Podcast 79: How to Find Your Brand Voice

branding ethical marketing marketing podcast Aug 19, 2021

Branding on a Budget - Part 3

In parts 1 and 2 of this series of branding on a budget, we looked at some of the visual aspects of creating a consistent brand. In part 3, we’re looking at creating a consistent brand voice.

Having some simple rules to stick to will help you make decisions about what’s a good fit for your brand, and importantly what isn’t.

Simple marketing message

This is a simple description of what you do, you may have heard it referred to as an ‘elevator pitch’ or a ‘help statement’. It’s a succinct way to describe what people pay you for and appears consistently throughout your marketing.

If people don’t understand what you do, how will they know you can help them? Why would they pay you?

You need a clear message, one simple enough for a child to understand and repeat. That way, if your offering doesn’t suit someone personally, they’ll be able to recommend you to a friend in need of your services.

Craft your marketing message in a similar format to this:

I help (the people you help) from/with (the problem you solve) to (the results you help them achieve) through/using (your approach).

For example:

“I help women juggling careers and ageing parents to navigate the care system through mentoring”

The more specific and simpler the language you use, the better.

Check out this article for more information on creating your message.

Words that describe your brand

Having a few words that describe your brand will be a compass for your brand voice and ensure everything represents it.

For example, I have the adjectives pragmatic, trusting and warm as mine. There are other others I could use but these are ones that I use as a filter to pass what I write through.

Spend a few minutes downloading different adjectives that describe your brand and how you want to be perceived. Think about words clients and friends use to describe you as these are a great insight into how you’re perceived. From this list, pick a few words that represent your brand values which will act as your compass.

A great book that will help you with these is ‘How The World Sees You’ by Sally Hogshead – it will help you identify what others see in you so that you can amplify those in your branding and make it unique to you.

Writing style outline

It’s great to have an outline of your writing style, especially if you decide to outsource any writing in the future. This will provide guidance to anyone who is creating anything on your behalf. Here’s an example of mine to give you ideas for what to include:

Brand description: pragmatic, trusting, warm
Style
- Simple, short, and to the point - use bullet points
- Use capitals for main page headings
Tone: Warm
Embellishments: Use emojis, use !!!, ??!! or ???, use – to link sentences
No swearing

Pick your brand topics

Having topics in your brand voice will help to keep consistency in your messaging and also make decisions about what you talk about. People receiving your information will know what to expect from you and consistency is key here as with all aspects of branding.

Pick a few topics that you talk about professionally so that could be your discipline, the problem you help your clients with, and the mind-body connection.

Have a few personal topics too as people want to get to know the person behind the brand. So, for me, it’s dogs, nature, upcycling, and moving to Wales.

Having a document with this listed down will help you have a consistent voice throughout your marketing and will help you decide what’s appropriate for your brand.

Stylish Branding Made Easy - Mini-Course

Learn how to create a professional-looking brand on a budget to attract your favourite clients.

Work along with me in these practical sessions to create your branding in a way that represents you and your business brilliantly.

This mini-course is running live at lunchtime each day for 4-days starting on Tuesday 31st August 2021 with workbooks, replays and a pop-up Facebook group for support. After this date, it will be available as an online course that you can work through at your own pace.