Raising your voice: Is your brand speaking clearly?
RoundRaising your voice: Is your brand speaking clearly?
This instalment of Round Table is authored by our Head of Brand Voice, Sean Irving
25.02.2025
When I think of brand voice, I think of email subject lines. For myself and, I assume, many other people who communicate for a living – they inspire a particular flavour of dread.
They simultaneously manage to be both utterly banal and critically important. They’re the envoy for your brand, a personal note to the reader, yet the vast majority are destined to be unceremoniously dumped in the digital bin without a second thought.
That’s why I can clearly remember the best branded subject line that’s ever landed in my inbox: a short number from Reformation that read ‘BREAK UP WITH YOUR THERAPIST’. It was the perfect balance of funny and unhinged, and it succinctly captured the brand’s effortless confidence – as well as my attention.
This is the magic of voice at work, instantly transforming a forgettable interaction between brand and reader into a memorable moment of connection.
‘Storytelling’ has become something of a term de jour in our industry, but the building blocks of these stories are the words we choose – and the reasons we choose them.
25.02.2025
When I think of brand voice, I think of email subject lines. For myself and, I assume, many other people who communicate for a living – they inspire a particular flavour of dread.
They simultaneously manage to be both utterly banal and critically important. They’re the envoy for your brand, a personal note to the reader, yet the vast majority are destined to be unceremoniously dumped in the digital bin without a second thought.
That’s why I can clearly remember the best branded subject line that’s ever landed in my inbox: a short number from Reformation that read ‘BREAK UP WITH YOUR THERAPIST’. It was the perfect balance of funny and unhinged, and it succinctly captured the brand’s effortless confidence – as well as my attention.
This is the magic of voice at work, instantly transforming a forgettable interaction between brand and reader into a memorable moment of connection.
‘Storytelling’ has become something of a term de jour in our industry, but the building blocks of these stories are the words we choose – and the reasons we choose them.
Saying what you mean
How you communicate with the world through written and verbal applications invariably says something about your brand, whether you intend it to or not. In this sense, brand voice is an inevitability. Given this, the choice you have to make is whether you take ownership of these associations or leave them to chance.
Defining and documenting your brand voice lets you take control of how your audience perceives you. Speaking with clarity and conviction ensures your audience also hears you clearly.
In real terms, I like to think your brand’s visual identity – the way you appear to the world – is key to capturing attention. But it’s your verbal identity – your written and spoken presentation – that can deepen this connection into a lasting relationship. Voice takes you below the surface, facilitating a dialogue between audience and brand that reinforces who you are and what you stand for.
Saying what you mean
How you communicate with the world through written and verbal applications invariably says something about your brand, whether you intend it to or not. In this sense, brand voice is an inevitability. Given this, the choice you have to make is whether you take ownership of these associations or leave them to chance.
Defining and documenting your brand voice lets you take control of how your audience perceives you. Speaking with clarity and conviction ensures your audience also hears you clearly.
In real terms, I like to think your brand’s visual identity – the way you appear to the world – is key to capturing attention. But it’s your verbal identity – your written and spoken presentation – that can deepen this connection into a lasting relationship. Voice takes you below the surface, facilitating a dialogue between audience and brand that reinforces who you are and what you stand for.
Meaning what you say
Besides these (significant) benefits, a documented brand voice also creates a consistent reference point that ensures your communications feel cohesive and intentional.
This is particularly important when many people need to communicate on behalf of a brand. In any given organisation, there are likely distinct teams that each have separate needs when writing as a brand – marketing versus customer service, for example – and you need them to be on the same page (figuratively and literally).
Of course, while defining a brand voice can be a process of internal consistency, it can equally be a critical exercise in market differentiation. For brands in a saturated landscape (a blandscape, if you’ll indulge me), a unique voice can be a key factor in capturing attention and cutting through the noise.
Think of the absurd meta-poetry of a Palace product description (which have been archived in a publication) or Oatly’s off-kilter irreverence. They’re arresting, memorable and drive differentiation from competitors. For example, Palace’s tendency to integrate smatterings of German (‘das’, ‘mit’, etc.) alongside their local UK slang immediately signals their European cultural cachet.
Meaning what you say
Besides these (significant) benefits, a documented brand voice also creates a consistent reference point that ensures your communications feel cohesive and intentional.
This is particularly important when many people need to communicate on behalf of a brand. In any given organisation, there are likely distinct teams that each have separate needs when writing as a brand – marketing versus customer service, for example – and you need them to be on the same page (figuratively and literally).
Of course, while defining a brand voice can be a process of internal consistency, it can equally be a critical exercise in market differentiation. For brands in a saturated landscape (a blandscape, if you’ll indulge me), a unique voice can be a key factor in capturing attention and cutting through the noise.
Think of the absurd meta-poetry of a Palace product description (which have been archived in a publication) or Oatly’s off-kilter irreverence. They’re arresting, memorable and drive differentiation from competitors. For example, Palace’s tendency to integrate smatterings of German (‘das’, ‘mit’, etc.) alongside their local UK slang immediately signals their European cultural cachet.
Finding your voice
These examples don’t mean creating a challenging or disruptive voice is the right strategy for every brand, though. I wouldn’t necessarily want my vet to adopt the heavy metal styling of Liquid Death. (Dead Billionaire, anyone?). Nor would I want my internet provider to lean into the evocative wistfulness of a D.S. & Durga perfume, much as I love the concept of ‘Spectral Doorway’.
Sometimes, your voice would be better served by retreating into the background to establish credibility and inspire confidence – like if you’re Australia’s national security service. In other cases, your voice can be so unadorned that this, in fact, becomes your signature. Aesop’s ‘vigorous activity’ euphemism offers a masterclass in this technique.
Regardless of their expression, the important thing is that these brands made a conscious decision about how they’d communicate. And, in turn, how they’d be perceived by their audience.
We all have a voice – so what are you saying?
Finding your voice
These examples don’t mean creating a challenging or disruptive voice is the right strategy for every brand, though. I wouldn’t necessarily want my vet to adopt the heavy metal styling of Liquid Death. (Dead Billionaire, anyone?). Nor would I want my internet provider to lean into the evocative wistfulness of a D.S. & Durga perfume, much as I love the concept of ‘Spectral Doorway’.
Sometimes, your voice would be better served by retreating into the background to establish credibility and inspire confidence – like if you’re Australia’s national security service. In other cases, your voice can be so unadorned that this, in fact, becomes your signature. Aesop’s ‘vigorous activity’ euphemism offers a masterclass in this technique.
Regardless of their expression, the important thing is that these brands made a conscious decision about how they’d communicate. And, in turn, how they’d be perceived by their audience.
We all have a voice – so what are you saying?