential customers.
A consistent tone builds trust and strengthens an emotional connection with your audience by reinforcing what your brand stands for.
Tesla, for example, prides itself on being innovative and forward-thinking. Apple is known for being elegant and sophisticated, while Mailchimp is quirky, artistic and more conversational.
Remember, you do it! Everyone else is taken.
Understand Your Target Audience
Conduct thorough research to determine your audience’s preferences, demographics, pain points, and communication style.
Knowing your audience helps you tailor your brand’s tone to effectively resonate with them.
One study found that 88% of US consumers we want to connect with brands that set new standards 56% said they are more loyal to brands that “get me.”.
If that’s not a good enough reason to dig deep into your client’s soul, I don’t know what is! Think of your potential customers as the partners of your dreams – learn all about them and how to communicate with them.
Conduct competitor analysis
Consider how competitors in your industry communicate. Identify gaps or opportunities where your brand can stand out by adopting a different or more defined tone. You can use SEO tools like SemRush or MOZ.com to do this.
A distinct tone sets your brand apart, makes it more memorable, and sets you apart in a crowded market. Don’t be afraid to look at what other companies do well – you might realize you can do it better or highlight gaps your pitch can fill.
Determine your communication style
Choose a specific communication style that defines your tone of voice (eg, formal, conversational, witty, informative).
Create the tone of your voice style guide, from professional to casual or fun, based on what’s right for your brand and the marketing channel you’re using.
Want to sound like your supportive best friend or your client’s wise old uncle?
A clear tone and style will help create an emotional response, such as trust or excitement, and will likely keep customers coming back once a trusting relationship is established.
Click here to learn more about customer retention strategies here.
Create Tone of Voice Guidelines
Create a comprehensive guide that reflects your brand’s tone of voice, with examples of how to communicate across different social media platforms and marketing channels (website, Instagram, TikTok, emails).
Include dos and don’ts, words to use and avoid, and writing style choices.
A voice guide tone ensures your team has a unified, recognizable voice and improves the overall brand experience across all customer touchpoints. It also links to point 6!
Consistency is key
Start by defining your industry standards and experiment with small changes in tone to see what resonates with your target audience on which platforms and communication channels.
For example, are you a law firm? If so, LinkedIn X or Instagram can work for your official tone of voice.
Or, if you’re an innovative tech company, platforms like X and witty emails might work better for your brand’s tone of voice. Whatever you decide, stick to it!
According to a study by SalesForce, 87% of consumers want a consistent tone and brand experience between channels. This includes branding, imagery and tone of voice.
What gets measured gets improved!
Experiment with different tones on different types of content and measure audience impact, feedback and sentiment. Read more about social listening here.
A/B test different tons of content like emails, social media posts, or paid ads, and then measure audience engagement, feedback, and sentiment. You can monitor and take notes on your audience’s reactions and refine your brand’s tone accordingly.
Testing allows you to fine-tune your brand’s tone based on real-world reactions, ensuring your communication is authentic and relevant to your audience. ‘Test and Learn’ is a drumbeat that marketers cannot escape.
Without measuring what works and what doesn’t no work, there is no way to compare and improve for greater success!
Align Your Marketing and Business Plan
Your brand’s tone of voice directly shapes how your target audience perceives your ethos, values and beliefs. A consistent and well-defined tone helps create an emotional connection with your potential customers, which, when infused with trust and brand loyalty, is a recipe for long-term success.
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Frequently Asked Questions About Brand Tone
What is brand tone and why is it important?
A brand’s tone of voice refers to how its personality and values are communicated to its audience. This is important because it shapes how customers perceive the brand, creates an emotional connection between the brand and its audience, and helps build trust and loyalty by ensuring brand consistency across all platforms. You can read more about increasing customer loyalty here.
How do I define my brand’s tone of voice?
Start by defining your brand’s core values, personality and target audience. Analyze existing content to identify engagement patterns, conduct competitor research to differentiate yourself in your market, and test, test, test! Write in different tones and styles to see what resonates with your audience.