![\"\"](\"https:\/\/imagemme.com\/newsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/BrandVoice.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The copy is Jan, Scottie Pippen, New Jersey. The design is Marsha, Michael Jordan, New York. In a visual world, this is natural. Nevertheless, brand voice remains a powerful asset. By ignoring it brands rip up potential equity, or, worse, create inconsistency and misrepresentation.<\/p>\n
Some brands value voice but leverage it terribly.<\/p>\n
This generally happens in one of two ways. They say too much or talk too loud. The advertisement is overflowing with words, as if the Creative Director said,\u00a0Let\u2019s just fill the whole thing up, doesn\u2019t even matter what they say<\/em>, or the advertisement is shouting at you, as if the Strategist said,\u00a0Let\u2019s just scream, doesn\u2019t even matter if they listen as long as they hear<\/em>.<\/p>\n Neither of these are sound\u2014pun intended\u2014strategies.<\/p>\n A brand voice can be anything\/anyone\u2014we\u2019ve all been to the Archetype parade\u2014but The Friendly Scientist and the Polished Epicurean must pass the same simple test: they have to be someone you want to engage with!<\/p>\n Think about it literally. Do you want to talk with someone who never shuts up? With someone who shouts at you?<\/p>\n One emerging brand recently chose to express the exclusivity of their premium product with a voice that revels in its own obnoxiousness. We know this person in real life. They\u2019re entertaining. We engage them maybe for maybe ten minutes, maybe one product, but not for the entire party, not for an ongoing consumer relationship.<\/p>\n It\u2019s OK to be a character, just not a caricature. Brand voices should be human voices. Speak at a reasonable volume, and remember to pause for breath. Otherwise, your brand is likely to go hoarse.<\/p>\n