Keith Sammels is the Executive Creative Director of LAW Creative, a full service Advertising and Marketing Agency.
Don’t talk to me like that. Do you know who I am?
The whole business of how you talk to customers, clients or prospects through communications is a challenging one.
By definition, Tone of Voice strips your brand down to basics and says to anyone who happens to be listening.
'This is who I am, this is my character and personality and I hope that you like me because I’m TALKING TO YOU. YES, YOU.’
Why the need for a Tone of Voice?
We’re a casual lot lately. We’ve got used to the media calling the Prime Minister ‘Dave’ and the clipped ‘Queen's English’ accents at the BBC are no more. Now, it’s more likely that you’ll hear neutral or regional accents and expressions and turns of phrase that a few years ago would have resulted in the proverbial book being thrown by the then Director General of the BBC, Lord Reith.
So what is a brand to do when deciding how to talk to customers or prospects in this context? This is important to know, because it matters. Proprietary identity and brand character depend on it. The values of the brand or business have to be consonant with how you talk and what you say. Tone of Voice is a key discriminator of your brand and how it communicates with prospective and existing customers. You want them to like you. That’s important, obviously, because if they don’t, they won’t listen to you. But are you being cloyingly likable? Is your communication like being licked by a Labrador? Because most people wouldn’t like that... Equally, by being too cold and starchy you can be off-putting.
How to develop a suitable and competitive Tone Of Voice for your brand and business
- Hello? Who's there?
The most important aspect to developing a compelling and competitive Tone Of Voice is to understand exactly who you’re targeting. Each of us – and each peer group to which we belong - has a tolerance threshold for how we’re spoken to and that will depend to an extent on demographics – how old we are, what our individual circumstances are in terms of social status, jobs, personal likes and preferences – even what music we listen to.
Your brand and business will be aimed at a core target market and what you know about that group is the main driver of TOV, so if you feel you don’t know them well enough, take the trouble to use research to find out or find a marketing agency that can help. That means not only who you market is, but what they’re like and what their propensity is to do things that fall within your sphere of influence. Online, that’s particularly vital. - What's everyone else doing?
Look at your business in the context of the competition. Sometimes, this may not be just direct competitors. It can be other businesses vying with you for ‘ear-time’ or share of voice in some other way. Is what you’re saying, and how you’re saying it, representative of a compelling proposition to your target compared with others? Does it satisfy the demands of the people you’re trying to sell to? If not, why not? - What do you stand for?
In terms of values, are yours in line with the language and tone you use? Values are meant to guide all aspects of business behaviour at every level. If your brand had a voice, how would it sound if it had to base everything that was said on those values? Would it sound professional/fun/ethical, or whatever the core values of your business are based on? If not, it should. - Stay consistent
Beware of being schizophrenic. Brands are a bit like people in as much as you rely on them to be the same wherever and whenever you meet them. If they behave differently on a daily basis, or if you meet them in a different environment, it’s confusing and leads to distrust. Once you (perhaps with the help of a marketing agency) have a sure Tone Of Voice which is representative of your brand and business, make sure it speaks the same, everywhere, from advertisements to online, posters to presentations. - Stay grounded
Finally, be true to yourself and realise what your role in peoples’ lives is. They don’t need more friends. They don’t want to be lectured to. They don’t actually care if your business exists or not most of the time. But once they have decided to invest some time in dealing with you, they will become more loyal if you are empathetic to the way that they think and talk – in other words, if you seem like you think like them. Like-mindedness is a key driver of friendship for humans and it’s the same with brands and businesses.
Like what Keith has to say? Follow him and his team on Twitter and be sure to read LAW's upcoming review of Marketing Week 2013, as published next week on the FindGood marketing blog.
