Your Business Lingo: How to Find it and How to Use it

  At Dawning Digital, we tend to go on about the importance of a strong brand identity and brand voice. We only care about it so much because it makes a HUGE difference in your communication strategy.   Finding your brand’s voice and crafting your business lingo will allow you to connect with your audience in a unique manner.  It’s how you will draw them in.   However, it’s not as easy as it seems. Just like finding your own identity and voice, you’ve got to break it down and get super honest with yourself. Yes, it’s a lot of “who am I? Searching but it makes you stronger, it makes you more distinguishable.   The good news is: you have us to hold your hand through it. By the end of this article, not only will you get a better sense of your brand but you will also have a much clearer communication strategy to implement.

What is Your Brand’s Voice?

In short, your brand’s voice is what the consumer should hear whenever they come into contact with your brand. Whether it’s a casual social media post or a more concrete marketing plan, it needs to shine through.   Each day, consumers are facing an influx of different brands. They hear them on TV, podcasts, the internet and each voice are calling out to them, begging them for attention. It can get crowded, true but when it’s done properly, it’s easy to be distinguished from the masses!   Your brand’s voice lies in the little details but has a huge impact. It lies in the tone of voice, the little business lingo choices you make and the way in which you interact with those around you.   In other words, it’s not necessarily about what you’re saying but more about how you’re saying it.  

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How to Find Your Business’ Voice?

Unlike all the self-help books I’ve read information out there, finding the right business lingo doesn’t have to be too daunting. In fact, it can be quite fun and gives you the chance to dive into your ideal customer’s psyche deeper.   Here are a few steps that you can follow to help you develop your brand’s voice:

• Establish the brand’s basics.

  Your brand’s voice does make up the fundamentals to your brand’s identity but there are a few things you can do in the meantime.   You can think about your business’ goals, what inspires your brand, and what your brand aspires to be. You have to define what makes you, you.   Don’t run away just yet! We have a guide that will help you through this intimate process.  

• Take a Look at Your Competitors

They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery, but that depends on how far you take it. Look, we’re not saying that you should go ahead and copy what your competitors are doing but it’s a great way to test out the waters and see what you don’t want to do.   Analyzing your competitors will help you get a sense of the market. It can show you how they’re interacting with your possible consumer, how they’re succeeding and how they’re following.   From there, you will have a firmer grip on what you want your brand to sound like and what you can do to establish your voice from the crowd.  

• Research Your Customers

At the end of your day, your customer comes first. They’re the ones you want to attract and delight, right? So, you’ve got to find out what exactly what makes them happy!   Here are some questions that you can ask yourself:

• What will attract my customers to my product?
• What makes my business special?
• What’s unique about my business?
• What will add value to my customer’s life?
• What are my customer’s pain points and how can I address those?

  Once you establish these fundamentals, you’ll be able to get into your customers’ minds! A great way to find these answers is to go where your customers go. Troll Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Quora, Pinterest and even Tumblr if it applies to your customer.  

• Personify Your Brand

Now that you’ve put in the groundwork, you can start visualizing your brand as a person. We like to think that helps pull things into reality.   Once you have an idea of who your brand would be and how they would act as a person, the voice will start flowing! Think about, social media is constantly allowing brands to interact on a human level, right? So, what would your brand, as a person, look and sound like? How would they respond to these situations in real life?  

  No matter what you do or what you come up with, just write it down! You can always come back to it with a fresh, open mind and find a gem amongst the scribbles.  

How to Use Your Business Lingo

A common misconception that some people fall for is that your brand voice has to be witty and quirky. In our opinion, this is most certainly not true.   Yes, having fun and eccentric is entertaining BUT is it relevant to your brand? That’s why it’s so important to establish your brand’s core identity before developing your voice.   Let’s look at an example, shall we?   If we had a huge pharmaceutical company that’s trying to sell migraine medication, would you trust them if they responded to your enquiry with something comical? Probably not. In fact, you’d probably be turned off as they weren’t providing you with factual information, right?   On the other hand, let’s say you had a gin and tonic festival that targets people in their 20s. That target market is hugely different than the target market that battles with migraines, right? This audience might be more open to a quirky voice and it would be well suited to the brand as the voice will help hype up the event.   Do you see how your brand’s voice lies solely on who your brand is rather than what?     Your brand’s voice is relevant to every contact point that you have with your customer. From your website to emails, to your social media and even your customer services.   Your brand’s voice encapsulates who your brand is. You’ve just got to make sure it’s a good one!

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