5 mistakes businesses make with their brand voice

Why do we pay attention to some brands, and ignore others? Think about this for a moment: today, more than ever, brands are constantly talking — on our social media feeds, in our inboxes, or the in news we read.

But you will agree with me that, sometimes, the noise out there is simply unbearable. They’re vying for our attention, but as consumers, we couldn’t care less. Why? Because most of them sound the same, or are simply boring.

And this is a shame, because a brand’s voice is an incredibly powerful tool to build meaningful relationships with their customers — yet many brands are not taking advantage of it.

They’re afraid to be themselves or stand out

I know, owning your brand personality and showing it to the world might be scary. Especially for those industries that traditionally have been more formal — like finance, legal, manufacturing, etc.

The truth is that when a brand or company chooses to be overly sober and distant, it might feel safe at the beginning; but they risk becoming  indifferent to their audience.

They fall into the trap of wordiness

It is commonly thought that in order to appear professional, brands must adopt a very formal tone, remain distant, and use complex language.

Take a look at this email I received a few months ago:

Dear Noemi,

Thank you for confirming the acceptance of the quote as per previous communications.

The translation will be sent electronically on Friday 13th.

Wouldn’t it be simpler to say this?

Hi Noemi,

Thanks for confirming the quote. You will receive the translation by email on Friday 13th.

Short, sweet and still professional.

They pretend to be somebody they’re not

What would happen if a brand projects one personality in their marketing material, and then, when visiting their headquarters, meeting their directors or speaking to their staff, you get a completely different vibe? You would likely stop trusting them.

Sometimes, brands ‘force’ a certain voice, either to attract a certain type of audience, or because they’ve seen other brands do it successfully and want to copy them.

They don’t know who they are

Brands that haven’t defined their personality and voice risk sounding inconsistent. One day they’re one thing, and the next one, they’re another. They’re always experimenting. So, when their audience consumes their content, they feel confused and suspicious, and it’s unlikely they will connect with them.

Different people write on behalf of the brand, and the audience can tell

Similar to the previous point, without a defined brand personality, it’s difficult to maintain a unified voice. This becomes apparent when, for example, one person is responsible for newsletters, another for social media posts, and a third for customer care. Each writer will bring their own personality to the content, resulting in an inconsistent experience for the audience.

Conclusion

The verbal identity of a brand is just as important as its visual identity. It helps customers recognise a brand, build trust, and, especially, connect.

So, what can businesses do to define their verbal identity? It all starts from answering to these questions:

• If your brand were a person, what five adjectives would you use to describe them?
• What values do they live by?
• What motivates them? Why do they get up in the morning?
• If the brand had a close relationship with their ideal customer, who would it be? A guide, a friend, a parent, a sibling, a wise person…
• And what would you like your audience to feel when they read your content?

And remember, there’s no other brand like yours, so don’t be afraid to shine as bright as you are!