Your brand messaging matters, and here’s why.

It’s mega easy to lose sight of a brand’s crucial messaging – it gets lost, buried and drowned out by the noise of everything else you want to say. 

But it’s exactly these big messages that are your secret weapon to more sales, more engagement, more connections and more profit. They’re the short, sharp one-liners that set you apart from your competitors, and make it clear who you are, what your product/service does and why you’re the right choice.

So you need to figure out where they’re hiding and gently coax them back out into the sunlight. Pronto.

Content can evolve over time, and it’s not uncommon for inconsistencies (and, often, if we may be so bold… waffle) to creep in – which subconsciously causes confusion and distraction. 

Here’s how to identify your most compelling messages, and bring them back up to the top of the pile.

Back to basics

Revisit your overall business plan/marketing strategy. Bring it up to date by strength-testing it in a workshop with a handful of team members. Does it adequately reflect where you are now, what your goals are and what makes you different? Are you clear on your mission (your objectives and approach) and your vision (where you want to be)? 

Put the U back into your USPs

It could be time to sense-check your USPs (Unique Selling Points) – with emphasis on the ‘Unique’. Being ‘friendly and professional’ is not unique, and neither is the fact that you were established in 1982. What sets you apart from your competitors, and why do people choose you over them? Being clear on your genuine USPs will really help your messaging bubble back up to the top. 

Elevate your elevator pitch

The term ‘elevator pitch’ might be a bit hackneyed these days, but you should still be able to quickly summarise what your business does, why and who for. It shouldn’t be more than a sentence or two. Some people like to call it a value proposition… whatever you want to call it, make it short, sweet and to the point. It’s your hardest-working piece of copy – it’s your social bios, your website introduction and your script when you’re telling people what you do. So make it count.

Prove your values

Do you have brand values, and if so, are they accurate and authentic, and can you evidence them? It’s all very well saying you’re a sustainable business or that you prioritise wellbeing in the workforce, but do you have proof points to back those claims up? Your brand values are important to define for many reasons (not least because they will help you define/refine your brand voice, which in turn helps to reinforce your big messages).

Audit your audience

Are you crystal clear on who you’re trying to attract? What does a dream customer look like to you, and what do they want to hear? What are their frustrations, buying triggers and how might you be able to move them towards taking action? What would be music to their ears?

Features and benefits

If you don’t have one already, make a list of the features and benefits of your business. They are different things – features are what your product or service does, and benefits are why those features matter. So, for example, a travel company selling holidays would list full-board and airport transfers as features, with the benefit being a relaxing, fuss-free break. People are far more inclined to be tempted by benefits than features, so as the late, great Elmer Wheeler said, “Sell the sizzle, not the steak”.

Bring it all together

Taking a step back and figuring out your most resonant messages will bring you clarity and help you communicate and connect far better with your audience. Once you’re clear on your USPs, features, benefits and the rest, you’ll find that you are naturally able to set this out on your pitch collateral, website etc. far more clearly. List your most compelling messages, and make sure that they are reinforced across all of your communications – internal and external.

Housekeeping

You’ll need to review all your legacy content and remove anything that contradicts or dilutes your new-found key messages. Keep a central document where all your copy blocks and key messaging is stored, so that anyone writing for your business will be able to access the most up-to-date messaging. This is a great place to keep a record of your approved house style, too.

Of course, all that is a lot of work, and sometimes an external eye is useful to bring clarity.

At Profound we’re not just brand copywriting specialists; we use our expertise in marketing and data insight to approach your content from a wider perspective. We’ll help identify and amplify your most powerful messages by providing just the right balance of support and challenge. Get in touch today if you’d like us to help propel your messaging to new levels of clarity and impact.