What is Sticky Brand Voice? Your 101 Guide to Brand Voice Strategy
Lil Key Takeaways: This Blog at a Glance
Brand voice is a big deal: It’s more than just a buzzword—it’s crucial for catching the attention of your dream customers
Brand voice is your neon welcome sign: In a chaotic online world, your unique voice helps you stand out and get noticed
It’s a fusion, not a character: Your brand voice is a blend of who you are and what your audience needs—no need to pretend to be someone else
You already have a brand voice: It’s not something new you need to create; it’s about refining and refreshing what’s already there
Clear, bold, consistent, and sticky: The best brand voices are straightforward, daring, reliably present, and memorable
It’s not just about the words: Brand voice is how you deliver your messaging to make it resonate and stick with your audience
Stand out, be liked, and be remembered: A strong brand voice helps people trust you, like you, and keep coming back
Ready to get sticky?: Embrace your voice, stay consistent, and make sure your audience can’t forget you
Everything You Need to Know About Brand Voice & Brand Voice Strategy
Brand voice is one of those buzzwords we all hear all the time.
It’s like messaging or funnel or strategy. You know, words we–as business owners–have to care about but also inherently dread because, most of the time, we’re too busy running our actual businesses to decode the sales lingo behind the buzzword.
But like messaging and funnel and strategy, brand voice is one of those buzzwords that actually matters. And taking the time to discover, refresh, and refine your sticky lil voice is actually the key to getting your dream people to stop their scrolls and pay attention.
This blog explains brand voice as a concept, sure, but it’s also going to dive into a Boundless Copy specialty– sticky brand voice. That’s something you’ll hear about constantly if you spend time around us on Instagram, join our Hey Pal Club (email list), or just bop around our site for a clip.
The main moral of the story: Brand voice doesn’t have to be intimidating, and it is something every business owner needs to get comfy with so their dream people can hear them loud and clear (and then come running).
Flipping on the Neon Welcome Sign: Brand Voice 101
First things first – what is brand voice?
Everybody in the marketing and branding world has their own unique lil idea about what brand voice is.
Here’s the Boundless Copy definition:
Brand voice is the consistent & curated personality, vibe, & attitude of your brand when presenting itself to the world.
That makes sense, in theory–but it’s pretty abstract. Let’s make it concrete.
Imagine your dream people are driving down a dark, chaotic highway in the desert. There are tons of dim signs off in the distance with vague details about spots with vacancies. Tumbleweeds are flying; cars are whizzing past. It’s a blur. They’re looking for someone just like you, but they’re driving too quickly and are far too distracted to take the time to dig for info to get to you.
Your brand voice – your special, quirky, standout brand voice – flips on the brightest neon welcome sign on the road. They notice you! It doesn’t matter that there are hundreds of other options all around you – your sticky, standout voice flipped on the neon welcome sign that will direct them straight to you.
That’s how your brand voice works on the internet.
It’s chaotic, distracting, and there are innumerable people in your field that are kinda like you (but aren’t you). How do you get your ideal customer to notice you on the chaotic highway?
You flip on the neon welcome sign to stand out.
The #1 Most Important Thing About Brand Voice–Brand Voice is a Fusion
A lot of people believe that brand voice is a character you develop to appeal to your dream crowd. Then, you teach yourself how to tap into it when talking to your ideal audience.
Boundless doesn’t have a lot of hot takes, but we do on this particular matter – that’s not how we interpret brand voice.
Here’s a specific, Boundless belief about brand voice:
Brand voice is the perfect lil fusion of who you already are and who your dream audience needs you to be.
That means it’s never a you vs. your people thing. Your absolute peak brand voice is your voice– but with a plot twist.
And that plot twist is that it is you, but you at your absolute best, doing the absolute most–speaking to your dream audience's wants, needs, & desires.
It’s you at your funniest, most charming, or most approachable. In other words, it’s the refined and refreshed version of you!
The #2 Most Important Thing About Brand Voice–It Already Exists
That Boundless-specific belief about brand voice being a fusion leads to another Boundless-specific belief–we are never creating a voice from scratch.
Your brand voice isn’t a character or an archetype that we’re dreaming up and hoping it sticks.
We’re taking your voice that already exists, and we’re refining & refreshing – because that’s who your dream people are looking for. They’re your dream people because they like you, vibe with you, and want you.
We never design or devise a brand voice – we simply dig for the one that already exists.
Copy vs. Brand Voice vs Messaging – Uncomplicate the Copy Lingo
Brand voice is one of those things that often gets all muddied up and confused with other elements of copy.
When non-writers hear writing lingo, they get intimated. And we all have those words. For example, before I was a copywriter, the word “messaging” sent me for a freakin’ loop until I fully understood what it was.
Getting something in YOUR terms can make it not just less scary but a lot easier to start tackling. So let’s make this really clear from the get-go with a lil vocab lesson:
Copy: all the words that support your business, offers, presence, & how you talk to your people. These are the words you write for your website, your Instagram, your offers–anything you’re writing for your biz, that’s copy.
Messaging: the WHAT behind the words–who you are, what you do, your unique selling points, what makes you/ your offer different. Basically, it’s the WHAT your dream people need you to know.
Brand Voice: the HOW behind your words – the personality and the vibe you use to deliver messaging in a way that sticks w/ your dream people
So, how does this all work together?
MESSAGING + STICKY BRAND VOICE = COPY THAT FLIPS ON THE NEON WELCOME SIGN FOR YOUR DREAM PEOPLE.
Your special lil brand voice can help connect, click, & stick with your dream people and inspire them to take action (AKA, buy from you!)
Why Tapping Into Your Sticky Brand Voice Matters
We’ve covered a lot of ground in the what is brand voice? camp. Now let’s tackle the important stuff–why any of this matters for business owners and service pros like you.
If there are multiple elements that make up great copy that gets attention and sells to your ideal audience (messaging, sales psychology, etc.) – why are we putting such a big emphasis on brand voice?
There are a couple of reasons:
Clear messaging (no matter how hype it is) is nothing without a clear, sticky brand voice. Messaging might be the what you’re delivering, but brand voice is the vehicle you use to deliver that messaging in a way that clicks and sticks with your people. You could spend forever mapping out your clear messaging–but if you’re not delivering it in a way that’s memorable…what’s the point? All that work–what did it get you?
Brand voice shows your dream people WHY you’re for them. We all say, “People want to buy from people.” And yeah, that’s kind of true, but that’s not really enough. People want to buy from people they like. They want to buy from people they trust. They want to buy from people they’d hang out with, walk their dogs with, grab a beer with, or ally with on Survivor. Your voice is your personality–it IS that piece that opens the door for people to say, “You know what? I think I like this brand.”
It makes you memorable, and that gives you a competitive edge. It’s no secret that our industries are saturated. And sure, you can and do stand out – maybe with your skills, maybe with your results. But brand voice is one of those things that give you the edge because it shows that you’re more than just a hella talented industry pro – you’re a hella talented industry pro with a voice that cuts through the chaos and noise. You’re memorable, and that matters.
You’re top of mind and creating active brain associations: If you have a memorable (sticky) and clear voice, your people will start associating you with your industry. When they think of a need that relates to your industry, your voice ends up ringing in their head, not the blend of other voices they’re hearing from your industry.
Remember, the point of your brand voice is to represent you but also to flip on the neon welcome sign for your dream people.
It’s the element they’ll connect with, click with, like, trust, and remember.
What Every Business Brand Voice Strategy Should Be
You already know it’s good to stand out and stick with your ideal audience. But how do you use your voice to do it? And further, what does a memorable (sticky!) and impactful brand voice sound like in the first place?
Every brand’s voice is unique – and that’s kind of the magic of it. But after nearly 10 years of helping brands dig into their special lil voices, I’ve noticed the most impactful ones have these things in common.
Clear: Successful brand voices are clear. These brands understand why they sound the way they do, and they fully grasp the unique overlap between who they already are and who their dream people are looking for. They get that it’s not a muddy blend of guessing. In other words, if you come at your brand voice from a confused, muddy place–that’s how it will come off. If you come at your brand voice from a clear place of thoughtfulness and understanding–that’s how your audience will hear it, too.
Bold: Being bold doesn’t mean being the loudest or wildest in the room. A bold brand voice means embracing exactly the brand voice that’s right for you and your dream people. Bold brand voices embrace what they have that sets them apart, and they reject the need to blend into their industry to sound a certain way.
Consistent: A one-of-a-kind brand voice doesn’t count if you’re not leaning on it at every turn. Brand’s with impactful voices understand their voices, corral what they know about them into useful tools, and then actually use their voice at every turn (consistently!) The more you show up with your clear voice, the more your people are going to recognize you and say, “Heeeeeey…I know that brand.”
Sticky: Your voice should make your audience do a double-take–then make sure they never forget you. Brands who get this understand that it’s what sets them apart that makes this happen. Think about your unique vocabulary. The way you say something, how you talk to people, the quirky phrase you use, your goofy humor–whatever it is. It’s these memorable elementsthat stick with them and signal that you’re for them.
Discovering Your Brand Voice – How to Dig in, Refresh, & Refine Your Sticky Voice
It’s one thing to understand the idea of a brand voice–it’s another to put that concept to work for you.
If you’re a business owner ready to embrace your sticky brand voice, use it consistently, and flip on your neon welcome sign for your people, you need to do a lil work to dig in, refine, and refresh your voice.
That means getting clear on your voice, gathering everything you learn in a toolkit, staying consistent, and getting sticky.
Here are three steps you can take right now to give your brand voice a spit shine.
Go Digging – Ask & Answer Big Important Questions About Your Brand
Remember, your brand voice isn’t about starting from scratch – it’s about going digging to figure out what your voice sounds like, and how it makes you different and memorable.
Ask & Answer the Big Exciting Questions
That digging is discovery. It’s hard work, but it’s worth it–and it’ll help you answer questions about why your brand is special.
Brand voice is what you sound like, but it’s your foundation, too. That means it includes things like:
What your brand is built on (your mission!)
What sets you apart (your POV!)
Your brand’s origin story
How your people feel when they hear you
The clearer you get on your foundation, the clearer you can communicate it with your voice.
To do that, you’ve got to ask and answer deep questions, like:
How do I want my dream people to feel when they interact with me?
What makes me different from every other industry pro out there?
And those are just the start!
This is one of the first steps we teach in our free Brand Voice Bootcamp – a 5-day email challenge that helps you take your brand voice from blaaaah to bold.
We run this about four times a year, so sign up, join the list, and don’t miss out on this free chance to refresh a sticky voice!
Start Listening – Pay Attention to Your Personality (& Take Note)
Once you start tapping into the magic of your brand’s voice, you need to start diggin’ into your personality. Your vibe is what brings your voice to life!
To do this, you need to start listening to yourself– start paying attention to how you speak so you can incorporate some of your go-to words, phrases, taglines, isms, and themes into your consistent brand voice.
Here’s the easiest secret in the world to start paying attention to yourself: The Brand Voice Dictionary.
This is an informal version of something we do for all my copywriting clients and something we always teach other business owners how to do. (We also obviously have our own).
The Brand Voice Dictionary is a note (on your phone, on your computer) where you collect the words, phrases, and isms that you say on a regular basis.
Here’s how to start your own brand voice dictionary in 5 quick steps.
Open your notes app. Blank note, title it [Your Brand Name] Brand Dictionary
Write yourself a lil reminder that this is an informal tip sheet w/ raw data (it don’t gotta be perfect!)
Start writing down words, phrases, taglines, & isms that are YOUR brand. Take notice of the things you say and write.
Record yourself when you talk to your clients – what do you say often? What’s a go-to phrase for you? Ask your loved ones for your words and phrases (they’ll have some).
Add it all to this note and reference it EVERY time you sit down to write somethin’ on any platform
This is not a substitution for a full & cohesive brand voice discovery–but it’s a hella good start and a great way to DIY that crucial consistency piece.
Refresh & Refine – Build (& Use) a Brand Voice Guide
Remember how we said your brand voice is you, but you at your absolute best? That means you’re dishing out the refined version of your voice. It’s your authentic self at your A+ game, being your absolute best and doing the absolute most.
You're dishing out your authenticity at every touch point so that wherever your audience interacts with you, they think, “this brand is for me.”
So how do we refine your voice to the point that we know every time you use it it’s giving everything you’ve got? We create a brand voice guide you can pop open and use time and again – think of it like a mood board, but for your voice.
You can flip your guide open, compare it to what you’re writing and ask, “is this really my voice and my vibe?” Think of it like a Pinterest board that makes sure you’re always being true to you.
Not sure where to start on your Brand Voice Guide?
We’ve got a mini-course all about helping you ask and answer the big, exciting questions, tap into your vibes, and create a brand voice guide you can use time and again to stick with your people.
Brand Voice Roundup teaches you how wrangle a reliable, reusable brand voice guide so your dream people hear you loud and clear (and then come running).
How Boundless Can Help You Refine Your Sticky Brand Voice
We mentioned Brand Voice Bootcamp (our free, 5-day email challenge that takes your voice from blah to bold) and Brand Voice Roundup (our mini-course that shows you how to create & use your own brand voice guide)–but we can also help you curate your brand voice strategy one-on-one.
Wanna chat about what a brand voice strategy session looks like? Drop us a line on our contact page and give us a holler about brand voice – we’d love to chat more about refining and refreshing your sticky brand voice!
