Over the years, many new business calls or meetings with potential clients have started with, “We need messaging. We need to tell our story.”
Your brand strategy drives everything. It’s pretty obvious where and how the visual brand is used in your business…logo, signage, Instagram feed, etc. But beyond “the story,” sometimes businesses are not sure where and when they will use their brand messaging. The answer is everywhere if you want to build a strategic brand that improves business performance.
We recommend that your brand messaging be written in a way that is conversational, resonates with your audience and is REAL copy, not just copy points or brand pillars. This way, it can be picked up and used easily by you, your team, and in any situation.
Company Script. To get us started, let’s think about the brand experience for your customers. Your team is the first line of defense of your brand. If your employees or contractors are not living up to or communicating the brand correctly, that’s the quickest way to unravel your brand strategy. Think of your brand messaging as a script for your team to use when they are talking about your company and your offers. Examples of where they might use this is answering the phone, at a trade show, in a sales pitch, or in any day-to-day experience with your clients.
Website Copy. Writing copy for a website can be a daunting task. Don’t reinvent the wheel when it comes to content. Start with your brand messaging. Your home page should include your brand statement and a brief intro into your three key messages. Utilize your full key messages and supporting points on other pages located on your main navigation.
PR/Interviews/Podcasts. Being interviewed by the press, an influencer, podcaster, etc. is exciting. Earned media from these sources really goes a long way in furthering your brand awareness. But what do you say? What should your key takeaways be in the interview? Base your talking points off your brand messaging. Let your key messages be your guidepost and use the messaging verbatim to give yourself more confidence and to stay on track.
Social Media Content. At some point, every brand faces the challenge of what to say on social. Creating content on a regular basis, 52 weeks a year, is a lot. Your brand messaging can serve as not only an outline for your social media strategy but also as evergreen content (content that is relevant, whatever the season) on your editorial calendar. It’s important to weave-in to your social media your brand pillars and no better way to do this than sprinkling in your brand messaging throughout the year.
Pitch Deck. Most companies have in their marketing toolkit a pitch deck or sales proposal. You may have multiple employees selling or creating bids. Keep these on brand and consistent with a template that is not only designed utilizing your visual brand but also includes your brand messaging. It’s important for your team to be communicating the same brand story to every potential customer.
Videos, Collateral, Marketing Campaigns. Your copy on videos, brochures, ads, and sales materials needs to speak from your competitive position and clearly define your value proposition. The best way to maintain consistency in your messaging is to pull it from your brand strategy brief – which is where your brand messaging should live, always.
Networking. Every networking situation calls for you to introduce yourself and your company. The brand statement from your messaging is your elevator speech. Be sure to share your brand strategy messaging document with anyone on your team that is networking on the company’s behalf.
A brand strategy is meant to be used on a regular basis. If you are not using your brand messaging or NEED messaging, grab a spot on our calendar to schedule a free 30 minute consultation.
