Tips To Establish and Maintain a Consistent Brand Voice and Message in Your Press Release Content
Your brand voice is how your company expresses your message. It has two primary components; tone and style. Combined, your voice impacts every single marketing piece from your advertisements to your social media interactions. And even with a format that is as structured as a press release, it’s important for your voice to come through and for it to be consistent.
A consistent voice helps strengthen your brand and create a better experience for your prospects and customers.
1. Consistent Language – People tend to shift how they speak depending on their marketing channel. For example, you may be more casual on social media than you are in your case studies. While some variance and adjustments may be okay between different channels (although that’s debatable), it’s essential that you maintain consistent language within a specific channel. For example, don’t use industry-speak in one press release, and laymen’s terms in another.
2. Consistent Formatting – Style is part of your voice. When you create a style for your press releases, stick with it. Consistency earns trust with your audience and with journalists. Think about the structure of your social media press release.
Do you have share buttons at the top and bottom of the page? That’s where they should stay. If you include links to videos and supporting content in the right hand sidebar of the release, then again, that’s where they should stay.
Of course, it’s important to point out that there may need to be some initial testing to find out what works best. However, those changes should be small and stand alone and eventually you’ll likely find an ideal format.
3. Consistent Images – Images including photos, graphs, and infographics are all part of a modern press release. Your images should reflect your brand and they should be consistent. For example, you might always place a blue border around photographs and your logo is always positioned in the bottom right hand corner.
4. Storytelling – Consider how you use quotes and share information in your press releases. Are your stories poignant? Are they entertaining or do they motivate and inspire? Your storytelling should ultimately reflect your brand voice because it’s a powerful component of your press release and one of the easiest ways to create consistency.
5. Headlines – There are many different types of headlines. Some arouse curiosity in the reader, others make a promise. Match the wording of your headlines to your brand voice. Also test and track and find a headline style that attracts attention for your releases, and then use that style for the majority of your releases. For example, if you’re a personal coach then your voice may be friendly. Your headline style may both appeal to emotions and make promises to your audience.
The first step to maintaining a consistent brand voice is to create one. It should reflect your mission and values as well as your target audience. Your brand voice is part of your entire marketing strategy. It builds trust with your prospects and creates a unified experience. Don’t forget to use your voice consistently in your press releases too.