Updated April 6, 2022
If your logo doesn't appear with your content, can your audience identify it as coming from your brand? Does someone viewing your content on multiple channels know that all your content is from the same brand?
If you're not careful, you can end up with a bunch of random voices and tones in the content generated within your marketing ecosystem. Content won't provide a consistent picture of your brand or even the same use of language.
This inconsistent brand experience is more common as an organization grows and is often exacerbated when external entities like freelancers and agencies are thrown into the brand's content creation mix. .
You might ask why brand voice matters. What's more important than making your content human? However, a brand voice is not a non-human voice. It's a consistent voice that allows your brand to become an easily identifiable and authoritative source in your area of expertise. Similarly, brand voice Consistency and vocabulary is essential to effectively deploying localized content and smart content strategies.
#brand voice is not for creating a non-human voice, @SFERika said via @CMIContent. Click to Tweet Branding charts can help solve these challenges. I've outlined five steps to establishing, creating, and maintaining a brand voice that promotes consistency in efforts content creation your .
1. Collect a sample of your representative content
Cast a wide network – collect every type of content, from videos to websites and eBooks to social networks. Now, pay attention to the content. What examples could come from any of your competitors? Set them aside. Highlight your examples into a small group of pieces that are unique to your brand – examples of the brand voice you want to convey. Print and place these examples on the whiteboard, grouping pieces together that have a similar feel.
2. Describe your brand voice in three words
In the same room with a whiteboard (or with a display board for all in a virtual environment ), work with your main content creators and brand identity owners. Again, build a wide network and invite content creators across your organization, including teams from PR, sales support, customer success, etc. Take a look at the content whiteboard is the best example of brand voice that you want to show. Discuss common topics across all of those sections. Group the examples into three thematic groups.
If your brand is people , would you describe its personality to someone? At this point, describe your competitors as people. Is one of your opponents a class bully? Is the other person a cheerleader? How do your brand personality traits make you different?
If # of your brand were a person, how would you describe its personality, ask @SFERika via @CMIContent. #Content Strategy Click to Tweet Let's create an example using these three common features:
- Infatuated
- Weird
- Real
Identify every detail. How do these traits manifest in the way you communicate with your audience? How do they come across the type of content you create? How do they appear in your focus topics? Let's continue this example:
- Passion – expression, enthusiasm, sincerity, action-oriented
- Quirky – irreverent, unexpected, contrasting
- Authentic – genuine, reliable, attractive, direct
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3. Create a Brand Voice Chart
With your brand voice defined, illustrate how it manifests specifically in your content. This brand chart is an essential reference tool to ensure your content (text and image ) always use the same voice.
Consists of three rows for each key characteristic followed by three columns – brief descriptions, do's and don'ts. If necessary, add a row for extra characteristics that need a little more explanation. In this example, “disrespectful” is a related word and should be added to give the team a good idea of how it is defined (i.e. challenge the status quo or become difficult to hear).
4. Make sure the writer understands how to put the brand's voice into action
You've identified your voice and tone and represented it in an easy-to-understand chart. How do you get people to use it? Meet with the group – anyone creating content or communications – and walking them through the chart.
Take a look at some examples of featured content. Shows in real time how to modify some existing content that does not reflect the defined voice. If possible, provide team members with laminated or carded copies of the branding chart to keep at their desks for reference. Make sure that an electronic version is also available.
Perfect your brand voice chart for #content creators to keep on their desks, @SFERika said via @CMIContent. Click to Tweet
5. Review and revise the brand voice chart as the company grows
Branding is not a set and forget tool. As your brand message evolves or new competitors enter your market, refresh it with new examples.
The #brand voice chart is not meant to be a set and forget it tool. Update it quarterly, @SFERika said via @CMIContent. Click to Tweet Quarterly, convene your key content creators and communicators to find out if there are any voice traits that aren't performing as well or are more aspirational than they could be. For example, many brands initially include the word “irrespectful” but find their writers uncomfortable to dictate that muscle or key reviewers repeatedly remove that dialogue in their content. If that's the case, it might be time for a voice refresh or some new do's and don'ts.
Cover photo by Joseph Kalinowski / Content Marketing Institute
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