Setting the Right Tone

We often help arrange and co-ordinate guest bloggers for some of our clients, inviting key influencers and experts in their fields to lend their expertise and enrich the blog content of our client’s feed. So, we thought why not do the same ourselves?

For our first, we have kept it close to home and asked our super talented associate, Lucy, to jot down some words of wisdom when it comes to writing content. Here Lucy picks out some big-name examples to illustrate her points about the importance of a clear tone of voice. Over to you, Lucy…

Who are you? What do you stand for? How are you perceived by others? These are big questions that are integral to communicating your brand to your customers. Most businesses will create a logo that visually sums up their brand and gives their customers a clue to what kind of business they are. But what about your copy? I’m talking about how you describe yourself on your website, or the tone of voice you use on social media, or the style of copy you use for staff or customer newsletters.

You may think this is unimportant. A trivial detail that your customers won’t notice. However, have a listen to some of the big brands we come across every day and you will begin to notice that the more successful the brand the clearer the tone of voice they have.

Innocent Drinks

A great example is Innocent Drinks, they began life in 2004 as a start-up staffed by three Cambridge University graduates, and in a relatively short space of time have become a multi-million pound business. A large part of this is credited to the tone of voice they use across all of their communication channels.

It is informal and friendly, while also quirky and fun. Its warmness means that instead of coming across as a faceless, corporate entity, it sounds more like a friend. Innocent managed to figure out what its values are as a company and then convince its customers through the way it writes. Result – massive success.

M&S Food

Through the power of language (and a seductive and soulful voice over) M&S Food are the go-to brand when it comes to indulgent and decadent food at high street prices. However, thanks to a very recent chicken scandal, we now know that both Aldi and M&S Food get their chicken from the same place. So, what is it that makes M&S customers feel like ‘This is not just…’? Beautiful packaging, glorious food photography and a tone of voice that is smooth and enticing. M&S have also nailed consistency and repetition of tone across all their channels creating such a strong brand that they are now running self-referential adverts, using real people to imitate their classic product descriptions.

Paddy Power

Behind the Irish bookmaker’s notorious publicity stunts is a tone of voice that’s cheeky and undeniably witty. The distinctly laddish personality helps Paddy Power to stand out in a particularly crowded marketplace.

Part of the success is down to the company knowing precisely who makes up its audience: young men. It knows that if they are kept entertained by topical, easily digested and ballsy content, they’ll keep coming back for more.

So, now you know the power of setting the right tone, and what it can do for your business. How do you go about creating a voice for yourself? The key things are:

· Understanding your business’s personality – formal or informal? Warm or professional? Laid back or lively?

· Keep it real – just because you want to have an informal, quirky, conversational tone of voice doesn’t mean it will suit or appeal to your client base. If you’re providing a professional rather than consumer service, your customers want to trust and respect you, so cracking jokes may not be appropriate.

· Once you understand who are, and what you are trying to convey to your customers, keep it consistent over every communication channel you use. Your customers will soon begin to recognise and trust the information they receive from you.

Alternatively, you could hand over this tricky balance and give the Queen Bee’s a buzz! We’re experts at helping clients develop their brands and thoroughly enjoy working collaboratively with clients to create smart, authentic and engaging content that creates a real connection with your audience. Thanks so much to Lucy for taking the time to share her knowledge.