Do you want to sound sweet as sugar or tough as nails? Are you focused on communicating your intelligence or expertise? Are you more focused on coming off as fun and alluring? In a question: How do you inform your audience about your Brand Voice?
To start, explain what your business is in a phrase or a few words. It is vital that your brand voice describes who you are and not what you could be. For example, try this exercise – create a brand voice for the online company Amazon. No cheating! Don’t look at our answers before coming up with your own. If you are in tune with Amazon’s marketing, you likely came up with convenient, affordable, and consumer-focused words. Words that would not work for Amazon’s brand are luxury, exclusive and unadaptable.
Promise, no more classwork. We hope that gave you a sense of brand voice. We ran our own experiment at a few different brand voices: local restaurant, tech company, corporate, nonprofit, and shopping center. Each gives you a sense of what a brand voice should look like for each of these unique businesses. We start with our very own BKN Creative brand voice copy.
Creative Marketing:
BKN Creative is an LGBT, family-owned, and operated full-service boutique Creative & Marketing Agency. We are passionate, creative, and collaborative and love working with like-minded brands. Our mission is to help brands large and small develop, create, and implement their unique visual story. We use tactics from a wide range of innovative capabilities to design and produce authentic brand experiences that inspire. Finally, we create relationships because, ultimately, great relationships have powerful results!
Coffee Shop | Trendy Local Restaurant:
Envision the *perfect* coffee shop. Is it cozy? Family-run? Beans roasted before your very eyes? Of course, it has all of that. You have excellent taste. Most locally-owned coffee shops offer some sense of community. Upon arrival, there needs to be a comfort level where you can look a stranger in the eye and order, in all seriousness, a light-ice, oat milk latte with a pump of lavender and a pump of honey rose and please no straw. The brand voice should reflect that.
Sample:
Brandon’s Brew is an LGBT, family-owned, and operated coffee house by day and speakeasy after dark. It all began ten years ago when Brandon Tydlaska-Dziedzic met Kevin Tydlaska-Dziedzic at a Brooklyn coffee house. Ironically, Brandon was more of a “tea-guy,” but Kevin changed his mind. Thanks, Kevin! Together they tinkered with roasts, blended single-source beans, and explored the country for the finest cup of joe, sipping everything from Americanos to Affagatos. Machine after machine and cup after cup, finally, they realized the best cup of coffee is not so complicated. Freshly roasted beans, filtered water, and proper attention do the trick. Don’t miss our Open Mouth Speakeasy night, Tuesdays at 10 pm, with $2 beers for all performers!
Financial App | Tech:
Did you know that the app name for Venmo comes from two Latin words: vendere, meaning “to sell,” and “mo,” meaning mobile. Lots of tech companies will create their names from a blend of ancient and modern languages, which makes sense. Techy companies usually want an air of seriousness and authority. But they also want to sound cutting edge and original. It’s a very niche type of business. So, in our next brand voice, we pretend to be a financial app company. Did you know “pecunia” is Latin for money?
Sample:
BeKuNia provides dynamic financial GraphQL APIs that are world-class and simple. Our GraphQL API integrates a range of financial, cryptocurrency, and merchant services. To elevate partner experience, we offer test environments as a part of the production process. No charges will be made, and you will effectively have a simulation of our services before you invest in them. Our dashboard can serve as your business’ single stop for all financial activity. KYC/AML validation, broker exchange, and transfers to/from traditional banks are all parts of our unique APIs functionality.
Home and Automobile Insurance | Corporate:
The most important thing any corporation needs to gain is your trust. For our take on “corporate” brand voice, we are writing as if BKN sold insurance. If you choose to spend a few hours reading through various insurance branding in their about me’s, you will notice little humor or casual language. There will be a focus on saving and relationships. It’s all about getting the audience to believe you’re the best person they can have in their corner. You can do that with a well-defined brand voice.
Sample:
Since our founding in 1920, we have focused on relationships beyond “agents” and “consumers.” BKN Insurance is a dedicated and passionate auto and home insurance provider with expert-level care. We offer Drive Safe Discount, Collision Forgiven, and bundle discounts so you can keep your hard-earned cash. Get in touch with an agent to discover the best coverage and protection for you and your family. Make the change today. We have been in the business of protecting people for over 100 years. Once you’re BKN insured, you can rest assured.
Youth-Focused Leadership Organization | Nonprofit:
The nonprofit world is all about service. Credit unions, charitable organizations, and universities will always want to tell you where their extraneous money goes and why it goes there. The people who are most likely to read their copy are would-be donors, community leaders, and volunteers. Below, we speak as if BKN were a youth-oriented nonprofit that helps with after-school care and leadership development.
Sample:
Be Kind Now, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is committed to radically changing how young people think about kindness and community care. In partnership with Tampa’s public schools, we provide one-on-one mentorship that centers on empowerment through community work and educational workshops. Our mentors are paired with young people based on different areas of interest: environmental justice, social justice, or creative arts. Post-educational workshops, the mentor and mentee take active steps towards either existing programs, like our community garden, or found original projects that align with their area of interest and our project criteria. Be Kind Now wants Tampa area youths to be empowered to build a kinder community.
Boutique Plaza Mall | Shopping Center:
Getting the average shopper off the computer and into a brick-and-mortar store takes something special. This was true well before social distancing and other COVID-related restrictions. Online shopping is much more convenient. Younger crowds, ranging from high school to thirty-somethings, are most likely to spend money at shopping centers. If you’re not spending your youth throwing your newfound financial independence at trendy clothes, going out, and expensive food, what are you doing? Brand voice for a premier shopping center should be fun, engaging, and as enticing as possible. A few hashtags never hurt anyone either.
Sample:
BKN Plaza is an outdoor shopping experience with all your indie favorites and local brands you love. Located in the heart of Seminole Heights, our building is a part of the restoration initiative created by our city’s historic preservation chamber. Tampa natives and travelers alike can explore our Plaza Park with picture-perfect palms, murals, and fountains. Our convenient location offers all kinds of eats from grab-and-go snacks like The Hyppo Popsicle Shop and sit-down dining at Le Blanc. Shop at Tampa’s favorite, Satchel, for all your handmade accessory-based needs, and then relax at Restore day spa. Whatever you choose to enjoy, BKN plaza is the destination for you. It is #plazapicturesque!
As you can see, changes in jargon, target audience, and core values can drastically change the way brand voice is conveyed to the audience. We know that genuinely nailing your brand voice is no easy feat but don’t worry, we can manage all that hard work for you. BKN Creative’s team of marketing professionals can help you find your brand voice so you can tell the world who you are with confidence! Give us a call at (813) 644-7443, and let’s chat!
