What's Inside the Blog
Whenever I talk to people who are new to the world of brand voice, content, and copywriting, I end up getting a roundabout question that’s basically something like, “Why does branded content matter? Isn’t having something up on my site (branded or not) better than having nothing on my site at all?”
To be totally honest, the answer to that question is yes.
Something is usually better than nothing at all on your site.
The fact of the matter is if you want to succeed in a digital marketing world, you need digital content. And having something up is more than likely going to do you more favors than having non-existent content on your site.
But there’s a little bit of a plot twist to this answer.
Sure. Having something up matters. But having something better–AKA strategic branded content– up is going to:
- Attract your ideal audience more seamlessly
- Communicate more clearly
- Establish your brand’s personality, mission, and goals
- Show your audience who you are and what you’re about
- Create stronger connections and promote brand loyalty
- Present you as an authority in the industry
Of course, there’s more to it than just those points, but I think that’s a pretty good starting point, right?
To sum it up, branded content is just better. And if you’re a business looking to reach your audience, make sales, and provide value, isn’t the best, well…better?
What Does Brand Voice Have to do with Branded Content?
I might get heat for this definition, but we’re going to roll with it.
In my professional opinion, branded content is anything you’re putting up on your digital platforms (websites, social media, email marketing campaigns, etc.) that is strategically crafted with your brand’s voice and mission in mind.
That means when you’re writing an email campaign, you’re not just throwing words up on the page hoping they do the job.
You (or your professional copywriter) should use strategy, research, and brand guidelines to write content that does powerful branding work for you.
It’s important to realize that every touchpoint you have is a powerful opportunity to communicate and market to your audience.
You want them to have a cohesive experience with your brand, right? That’s where branding and marketing come in.
But branded content isn’t just a smattering of words. Branded content is a message that fully resonates with your target audience. Branded content is your business’ truth.
Branded content is an experience that adds value at every turn.
How High-Quality, Branded Copy Gets Your Message Across
You’ve got a message to get out to your audience.
But here’s the catch–the way you communicate with your audience has to be strategic, even if it’s supposed to come off seamlessly.
So, to answer that whole “why does branding copy or brand voice content matter” question, here’s the answer. Branded copy gets your message across. And here’s how.
Copy in Your Brand Voice is Persuasive
People assume that persuasive writing is reserved only for sale copywriting. (If you’re thinking, “what’s the difference between copywriting and branded content writing, don’t worry–that’s heading your way in an upcoming blog).
Branded content writing might not be actively and obviously creating conversions, but that doesn’t mean it’s not meant to be persuasive.
Your branded content is all about gaining trust, getting your audience on board with your brand, introducing your missions, keeping them engaged, and providing them value.
But the ultimate goal is to persuade them to believe in you, build brand loyalty, and become a customer, right?
Sales copywriting is a powerful tool–but you can’t just throw sales copy at a customer in the first step of their customer journey. You need to build trust, establish authority, and tell your story first.
Branded copy is subtly persuasive without being over the top. Branded copy is indirect, casual, and meant to tell your story.
But if you do it right, it’s strategic. It’s meant to gently push your audience toward some of that more on-the-nose persuasive copy–and then that copy can do its job far more effectively.
Brand Voice Creates Powerful Brand Loyalty
Believe it or not, branded content helps you build up your brand loyalty arsenal.
The more compelling, informative, and brand-specific content you can offer your target audience, the more you’ll resonate with your audience. That means better brand recall.
An IPG-Media Lab-led study reported that brand recall is 59% higher for branded content than for other digital ads.
You likely know this, but brand recall is the very first step in building powerful brand loyalty.
And putting emphasis on brand loyalty pays off in a big way.
According to Press Board Media, branded content is 22x more engaging than display ads. They say “readers spend an average of 36 seconds engaging with written branded content, which is significantly higher than the average 1.6 seconds they spend with a banner ad.”
Copy in Your Brand Voice is Informative
If you’re doing it right, your branded copy is giving your ideal audience everything they need to start their customer journey with you.
It’s guiding them down the right customer path, it’s offering information about your brand, it’s providing value proposition, and it’s seamlessly guiding them toward becoming a first-time customer (and then a regular customer).
Branded copy is all about providing your target audience with real value. That means it should do a few things:
- Give your audience insight about who you are
- Explain to your audience where you came from
- Offer insight into your goals, missions, and plans
- Relate to the audience and empathize with their problems
- Paint your audience as the hero of their own story (more on that in a moment)
- Offer free, valuable information on your site and socials
Your Your Brand Voice Compelling
If you’re offering your customers (or readers or audience, whatever you want to call them) branded content, what you’re really offering them is a compelling story. The best way to think about branded content is to consider it your brand’s version of storytelling.
Neal Schaffer actually has a fabulous blog on what good branded content is and isn’t. On the blog, they also directly compare branded content to good storytelling (it’s a fairly common comparison in the industry for good reason).
The piece I always tell my clients to focus on, though, is keeping things compelling. I’m not saying that your branded content is going to keep everyone interested. But it should keep your target audience interested.
Copy in Your Brand Voice is Relatable
The right kind of branded content isn’t just going to provide customers with what they need to know about you. It’s also going to understand your ideal audience better than ever.
It’s not just going to throw products and services at a problem; it’s going to express to its readers that it understands and acknowledges the problem they’re facing.
There’s a great book out there (that I highly recommend to literally anyone who talks to me for more than five seconds) called Building a Story Brand that discusses this concept at great length. I’ll sum it up for you (but I still encourage you to read that book if you’re a brand owner or manager).
Essentially, the book emphasizes that your branded copy should be focused on who you are–but it needs to focus on your customers, too.
Companies that focus on their customers tend to be more successful. And that makes sense, right? As a consumer, you want to invest in a company that understands you and empathizes with you, then gives you tools to solve your problems.
But above all, you, as the consumer, want to solve your own problems.
Deloitte and Touche released a report that said companies that were customer-centric were about 60% more profitable compared to those that were not focused on the customer.
We obviously can’t say anything about what those companies’ branded copy looked like, but we’re willing to bet that it was strategic enough to put the emphasis on the customer, too.
Customer-focused branded copy is going to understand consumers’ issues and then give them a solution that manages to paint them as their own heroes.
Why does this matter for your branded copy?
Donald Miller writes in his Building a Story Brand blog that when “we position our customers as the hero and ourselves as their guide, we will be recognized as a sought-after character to help them along their journey.”
In other words, Miller writes, “your audience is Luke Skywalker. You get to be Yoda.”
If you can create branded content that paints your own brand as Yoda, you’re on the right track.
Brand Voice is a Boundless Thing–We've Got You
Not sure where to start when it comes to branded content? Don’t sweat it–we’re brand voice experts, and we’re here to help.
We’re big (and we mean BIG) on guiding companies down the path to crafting and curating their unique brand voice. And we’re even bigger on helping them establish that brand voice where it counts.
Need a little brand voice and branded content guidance?
You’re in the right place, friend. Brand voice–fine-tuning it and implementing it–is our absolute jam. Get in touch with us to chat more about what brand voice can do for your biz.
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