PPB November 2020

delivered. Tone is what creates the emotional impact, and that can shape both how the recipient feels about themselves and about the brand. Voice is the writing style or unique flair that an author gives their writing. Tone is the way a message is presented. How To Develop Tone Of Voice For Your Client’s Brand 1 To develop the right tone for your brand, you’ll need to know a few key details: • What is the company trying to accomplish— both overall and through a given piece of communication? • What tone has the brand used previously? • What are the company’s core values? Review previously published communications, like blogs and social media posts, to understand previous tones. Ask for audience impressions to help you gauge where you stand. Combined, this information will give you a good idea about the kind of goals you want to accomplish, which will help shape the tone. 2 Understand your target audience. Tone can easily be mistreated if you don’t have a firm grasp of who your audience is and where they’re coming from. To combat this problem head- on, it’s worth conducting research into your client company’s ideal audience and what appeals to them. You should know key demographics, such as age range, where they live, common interests and how they like to communicate and learn. Keep in mind that things may change depending on the platform you’re using to communicate, whether it’s social media, a blog, an e-newsletter, etc. 3 Think about the four dimensions of tone of voice. According to Nielson’s principles for tone of voice, there are four sliding scales to consider: • Funny vs. serious • Formal vs. casual • Respectful vs. irreverent • Enthusiastic vs. matter of fact These are useful tools for understanding where the brand’s current tone falls, as well as for getting a visual representation of what tone you want to use going forward. You can use these umbrella tones to gather lists of words that fit beneath each of these categories, with consideration for your desired position along the spectrum. By using those words in your messaging, you can more easily craft your ideal tone. 4 Create tone-of-voice guidelines. Once you take the above information into account and have a solid idea of what the company’s tone sounds like, it’s time to put that idea into practice, typically as part of a brand style guide (see resources below). The “tone” section should include basic guidance, such as what a good tone sounds like versus what the company is trying to avoid, and providing examples for the reader in several contexts, such as blog posts or social media. The more information you can provide, the easier it will be for people to stick to the desired tone. 5 Keep your tone of voice up to date. As with brand voice, tone is something that may not be static throughout the life of a business. Additional Resources To CraftThe Right Tone Brand Style Guide: writer.com/blog/styleguide-examples The Ultimate Guide To Brand Voice: writer.com/brand-voice Nielsen Norman Group’s Four Dimensions Of Tone Of Voice: nngroup.com/articles/tone-of-voice-dimensions Voice is the writing style or unique flair that an author gives their writing. Tone is the way amessage is presented. | NOVEMBER 2020 | 39 INNOVATE