PPB November 2020

Strike The Right Tone How to develop a tone of voice for brands that evokes the emotional response you want. by Devon Delfino T one of voice is the way you communicate your message—it dictates the way that an audience interprets the words. And it’s a key part of your brand voice. Put another way, tone of voice is the way you say something out loud, whereas “tone” usually refers to the written word (though many sites will conflate the two, particularly when referring to branding). Either way, however, tone dictates how the audience will feel about the message. It can reveal intent as well as character. If you’re going to build a strong brand, tone matters. Here’s what else you need to know about tone and crafting the best one for your clients’ brands. The four key components of your brand tone of voice are: • Word choice • Punctuation • Message placement • Sentence structure Each of these four components can change the way the audience feels about your message and how they respond to it. A single message can be written using any manner of tones; the key is deciding which tone is most effective. And depending on the factors mentioned above, those can make the audience feel anything from dismissed to empowered, befriended to neutral. If the tone isn’t right, the audience may leave feeling insulted or angry. Or if the tone strikes the right chords, it can make the audience stay and listen. What’s the difference between brand voice and brand tone? Tone does play into brand voice, but the two are not synonymous. Brand voice is the written expression of a brand. It’s what the brand—if it could speak— would sound like. Tone of voice, on the other hand, is the way a given piece of communication is Luis Molinero / 300 librarians / Shutterstock.com. If you’re going to build a strong brand, tonematters. 38 | NOVEMBER 2020 | INNOVATE