Have you ever taken time to figure out your brand voice?
If you’re like most entrepreneurs, the answer is a very sheepish “No.”
I mean, there are so many other things that need to be done, right?
On top of a visual brand identity, you also need to worry about marketing, copywriting, creating graphics, posting to social media, not to mention actually working IN your business and serving your clients!
I know that so many business owners don’t see the importance of developing a strong brand voice, but I’m here to tell you that it is one of the best ways to communicate your brand to your audience!
Having a consistent, predictable brand voice is such an important way to help your audience learn how to know, like, and trust you. (I know that’s such a buzzphrase right now, but it’s for a good reason!)
Think of your brand as a person – are you likely to make friends with someone if you show up with a different tone and attitude toward every day, or are you more likely to gain their trust if you show up authentically, as yourself, in a consistent manner day after day?
I think we both know the answer to that. 😉
So now that we’ve gone over the importance of developing your brand voice, let’s talk about the HOW!
Thinking about developing something like a brand voice can be really intimidating because it’s such an abstract concept! You can’t see it, you can’t touch it, you can’t even really hear it. So how do you even begin to figure it out?
My hope is that these 5 tangible steps will help you when it comes to developing this all-important part of your brand strategy!
Let go of what you think you need to sound like in order to be taken seriously.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – people are looking for authentic connections, and they’re not going to get that if you’re only using industry-specific jargon and only talk about the products or services you offer. Your brand entails so much more than how you make money, and those other things are how you’re going to connect with your people.
Meet your audience where they are.
If your audience is very industry-specific (for example, if you’re a VA for wedding photographers), you need to be using industry-specific language so you can find and attract them. If your ideal client is highly educated and very professional, you’ll want to attract them using higher-level and professional language. If your audience is more generalized, find out what language they’re using to find the answers to their own problems and begin incorporating that language into your own marketing.
Get rid of the fluff words.
It’s 2021 – nobody has the time to read all that fluffy stuff! 😉
We often fall into the old college mindset of adding in just a few more words here and there to make it seem just a little bit longer, but in reality the fluff words take away from the content and the story.
Need an example of a fluffy sentence?
Here’s one!
In spite of the fact that I have told my relatively simple Starbucks order to my husband on multiple occasions, he continues to forget it and always calls me to ask for what I want.
Said shorter and more concisely:
My husband can never remember my Starbucks order, even though I’ve told him a million times.
Need another example? (Hey, I’m having fun here!)
Even though you might think that your fluffy words are adding dimension and complexity to your sentences, the fact is that you are just losing your audience’s attention with every passing word and never actually getting across whatever it is that you’re trying to communicate with them.
More succinctly, this sentence sounds like: Nobody wants to read the fluff, so drop it.
Make a word bank.
A big part of establishing your brand voice is the consistent use of the same words and phrases over and over again, so it’s helpful to figure out what those words and phrases are and write them down. But, these should only be phrases that you use in real life. Throwing around words and phrases that you wouldn’t and don’t use in real life is inauthentic and not sustainable.
Stick with it.
Once you have figured out how your brand communicates with your audience, stick with it. Consistency within your communication will allow your audience to begin to trust you and know that you’ll show up the same way every time you talk to them. Imagine if you were lighthearted and playful one day, and then bossy and in-your-face the next day – they will never learn to recognize your content, and it would be terribly confusing.
Building a brand voice can be so difficult, but it’s 100% worth it to build your audience’s trust and recognition of your brand!
Want to learn more about how to build your brand? Come on over to my Facebook group for weekly tips and tricks!
rebeccafletcherdesigns.com 