As a Search and Selection Agency, we get asked a lot how to create a corporate tone of voice, as part of our project brief template. Given the frequency of the question, we thought others may find our long-form answer helpful. This is the first of a three-part series written by our resident Copywriter and Content Editor, Danielle Stagg, outlining our pointers for capturing your corporate tone.
Create a corporate tone of voice
As the need for a strong marketing profile grows for firms, many are finding themselves lost in the hubbub. Creating a corporate tone of voice or brand identity – that is, the tone and character by which your firm communicates to its audience- can make all the difference.
From the carton-side quirkiness of Innocent Smoothies, to the reassuring tones of Sanofi, every brand needs to create a story or personality.
Here in this three-part series, we outline the top 8 steps for writing an effective company profile.
1. Identify who you’re talking to
Writing that has an audience in mind will be most successful. When creating your corporate tone of voice it's important to establish who you’re trying to attract, what they want or need to know and critically, what they’re looking for. These basic questions should be at the core of your communications and help you attract the right kind of interest.
2. Define your company
Key areas of focus here are: who are you, what do you do and what do you love? Are you a small but mighty 4-person design team from Hull, or are you pan-european, data migration experts based in East London? Make it short, snappy and unique -and most importantly, stick to it.
Top tip: Companies often come across completely differently in meetings than in text. Try to identify how you describe yourselves face-to-face and then translate this into your literature. This creates a more authentic representation of your brand and helps attain and attract well-matched potential clients.
3. Build a lexicon
An effective way to distinguish yourself from your competitors and build a impactful brand personality and corporate tone of voice is to assess how you want to be perceived. Do you want, for example, to appear trustworthy, technical, quirky or knowledgable. Understanding the kind of impression you want to give your audience will go a long way in fortifying an effective corporate tone of voice.
Once you have determined the kind of feeling you’d like to evoke, note the specific words or statements that best demonstrate this. These should not only describe what you do, but how and why you do it. For example, if you are a start-up SEO firm, words you would want to use may include; measurable, affordable and effective.
Top Tip: Similar to a CV, avoid stereotypes, if possible. Over-used adjectives like ‘innovative’, ‘creative’, ‘strategic’ and ‘cost-effective’ are likely to turn off potential clients and propel you into mediocrity.
Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3 of this series on capturing your own corporate tone of voice.
