The tone of voice in which your content is written speaks volumes. Your tone is just as important as your identity or visual elements of your brand.

It’s valuable for your customers to be able to have a consistent experience across all interactions with your brand, from an ad to a blog post to an online purchase. A lack of consistency in the brand voice can be confusing and just cause customers to leave your website or ignore your advertising without taking any action.

Why a brand voice matters
Having a strong, consistent brand voice easily identifies your work as a trusted piece of content with accurate information. By using the same tone and wording throughout your content, your content marketing strategies are more cohesive – effectively conveying you’re a brand leader.

Where can you leverage your brand voice?
• Sales collateral
• Advertising
• Website
• Social media
• Sales decks
• Blogs
• White papers
• Guest articles for other websites or industry publications
• Any piece of communication

How to get started developing a strong brand voice

Compile research. Your research should include past content for your own company, a competitor analysis, any interviews you have or want to conduct with employees and customers, and any general rules that have been followed in the past (first, second, or third person; serious vs. fun).

Describe your voice. After you’ve reviewed your content and any general rules that seem to be an ongoing trend, and you have seen what you like or don’t like in competitor’s content, use just a few words to describe your brand’s voice. One exercise is to start with personality traits that may even apply to a person, like fun, friendly, authentic, smart, etc. Create guidelines, a template or a voice chart. This is where you really start to define and explore your brand voice. Include the company’s viewpoint on topics in which you are experts. Will the brand voice be formal or relaxed, informative or friendly? If you have examples, include them so you can refer back to them time and time again.

Put it into action – time and time again. Once you have your brand voice defined, you need to put it to use every single time. Consistency is what is going to make the brand voice resonate with people. Make sure your guidelines or chart are easily accessible by everyone who will be creating content for your brand.

Track successes and failures. The best way to be sure something is working is to track and measure the results. Once you deploy a brand voice, be sure to keep track of content that performs well…and content that doesn’t. Especially if you can determine if the brand voice was at fault – or if the brand voice was not used in that piece – this can help you make changes to future marketing tactics.

Best practices for brand voice

• Have written guidelines, so anyone working on your brand can understand and reference what is expected for your company. This will also help you keep it consistent throughout the years and channels.

• Consistency is key. The only way a brand voice is going to work for you is if you use it correctly and consistently. People trust your brand, and if you suddenly change your brand voice after people have gotten used to seeing it from you, you risk losing that trust and solid customer base you’ve worked so hard to build. If your brand is known for being authentic but informative, don’t switch to quirky just because.

• Be prepared to revisit your brand voice again in a few years – or a few months. The brand voice needs to work for you and the brand, so if something doesn’t seem to work, revisit it and make modifications to your voice and guidelines.

• Have brand voice idols, so when it comes time to reassess your brand voice, you have some other brands to turn to for inspiration and mentoring. This can be in your industry or in a completely different one, but having a brand you admire can help you elevate your own brand.

If you’re ready to explore the ways your brand voice can position your business as an industry leader and attract more customers, Evoke Idea Group can help. With more than 30 years of marketing and design experience, the team at Evoke Idea Group knows how to use build and implement successful brand voices. Get in touch today for your complimentary consultation by emailing hello@evokeideagroup.com or calling (630) 639-8985.

About Evoke Idea Group

Evoke Idea Group is a Tucson, Arizona-based creative agency and marketing partner helping businesses nationwide solve marketing, branding, and communications challenges. For 30 years, we’ve helped businesses build stronger brands and connect with their audiences through strategic marketing, brand strategy, logo and identity design, graphic design, advertising, advertising campaigns, marketing campaigns, digital marketing, social media, video and motion graphics, packaging, print and sales materials, presentation design, trade show displays, infographics, and other creative services.

We work with businesses and marketing teams that need an experienced creative partner to turn ideas and strategies into effective marketing. We develop the creative concepts, produce the deliverables, and execute the materials needed to bring campaigns and communications to life. From a single creative project to a comprehensive marketing or advertising campaign, we help businesses move from strategy and concept through creative development and execution.