How Emotional Should Your Brand Voice Be?
Six Tips To Discover Your Authentic Copywriting Style
Being in quarantine for months led to inevitably watching the entirety of the Sex and the City series.
Though Carrie Bradshaw’s character is questionable at best*, one of her quips caught my attention just as I was sitting down to write this piece. Referencing both a strong cup of espresso and a harsh, albeit true, comment from a brooding Russian boyfriend, she states passionately: “I need my relationship with a little bit of milk.”
Just as milk lessens the intensity of a nice pour-over and kindness softens harsh truths, emotional relatability makes your business feel less stiff. Many brand experts and Pinterest business gurus will tout the value of emotional branding. If connecting with your audience is your goal (psst - it should be!) then saturating your website with emotion is an obvious choice. After all, studies have shown that consumers primarily rely on emotional responses rather than information to evaluate brands.
But is this always the case, no matter how technical or B2B your brand is? In the spirit of that iconic NYC column:
When it comes to building a brand that connects… is it always beneficial to be emotional?
Simple answer: your brand always needs “a little bit of milk”. Sorry, black coffee drinkers! Whether it’s the tiniest splash or half the mug is up to you - and your target audience. No matter how serious or niche your business is, emotional undercurrents woven into your copywriting is what draws your clients in and makes you unique amongst your competitors.
Conversely, too much emotional influence can come across as insincere or kitschy. It’s the difference between receiving a friendly email interspersed with humor and information… and one that’s littered with double exclamation points and heart emojis.
So how do you find the appropriate balance?
Let your ideal client be your guide.
I say “ideal” client because it’s an important distinction. If you want clients who jive with you, who you genuinely love working with, who share your values and passion for the project - you need to have a brand that speaks directly to them. What kind of voice would they tune in to? Are they busy and matter-of-fact with only a few spare minutes to learn about you? Are they a dreamer drawn in by stories and visuals? Center their needs and mimic their personality.
Let your personality be your (second) guide.
If you’re a reserved wallflower, overzealous emotional selling likely won’t come naturally to you. If you’re a bubbly chatterbox, you’ll likely find it difficult to build a brand around business jargon. Take a look at how you write and speak naturally, and use it as the model for your brand’s voice. Take my website, for example. I love talking to people that I connect with, but am by no means an extrovert. I like dry humor and silly puns. I’m a natural storyteller, but in a business setting I prefer the efficiency and elegance of cutting to the chase. My brand voice reflects these traits.
Look at your industry.
This one is fairly obvious. If you’re in a creative field like photography, design, or marketing, e-v-e-r-y-o-n-e has a brand overflowing with emotion and personality. Tech and medical industries? Not so much. You’ll want to be on a similar “wavelength”, but it’s important not to blend into the competition. You don’t want your brand to sound like everyone else in your niche, you want your brand to sound authentically you, and attract those dream clients that we talked about.
Show, don’t tell.
Obviously I will tout the importance of copywriting until the end of time, but your visual brand is equally important. Let your visuals do the work for you. Everything from your color palette and your typefaces, to your website layout and business card design reveals something about you and attracts a particular kind of client to you. Work with a designer to create brand collateral that will resonate with people at first glance.
Don’t use emotional “fluff” — or use it wisely.
Yes, there are lots of exciting buzzwords out there and yes, in a world with so many small business owners, it’s tempting to feel like you have to throw yourself out there as much as possible. I’ve seen plenty of brands that use flowery phrasing, share their wackiest hobbies, their favorite beverages, and their dream travel destinations. Don’t get me wrong, all of that is totally fine, and very well may be what helps you land leads! A word of caution though: don’t let your services get lost in a haze of personality. If you’re only going over-the-top because you feel like everyone else is too, it’s easy to spot. Feel out what is authentic to you - you don’t have to force it!
Push just outside of your comfort zone.
If the description you just wrote for the front page of your website takes up, well, the entire page - scale back. What would it look and feel like to express as much as possible with as few words as possible? Being more succinct will encourage people to keep reading. (Shout out to you readers with decent attention spans who are still with me!)
If your “about me” is three sentences long, open up a little more. What makes you, you? Why do you love your business? What kind of hobby or interest can you share? Letting people in will foster connection, which in turn will foster more interest in working with you than your awesome business skills alone.
Want to learn exactly how to put all of this into practice? Sign up below to receive your free brand voice guide template.
*Let’s just be honest, Carrie was the worst!
