Building a strong brand is challenging. One of the key elements of any great brand is having a well-defined tone of voice. A tone of voice is a writing style that conveys personality. It's the way you write, speak and use words to convey your company's message. The tone of voice in your writing can also help give customers a better understanding of what you stand for as an organization. This is your only chance to entice, entertain, and inform your readers or users. But how do you write this way? Tone of voice is essential in making your brand's writing stand out. Whether you are in charge of your company's blog, or you are the one tasked with a portion of the content marketing, finding the right tone of voice can be tricky.
Let's have a look at three tips that will help you establish your brand's tone of voice.
- Know Your Audience
When establishing a tone of voice in your writing, you need to know what you want to achieve. You must consider the audience, the purpose for writing, and the context in which it will be read. Your tone of voice should reflect the relationship you have with your audience. The tone of voice in your content should be appropriate to your audience. For example, a light-hearted and humorous tone will not be appropriate for writing about a serious topic or for an audience that is not looking for entertainment.
Your tone of voice should be consistent across all types of content and media. It needs to be clearly identifiable to others so that they can recognize it immediately when they encounter it again. The tone of voice you adopt should help you achieve your purpose for writing. Consider who you are addressing and why—if your goal is persuading them to do something, then you need to make sure that your writing style is persuasive. If it is providing information then the style needs to reflect this as well.
- Know Your Perspective
The tone of voice is how the character of your business comes through in your words, both written and spoken. It's not about what you say, but rather the way that you say it, and the impression that it leaves on your reader or listener. When we talk about the tone of voice in business, we’re not talking about the tone that you would use with a friend or family member; we’re talking about the tone you use when you’re writing to someone who’s interested in your products, services or overall brand.
What is your brand's personality? What types of words would they choose? How would they talk with their friends? If they could be any celebrity, who would they be? The answers to these questions can help you identify what kind of personality your brand has, which will guide you in the right direction when it comes to establishing a tone of voice.
For example, if you are a family-run business selling handmade cards, your tone will be very different from if you're an international corporation selling software packages. These different tones can be broken down into four categories: professional, friendly, informative, and educational. The tone website speaks volumes about who you are and what makes your business unique.
- Know Your Content
When you are evaluating your content, ask yourself whether it’s consistent with your brand tone. If not, it should probably be revised. The voice that you use in your content marketing is an essential part of your brand identity. And creating a consistent tone for your content will help to shape the perception of your readers about what your business does and who it serves. Even if you have been producing content for some time, it can be a good idea to review the tone you are currently using in your content.
If you know what you are doing, your audience has an idea of what your brand's tone of voice is. The tone is created by content, advertising, previous storytelling, and other ways you've interacted with them in the past. To help you determine where to start and where you need to go, conduct a content audit. This will help you see what type of content is working for your brand, but more importantly, it will show you how effective each piece of content is at creating emotional resonance with your audience.
The tone of voice is a crucial (yet easily overlooked) aspect of copywriting that can really make or break your audience engagement. True to its name, it determines just how 'conversational' your writing feels. Unfortunately, because so many writers take tone of voice for granted, you'll often see it misused. To avoid this trap, always refer back to your brand's personality so that you know what kind of tone to use in any given situation. Just remember: the easiest way to establish a tone of voice in your writing is to be consistent!