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Content is part of your brand
By
Tash Hughes of
Word Constructions
You may well have thought about the brand of your business as you
planned a logo, web design and even the name of your business. But
have you considered the words you use within your business as part
of your brand?
Your brand is effectively the sum of many details that forms an
image or perception of the business in the minds of your clients –
and potential clients. So the words (content) you use in brochures,
blogs, websites, articles, ads, manuals, packaging, fact sheets and
so on all contribute to your brand.
Here are some key points about content to make sure your words
enhance your brand rather than hindering it.
Complementary
Your content style needs to be part of your brand so that they work
together and send the same message. So if you want a professional
image, write clearly and use good grammar, avoiding slang and
exaggerations. Likewise, if your brand is approachable and simple,
don’t use long words a professor would need a dictionary to
understand!
Accuracy
Part of the purpose of building a brand is to have people trust your
business – and that can’t happen if your content isn’t always
accurate and trustworthy. Obviously, that means don’t write lies or
make promises you know you can’t keep, but it also means checking
the details of what you write. For example, I recently saw some
advertising listed as $1 a month or get 3 months for $4.50 – that
sort of mathematical error cost the business any credibility with
anyone who can do simple math.
Consistency
Everything within a brand needs to be consistent – with each other
and across time. People are more comfortable with the familiar so
keeping your writing style and details the same in different
documents helps reinforce your underlying message as well as the
ideas you are writing about.
Consistency isn’t always easy to maintain – it takes effort to
remember exactly what you did last time – but it is important and
the following tips may help you:
-
Limit how people
write content for your business – each person has a natural
style so multiple writers sometimes shows up, especially if they
do different parts of one document
-
Prepare a
style sheet or guide so it is easy to remember you always
use website (not web site), database (not data base), email (not
e-mail) and adviser (not advisor) for example. Include business
specific details such as whether the business name is always
capitalised (or not), whether it can be abbreviated (or not) and
any product name spellings and conventions.
-
When preparing
something new, read existing writing first so that the style can
follow on from the existing work. And if you can get someone to
proof read for you, get them to reads some existing content
first, too, so they know what to expect from the new piece
Clear
communication is critical to the success of any business, but it is
often left to care for itself in many businesses. Tash Hughes is a
professional and skilled writer who makes technical and otherwise
boring information accessible for everyone a business needs to
communicate with. Next time you need webcopy, articles, newsletters,
reports or any other business document, visit
www.wordconstructions.com.au to see how Tash
and her team can help your business succeed. |
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