What is tone of voice? It’s how we say what we say, whether verbally or in writing.
Tone of voice is a reflection of the company personality and affects the impression given. A consistent tone of voice will also improve the clarity and impact of marketing communications. Getting tone of voice right is as important as your visual brand imagery because it creates a cohesive impression. When the visual effect and the tone don’t match, it can be a little disconcerting for the customer.
Once the company tone of voice is clearly defined, it makes it easier for your marketers and communicators to adopt the right style and to write materials that are approved quicker rather than going through endless iterations. It means that different marketing materials and messages fit together more easily and sound like part of a family. Not repetitive but familiar, from the same stable.
But it’s more than that.
There are advantages for the company. A strong, distinctive and consistent tone of voice helps your business to stand out in a crowded marketplace. It’s a way of capturing the hearts and minds of customers and potential customers. It’s a tool to create market advantage.
In essence, tone of voice has the power to bring your brand values to life.
How can we help?
As writers with a marketing focus, we work with clients to develop and evolve their brand language. The key to creating a usable and distinctive tone of voice is in understanding the customer perspective as well as the company and its brand values.
Unlike a campaign based creative treatment, a tone of voice should be robust enough to stand the test of time. Most importantly, well constructed tone of voice guidelines should be easy to apply across the marketing mix.
We work with clients in a number of ways:
- Translating your brand values into a brand language
- Defining the individual tone of voice for your business
- Creation of a Style Guide with practical examples
- Training your writers and marketers on how to apply the tone of voice
- Tone of voice protection
