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Brand Voice
Business Branding
Brand Identity
Consistent Voice
Audience Engagement
ARTICLE #92
Table of contents
Choosing the right brand voice for your business
Brand Voice
Business Branding
Brand Identity
Consistent Voice
Audience Engagement
Brand Voice
Business Branding
Brand Identity
Consistent Voice
Audience Engagement
Written by:
3 min read
Updated on: August 20, 2024
Samson Mosilily
Senior Regional Manager
African Market, Regional Management, Growth
Samson Mosilily
Senior Regional Manager
African Market, Regional Management, Growth
Does your brand voice make people pause and listen, or does it drift by without leaving a mark? A well-chosen brand voice can be the difference between a forgettable presence and a compelling identity. It’s essentially your brand’s personality—how you sound, what values you convey, and how you connect with your audience in every piece of communication.
Given below are the steps and tips that can help shape a voice that genuinely reflects your brand’s values, sparks interest, and aligns with your audience’s expectations.
Does your brand voice make people pause and listen, or does it drift by without leaving a mark? A well-chosen brand voice can be the difference between a forgettable presence and a compelling identity. It’s essentially your brand’s personality—how you sound, what values you convey, and how you connect with your audience in every piece of communication.
Given below are the steps and tips that can help shape a voice that genuinely reflects your brand’s values, sparks interest, and aligns with your audience’s expectations.
1. Focus on your target audience
1. Focus on your target audience
A good brand voice begins with a deep look at the people you want to reach. Consider age, demographic details, personality traits, and preferences. Study any data you can find: for instance, which social platforms they prefer or what topics they find interesting. This step helps determine how to approach them and how you might add subtle quirks or humour to your voice.
A simple way to organise this information is by creating buyer personas. These fictional profiles outline potential customers’ backgrounds, motivations, and habits. Once you analyse these personas, you’ll have clues about whether your brand voice should be playful, sincere, forthright, or perhaps a mix of everything in between.
If your focus is on corporate professionals, a straightforward and polished tone might fit best. By contrast, a brand directed at families with young children might use language that’s lighter and more fun.
A good brand voice begins with a deep look at the people you want to reach. Consider age, demographic details, personality traits, and preferences. Study any data you can find: for instance, which social platforms they prefer or what topics they find interesting. This step helps determine how to approach them and how you might add subtle quirks or humour to your voice.
A simple way to organise this information is by creating buyer personas. These fictional profiles outline potential customers’ backgrounds, motivations, and habits. Once you analyse these personas, you’ll have clues about whether your brand voice should be playful, sincere, forthright, or perhaps a mix of everything in between.
If your focus is on corporate professionals, a straightforward and polished tone might fit best. By contrast, a brand directed at families with young children might use language that’s lighter and more fun.
2. Decide your brand tone and personality
A brand’s core values set the stage for its voice. For example, a toy company that aims to bring out childhood fun might prefer words that sound inviting and easygoing—anything that sparks excitement in a child’s imagination. Launching into business-speak for a children’s toy line would feel out of place and could alienate your actual target audience.
The emotional connection this creates is crucial. Research shows that 76% of consumers choose to shop from brands they feel a personal connection with, rather than switch to competitors. That statistic alone underscores why it’s so important to establish a consistent, recognisable tone that tells people, “We get what you need.”
A brand’s core values set the stage for its voice. For example, a toy company that aims to bring out childhood fun might prefer words that sound inviting and easygoing—anything that sparks excitement in a child’s imagination. Launching into business-speak for a children’s toy line would feel out of place and could alienate your actual target audience.
The emotional connection this creates is crucial. Research shows that 76% of consumers choose to shop from brands they feel a personal connection with, rather than switch to competitors. That statistic alone underscores why it’s so important to establish a consistent, recognisable tone that tells people, “We get what you need.”
3. Study your competitors
Standing out can be tricky unless you know how others in your sector are sounding. Keep an eye on competitors—how they speak to their followers, how their audience responds, and which angles work for them (or fail miserably).
If you spot any weak points or see something that’s clearly annoying customers, take notes. Check comments, reviews, or social media interactions to see how people react. Metrics like engagement rates, feedback sentiment, or share counts can be especially revealing. By studying these factors, you’ll be able to craft a voice that’s refreshingly different, helping your brand appear more memorable in the marketplace.
Standing out can be tricky unless you know how others in your sector are sounding. Keep an eye on competitors—how they speak to their followers, how their audience responds, and which angles work for them (or fail miserably).
If you spot any weak points or see something that’s clearly annoying customers, take notes. Check comments, reviews, or social media interactions to see how people react. Metrics like engagement rates, feedback sentiment, or share counts can be especially revealing. By studying these factors, you’ll be able to craft a voice that’s refreshingly different, helping your brand appear more memorable in the marketplace.
4. Create a unified brand voice
Once the groundwork is done, focus on ensuring your brand voice feels cohesive. This doesn’t mean being rigid—some flexibility is good—but it should revolve around your brand’s identity. Keep in mind what you learned about your audience, your competitors, and your brand’s personality, then shape a voice that reflects those findings.
Importance of consistency in brand voice
Imagine reading a brand’s Instagram caption full of playful banter, then visiting their website only to find text that sounds like a courtroom transcript. It feels odd and can make you wonder if you’re dealing with the same company. Surveys suggest roughly 90% of consumers expect consistency in the brand’s voice across every touchpoint, whether it’s an email newsletter or a Facebook post. Keeping a steady tone doesn’t mean being monotonous; it means making sure your personality, humour, or level of formality stays in sync so people know what to anticipate—and trust that you’ll deliver.
Once the groundwork is done, focus on ensuring your brand voice feels cohesive. This doesn’t mean being rigid—some flexibility is good—but it should revolve around your brand’s identity. Keep in mind what you learned about your audience, your competitors, and your brand’s personality, then shape a voice that reflects those findings.
Importance of consistency in brand voice
Imagine reading a brand’s Instagram caption full of playful banter, then visiting their website only to find text that sounds like a courtroom transcript. It feels odd and can make you wonder if you’re dealing with the same company. Surveys suggest roughly 90% of consumers expect consistency in the brand’s voice across every touchpoint, whether it’s an email newsletter or a Facebook post. Keeping a steady tone doesn’t mean being monotonous; it means making sure your personality, humour, or level of formality stays in sync so people know what to anticipate—and trust that you’ll deliver.
5. Create a brand voice guideline
After defining the core elements of your brand’s personality, it helps to formalise those details in a simple set of guidelines. Think of it as a reference manual that spells out the vocabulary, tone, and style your team should use in everything from social media posts to internal emails.
Employees effectively become your brand advocates, and a clear guide helps them stay on track. The finance department might need a more no-nonsense approach than the social media team, but both should still reflect shared brand values. It’s also wise to offer training that walks employees through these guidelines, so they feel confident using them.
After defining the core elements of your brand’s personality, it helps to formalise those details in a simple set of guidelines. Think of it as a reference manual that spells out the vocabulary, tone, and style your team should use in everything from social media posts to internal emails.
Employees effectively become your brand advocates, and a clear guide helps them stay on track. The finance department might need a more no-nonsense approach than the social media team, but both should still reflect shared brand values. It’s also wise to offer training that walks employees through these guidelines, so they feel confident using them.
6. Implement your brand voice in marketing materials
Once you’ve nailed down a clear voice, it’s time to spread it throughout every piece of content. That covers anything from the short punchy copy on banner ads to the lengthier explanations in product brochures. Consistency here does more than build recognition; it helps strengthen bonds with your audience.
If your brand voice is upbeat and honest, keep that same style in social media posts, blog articles, and email campaigns. People appreciate that sense of reliability and warmth—it makes them feel like they’re talking to a familiar friend every time they encounter your brand.
Once you’ve nailed down a clear voice, it’s time to spread it throughout every piece of content. That covers anything from the short punchy copy on banner ads to the lengthier explanations in product brochures. Consistency here does more than build recognition; it helps strengthen bonds with your audience.
If your brand voice is upbeat and honest, keep that same style in social media posts, blog articles, and email campaigns. People appreciate that sense of reliability and warmth—it makes them feel like they’re talking to a familiar friend every time they encounter your brand.
7. Monitor engagement and customer responses
Tracking how people react to your voice is a reliable way to see if you’re on the right path. Use tools that measure likes, comments, conversions, and overall sentiment. This data helps you determine if your voice resonates with your audience.
Research suggests that 83% of consumers feel more loyal to a brand that’s responsive to questions and complaints. If your voice feels out of touch or stiff, it may push them away, so staying alert to these metrics is smart.
If the numbers look poor or the feedback sounds lukewarm, a tweak may be needed. It could be as simple as making the tone friendlier or injecting a bit of warmth into your messages.
Tracking how people react to your voice is a reliable way to see if you’re on the right path. Use tools that measure likes, comments, conversions, and overall sentiment. This data helps you determine if your voice resonates with your audience.
Research suggests that 83% of consumers feel more loyal to a brand that’s responsive to questions and complaints. If your voice feels out of touch or stiff, it may push them away, so staying alert to these metrics is smart.
If the numbers look poor or the feedback sounds lukewarm, a tweak may be needed. It could be as simple as making the tone friendlier or injecting a bit of warmth into your messages.
Adjust your brand voice according to market trends
Change can be scary, but staying static can be even worse. Consumer tastes shift, new platforms emerge, and fresh communication styles take hold. Brands that never adapt run the risk of sounding stuck in the past. Social media, for example, sparked a trend toward more casual, down-to-earth language.
Recent findings reveal that 65% of consumers lean toward brands that favour a conversational style. That doesn’t mean you need to convert your copy into a string of memes if that doesn’t align with your core vibe. Instead, stay aware of market trends and be open to small adjustments—your brand voice can feel fresh without losing its essence.
Change can be scary, but staying static can be even worse. Consumer tastes shift, new platforms emerge, and fresh communication styles take hold. Brands that never adapt run the risk of sounding stuck in the past. Social media, for example, sparked a trend toward more casual, down-to-earth language.
Recent findings reveal that 65% of consumers lean toward brands that favour a conversational style. That doesn’t mean you need to convert your copy into a string of memes if that doesn’t align with your core vibe. Instead, stay aware of market trends and be open to small adjustments—your brand voice can feel fresh without losing its essence.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between brand voice and brand messaging?
Brand voice is the personality you use in all communications (such as quirky, calm, or daring), while brand messaging refers to the actual points you share about your product or service—like key features, benefits, or unique values.
How do I know if my brand voice style resonates with my audience?
Experiment with A/B tests on social posts or promotional materials. Compare engagement rates or run short feedback surveys. Whichever voice option garners more positive responses likely aligns better with your target audience.
Can you update your brand voice with time?
It can and often should. Changes in business priorities, market shifts, and audience preferences might call for updates. The idea is to stay relevant without becoming unrecognisable to long-time followers.
Conclusion
Brand voice helps differentiate one business from countless others. It’s that personal touch that makes customers feel understood and valued. By combining knowledge of your target audience with a tone that reflects your brand values, you create a personality people remember.
No brand voice stays exactly the same forever. Being adaptable is wise, especially as trends and consumer tastes evolve. Fine-tune your tone whenever needed, and your brand can remain fresh, recognisable, and appealing to the people who matter most—your customers.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between brand voice and brand messaging?
Brand voice is the personality you use in all communications (such as quirky, calm, or daring), while brand messaging refers to the actual points you share about your product or service—like key features, benefits, or unique values.
How do I know if my brand voice style resonates with my audience?
Experiment with A/B tests on social posts or promotional materials. Compare engagement rates or run short feedback surveys. Whichever voice option garners more positive responses likely aligns better with your target audience.
Can you update your brand voice with time?
It can and often should. Changes in business priorities, market shifts, and audience preferences might call for updates. The idea is to stay relevant without becoming unrecognisable to long-time followers.
Conclusion
Brand voice helps differentiate one business from countless others. It’s that personal touch that makes customers feel understood and valued. By combining knowledge of your target audience with a tone that reflects your brand values, you create a personality people remember.
No brand voice stays exactly the same forever. Being adaptable is wise, especially as trends and consumer tastes evolve. Fine-tune your tone whenever needed, and your brand can remain fresh, recognisable, and appealing to the people who matter most—your customers.
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Work with us
Click to copy
work@for.co
FOR® Industries
We’re remote-first — with strategic global hubs
Click to copy
Helsinki, FIN
hel@for.co
Click to copy
New York, NY
ny@for.co
Click to copy
Miami, FL
mia@for.co
Click to copy
Dubai, UAE
uae@for.co
Click to copy
Kyiv, UA
kyiv@for.co
Click to copy
Lagos, NG
lagos@for.ng
Copyright © 2024 FOR®