Updated: April 2022
The Voice isn’t just a television competition for singers. Brand voice is one of the most essential and elusive elements of good writing for your business or blog.
It’s the sweet spot between tone and content. The intersection of what you say and how you say it. It’s your subject matter, perspective, word choice, and even the punctuation and capitalization you use.
In copywriting, your brand voice tells your audience what to expect from your company, your values and business personality beyond the visual cues of your logo and colour palette and pictures.
Is this thing on? How to find your writing voice.
Your writing is an expression of your company that creates an atmosphere. It might be serious, peppy, or endearing—whatever it is, it’s setting an expectation of what your audience will get from your sales reps, customer service personnel, and you.
This rapport is built long before a customer gets in touch with you for the first time, so the tone of your writing—your brand voice—becomes the connector that brings everything together.
I recently experienced the power of a distinct brand voice when I bought a LEGO train motor for my son online. I don’t have to tell you what LEGO is since they have such a strong brand (and everyone has had the excruciating experience of stepping on a piece in bare feet at some point, right?) From their website, social media, and email marketing, every touchpoint reflects LEGO’s playful, warm, and friendly brand voice.
When the train motor arrived, my son was devastated. It was the wrong one. Oops. #momfail. After more than a few tears (my son’s and mine) and a couple of emails, the correct motor landed on my doorstep a few days later.
Contacting LEGO and dealing with their customer service was warm, friendly and a little playful.
That consistency was more than their logo, more than their brand colours. Their brand voice is a powerful identifier of what it means to purchase from LEGO. You know precisely what kind of experience you’ll get from them every time. It builds intense loyalty and keeps us coming back for more.
You Do You
Maybe you’re thinking, but what is my brand voice?
This question runs parallel to another–one that’s a big challenge for small business owners who don’t have a copywriter on staff: What should I be posting?
While ‘what to write online’ is a whole other post, you’ll find that defining your brand voice will make coming up with Instagram captions and drafting blog posts much easier. No more wondering if something will land with your audience or those awkward moments where you tweeted a meme you thought was funny but got a big ‘meh’ in response.
If you’re ready to get warmed up and start sounding off in your very best brand voice I’ve got a selection of exercises for you here.
