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Why Your Brand Voice Is Important And How It’s Different From Branding

Business TalkNovember 29, 201941 Comments01.1k

Your “Brand Voice” is an essential part of your business “Branding”, and yet it’s not the same thing as branding.

Why not? Well let’s start by explaining your “Brand” and then take a look at how your “Brand Voice” is different and what it means for you and your business.

Your brand is a collection of concepts which show what your business represents in your market and industry such as your business mission, values, images, logos, ideas, and associations. All of these concepts make a huge impression on your imprint that exists in the mind of your customers and a range of other ‘stakeholders’ in your business, for instance, supplier services, employees, contractors, etc. When these people think of you, this is the image that comes into their mind.
Your brand voice on the other hand, is the actual language you use to communicate your brand image to your customers and stakeholders. In other words, brand voice is the distinct and unique ‘personality’ which you convey what you offer to your particular audience through words and phrases.

An easy way for you to understand the difference between the two is by thinking about when you first meet new people and you use certain language when talking to them or discussing certain topics. This type of language that you present is your “voice.”

Voice is important because it’s a key part of identifying your brand. You know and understand what your business stands for, but how do you get that message across to your target market so they also “get it”?

You do that through speaking to them using your voice which includes the language and tone used in your communication like verbal interactions, videos, text-based content, printed materials, and other multimedia content. And voice can also be part of the visual language you use like infographics.

To help you further understand and clarify what you brand voice is, here are a few key features of a brand voice that you need to be using in your business:

Use the exact type of language that’s appropriate for your target market audience. In other words, you are speaking in a way that your customer expects you to speak to them. An example of this is say, when a wedding photographer talks to you about the type of wedding photos you want and then discusses his unique expertise and how he will need to organise his photo shoots around you and your big day, so as not to keep interrupting the ceremony proceedings.
So, your business voice does therefore, have to be unique in some way, and which sets you apart from other competitors in your marketplace. And when members of your audience hear your voice, they know without a doubt that it’s you and what business you represent.
Which means you voice conveys and explains your business’s core values, through your words and the tone you use. Your audience then know that you’re on the same side as them because your values immediately resonate with them.
Your brand voice has to be consistent and you should never stray away from your regular tone, language, and the values that you state and stand for. This in turn creates trust in the minds of your audience. For instance, if someone comes across your marketing promotions and offers that are different from what you have been discussing with them face-to-face, this can create an immediate ‘disconnect’.

In summary, businesses large and small, and in every industry, have to purposefully commit to defining and implementing their own brand voice in order to successfully create a true image about them and their values in the mind the customer. And for you to succeed in your own business, you need a strong, clear and powerful brand voice that allows you to rise above all of the other noise in your market because your brand voice will clearly and explicitly explain with accurately to your customers and other stakeholders …that what you and your business is exactly all about and how you can serve those groups of people.