In brand and marketing terms, “Tone of Voice” is the collective way we communicate with others. It’s predominantly related to a style of writing. But, what is Tone of Voice anyway? Here we explain what it is and why it’s important to understand it.
Consider this, if your logo didn’t appear with your content, would your audience recognise it as you?
What is Tone of Voice?
In brand and marketing terms, “Tone of Voice” is the collective way we communicate with others. It’s predominantly related to a style of writing. But, what is Tone of Voice anyway? Here we explain what it is and why it’s important to understand it. Many leading organisations choose to create a practical handbook or guidelines to help maintain consistency when writing.
It is as much about a feeling as anything else. Imagine the difference you experience when talking to a police officer or lawyer, compared to a shop assistant or friend; their attitude to language, the way they speak and the words they choose all help define them as unique. Tone of voice is an essential aspect of a brand’s identity, and yours should be as distinct as the rest of your brand. We highly recommend Tone of voice guidelines for any company where more than one person produces content (which is most of them).
Why is Tone of Voice important?
As an organisation grows, more people will be responsible for creating content across multiple communications and marketing channels. With this comes individual styles and opinions and, if unmanaged, inconsistency. A tone of voice guideline is like a friendly content police officer, helping teams produce content with a unified style, whether on social media, in direct marketing, on a website or even in meetings or with customers.
Consider this, if your logo didn’t appear alongside your content, would your audience recognise it as you? Would a customer reading content at different times on different channels realise that it came from the same organisation? Does your copy stand out from the crowd? If the answer is “no” to any of these, then you need to consider developing and documenting your tone of voice.
Tone of Voice Guidelines can come in many forms, from a simple collection of guiding keywords to longer documents complete with written examples of good and bad copy practice. If you need help with your Company Brand Guidelines, you know where we are.
