Here's a fun and easy way to create a voice that your customers will think is pretty bad ass...
Sound as if you are talking directly toyour ideal client! Fairly simple really. You should use language that they would
connect with, as if it's coming from a dear friend or someone they look up to. The best is if it sounds like it's coming from someone who is where they want to be.
This means that the common boring straightforward, one-size-fits all professional, "blah, blah blah blah" doesn't really work. It's more important than ever to stick out
and differentiate yourself from the competition, by creating a unique voice that sounds like a real person! Better yet a funny, exciting and sexy person if that is what your ideal client wants!!!
You
can do this by giving your business an actual personality, one that communicates in a way that resonates with your ideal client and where they want to be. Think about it for a moment, if your business was an actual person, what sort of personality characteristics would it have? Sassy? Funny? Smart?
So let's say you have a
diet product, and your ideal client is 30 lbs overweight and ready to
make a change in their life to become healthy. You would want
the voice and messaging speaking to the ideal from a future position,
speaking to their fears and frustrations and showing the solution.
Example of a headline "Say goodbye to those thirty pounds once and for all, lady! Guaranteed!"
This sort of message, shows the target being identified, the result they're trying to achieve and it addresses their fear of spending money on another diet program that may not work. Also Note: You should be speaking about the results, not process.
"Don't tell me about YOUR manure, tell me about MY flowers."
I've created a little image for you to remember this more clearly!!
Remember this quote as you are writing for your customers -- think about it, which one is prettier?
Here are some examples of ideal targets being
called out in messaging ---- Here is one of my favorite websites for
women entrepreneurs! Chic-Ceo.com
Notice
how it says "Get some kick ass biz knowledge" and "Become a Chic Siren
and help other savvy ladies like you" --- This is an example of
non-traditional marketing voice that totally speaks to an entrepreneurial female target, that is edgy, stylish, creative and outside the box
and is the CEO of her own company. See how specific this is!? It
even says "Entrepreneurs with Style" as their tagline, specifically reaching those entrepreneurs that want to be seen as "stylish" and not as boring.
One of their marketing emails looked like this!
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
SUBJECT: A Logo Is Not A Brand, Darling.
Have you ever wondered how to create a brand? Like really create one?
Your brand is the all encompassing essence of your business. Just like your personality, morals and values are the essence of you. For instance, famous brands like Nike, Apple, Starbucks - they didn't just create a logo and say, "Alright fellas! We're done for the day!". Now these three companies enjoy the benefits of using their logo without their company name and enjoy the brand recognition - twas not always so.
What did they do? They created a brand then operationalized it. Think of it like creating a plan then executing against it. They single-handedly infused their brand into every nook and cranny until we, as consumers, were seduced. When we see a "swoosh" we know exactly what it means, what it feels like and what it stands for. There are also some brands that are confusing and leave us wondering what and who they are. (Pssst.... don't be one of those brands, hot stuff.)
Wondering how to create a brand and put it into operation? Read on Sister...
You're so pretty,
Stephanie & Jody
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The
use of "darling, hot stuff, sister" could come across as being sassy, borderline condescending, and totally charming! I could easily identify with acting and being all of those things so it was like music to my ears! I LOVE being sassy so I like it when businesses act sassy too!
Funny story about that email actually: I had a bid out for a branding project at the time that I had received this email and was waiting for a response from a project manager, whom I hadn't met yet. I got this message I was half asleep and thought it was from the project manager that I hadn't met yet, and my heart started beating really fast.... I thought I was getting an email from someone telling me that I didn't know what I was doing! You know.... "A logo is not a brand, darling!"--
Then I realized "Oh! it was just an email marketing piece" but since it was plain text, and I was half asleep, but I literally JUMPED out of bed when I read this. The point is it caught my attention and I'll never forget it! Much different than just another boring newsletter or sales email! I also liked it so much I instantly became one of their customers, signed up for their monthly Siren Program.
See, creative targeted, personality-filled messaging really does work!
To sum this up, Chic Ceo is an example of a brand that is very specifically targeted. Some people will feel left out, and that is actually okay--- because for all those that are feeling left out, the people that they are reaching feel as if this messaging was written just for them! A more devoted, emotionally involved customer means a customer who follows you, listens to you and ultimately buys from you!
