Why brand voice matters
A distinct voice brings your brand to life...
Your brand voice defines how you speak to your audience, considering how you use words to communicate the personality and values behind your business. A successful brand voice speaks directly to your niche, creating an authentic, aligned, and memorable impression.
A brand voice is a deliberate creation, consistent across all your customer touch point at all times. In a crowded market, a unique voice sets your brand apart, as important a part of your branding as your visuals.
What is brand voice?
Where your brand story defines what you communicate to your audience, your brand voice outlines how.
Sometimes described as the personality of your brand, voice defines precisely how your brand uses words and language to communicate. Just as individual people have their own voice, your brand should too.
Congruent with your brand story, your brand voice sets the tone for the experience your customer can expect – perhaps approachable, rebellious, or luxurious.
Voice begins with audience
Just as you have to understand your customer’s needs and desires to create an effective brand story, knowing exactly who you are speaking to is the vital first step to creating a brand voice.
An effective voice creates a feeling. Individual audiences have different needs when it comes to the experience they desire. Do they need to feel secure? Inspired? Empowered? A brand voice should be in harmony with your brand story, referencing your mission and values to define what impression to create.
Modern branding upturns tone of voice assumptions. Where high-end fine jewellery may once have called for a reasonably formal voice, brands serving younger or fashion-forward crowds are embracing disruptive or playful voices.
For brands with an existing audience, referencing how they communicate with you – and the world –
Brand voice vs tone of voice - what is the difference?
Just as we adjust how we speak in different scenarios, so does your brand. An Instagram post calls for a different tone than a press release or stockist email.
This is the difference between brand voice and tone of voice. Your brand voice is consistent, communicating the personality of your brand. Your tone of voice shifts slightly within this, defining how your jewellery brand speaks in specific situations.
A brand voice guide should outline both. When it comes to voice, the minutiae matters. Exclamations, contractions, emojis, phrasing… the nuance in tone of voice comes down to these details. Slang on Instagram, proper English in emails… but always friendly and approachable in both.
Style guide: your brand voice guidelines
A brand voice should be outlined in voice guidelines, known as a style guide, defining clearly how the brand communicates and why.
A style guide is a ‘bible’, allowing anyone, externally or internally, to communicate consistently in the voice of the brand. Brand voice guidelines define how your jewellery brand uses language and what feeling that evokes in the customer.
In brand voice, cohesion and details matter. Any incongruity in brand voice disrupts the audience impression, undermining the trust and alignment that a good brand voice creates. Voice guidelines, therefore, help you brand communications consistent across all customer touchpoints, providing a reference for all copy and content writing.