How to Develop a Brand Voice and Tone as a Web Designer
In branding work, individuals frequently consider how a brand appears aesthetically, including typefaces, colours, and design styles. Sometimes, the brand voice is forgotten. With the introduction of social media in marketing efforts, brand voice has become more crucial than ever as a tool to stand out from the swarm of digital conversation.
Developing a distinctive brand voice and tone is essential for web designers to establish a strong and cohesive brand identity. Here are some steps to guide you in developing a brand voice and tone.
The remainder of this article will provide further information on the brand voice and tone.
What is a brand voice?
Brand voice is the personality of a brand, expressed through the words and tone it uses in its communications. It’s the way a brand communicates to its clients, and it can be leveraged to develop a deep emotional connection with them.
A strong brand voice can help a brand stand out from the competition and build a loyal customer base. It can also help a brand to create a sense of community around its products or services.
There are a few key elements to creating a strong brand voice:
Now that the significance of brand voice has been established, how in the world do you even create a unique one? Start by identifying your brand voice using the five guidelines below.
Keep strict document everything:
Your brand voice needs documentation just like your visual brand guide and social media strategy do. If you don’t have one person in charge of all marketing and communications, a brand voice document will be useful to many different departments. Anyone who writes in the brand’s voice can use it as a guide.
The statement of your company’s mission and core values should come first in the document. From these statements, you ought to be able to infer some distinctive personality traits.
Consistency
Brand voice should be consistent across all channels, from website copy to social media posts to customer service interactions. This helps customers to recognize and trust the brand, even when they are interacting with it in different ways.
Essential for creating a strong brand voice because it establishes coherence, builds recognition, fosters trust and reliability, shapes brand identity, meets audience expectations, and differentiates your brand. You have the opportunity to create an effective brand voice that connects with your target audience by being consistent across all communication platforms.
Clarity
Brand voice should be clear and easy to understand. Customers should be able to easily understand what the brand stands for and what it values.
Engagement
Brand voice should be engaging and interesting. Customers should want to read and listen to what the brand has to say.
Analyse & adapt
Creating a brand voice takes time and work. It needs to be reviewed and improved at predetermined intervals, such as once a year or during significant brand rebranding initiatives, as well as during significant occasions that significantly alter your company’s marketing strategy. The terms you used five years ago might not be in style now since language changes. You run the danger of seeming out of date or out of touch with current events if you don’t regularly monitor your brand voice.
For instance, social media GIF usage hasn’t become as commonplace as it did five years ago. However, they have gained widespread acceptability and are now simple to access on the majority of the main social networking sites.
Here are some examples of strong brand voices:
It’s one thing to suggest that your brand should have a distinct personality, but quite another to really put that personality into practice in a way that seems natural and genuine. Here are three companies with distinctive brand voices to serve as examples in your efforts to define or improve a brand voice.
Apple: Apple’s brand voice is simple, elegant, and aspirational. It uses words like “easy,” “beautiful,” and “magical” to create a sense of excitement and desire around its products.
Nike: Nike’s brand voice is confident, inspiring, and motivating. It uses words like “just do it,” “unleash your potential,” and “be the best.”
Warby Parker: Warby Parker’s brand voice is friendly, approachable, and helpful. It uses words like “try on at home,” “free shipping,” and “no risk.”
What is the brand tone ?
Brand tone is the way a brand communicates with its target audience. It is the personality of the brand, and it is expressed through the words, images, and overall feel of the brand’s marketing materials. A brand tone can be formal, informal, humorous, serious, or any other style that is appropriate for the brand and its target audience.
A strong brand tone can help a brand stand out from its competitors and create a connection with its target audience. It can also help to build trust and credibility, and ultimately, drive sales.
Brand tone is the emotional quality of a brand’s voice. It’s the way a brand makes its customers feel.
A brand’s tone can be described using a variety of adjectives, such as:
Friendly: A friendly brand tone is warm and inviting. It makes customers feel welcome and appreciated.
Confident: A confident brand tone is assertive and self-assured. It makes customers feel like they can trust the brand.
Fun: A fun brand tone is light-hearted and playful. It makes custom+ers feel happy and entertained.
Serious: A serious brand tone is formal and professional. It makes customers feel like they can rely on the brand.
Emotional: An emotional brand tone is passionate and evocative. It makes customers feel something, whether it’s joy, sadness, anger, or fear.
The best brand tone for your business will depend on your target audience and your overall brand strategy. If you’re targeting a young audience, you might want to use a fun and playful tone. If you’re targeting a business audience, you might want to use a more serious and professional tone.
No matter what tone you choose, it’s important to be consistent with it across all of your marketing materials. This will help your brand to build trust and credibility with your customers.
Below are some pointers for developing a powerful brand tone:
Start by defining your brand’s personality. What are your brand’s values? What kind of experience do you want to create for your customers?
Once you have a good understanding of your brand’s personality, choose words and phrases that reflect that personality. Avoid using jargon or buzzwords. Instead, use simple, everyday language that your customers will understand.
Be consistent with your brand tone. Use the same tone in all of your marketing materials, from your website to your social media posts to your customer service interactions.
Test and refine your brand tone over time. As you interact with your customers, you will learn what they like and don’t like about your brand tone. Make adjustments as needed to ensure that your brand tone is resonating with your target audience.