Something that new bloggers fail to focus on is a blog tone of voice. It’s what makes a blog stand out, sound human and attract people to it. Struggling to figure out how to find your brand voice for your blog or solopreneur business?
Ever wonder why some blogs and experts attract you? There is something about them that “speaks to you”. It goes beyond storytelling. It’s how they say it.
The secret is that they have found their ideal brand voice and brand personality, and have used it consistently in personal branding activities and content on all platforms.
This is very much the same thing as a social media tone of voice.
Yes, I’m adding another task to your long list of blogging/business duties. However, I promise, it’s not as hard as it may seem.
The best part, this can all be tweaked as needed later on.
Branding your blog or solo business will include layering on a brand personality and tone of voice. It will include a big dose of what makes you, you!
We’ll look at:
- What a brand voice is
- How can easily find your unique brand voice
- A full list of brand personality traits (brand personality adjectives)
- How to consistently implement it effectively in any content you produce
Let’s get started!
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What Is A Brand Voice For Bloggers And Solopreneurs?
Consider this: blogging is a solo business for the most part.
The same applies if you are a freelancer, coach or consultant working on your own. In other words, you’re a solopreneur.
You are the face of the blog brand or your business brand.
Unless you are a multi-person business brand, with a mission and set of values that are shared among all employees, people will look to you as the one that sets the brand voice.
What does brand voice mean anyway?
Brand voice is about having your personal brand – your personality – come through your words and tone of voice.
Consider the types of blog content that are out there:
- Dry, educational without any personal anecdotes or examples.
- Posts in which you can see that a person has written it: the language is quirky, witty, authoritative, etc.
- Content that is written with a conversational tone.
Word choice and grammar matter, as they set the tone of your site and your content.
How your readers react is important.
If you’re a coach or service provider, you want to come across as professional but approachable.
You want to be perceived as somebody others would like to hire.
If you’re a blogger who wants to be known as an expert, you may tone down the approachable, and boost up the informative tone of voice.
| RELATED: How To Get Past Imposter Syndrome As A Blogger Or Solopreneur
How To Find Your Brand Voice For Your Blog Or Business
So, how do you go about finding your brand voice?
As the sole person behind a blog or a solopreneur business, it really starts with you.
Your personal brand and your blog or business brand are often intertwined. People are attracted to people, not soulless sites and businesses.
But what if you’re an introvert? Does this mean you have to be “out there” sharing everything about yourself?
Absolutely not!
Having a brand voice as a blogger or solopreneur doesn’t mean revealing everything about yourself.
What Is Your Brand Voice?
So, what is your personal brand voice?
How do you come across personality-wise in your content? How about when you speak with people about your blog or your business?
What would people say is your personality like?
Here are some that may describe your style:
- Authoritative
- Conversational
- Quirky
- Passionate
- Authentic
- Motivating
- Sarcastic
- Critical
Write down the top three that BEST DESCRIBE your personality that’ll work with your brand and be part of your content.
My three brand voice traits are:
- Conversational
- Authentic
- Trustworthy
From this point, I’ll expand them with brand personality adjectives:
For example, conversational can be: informal, idiomatic, friendly, or personal.
Come up with your list of three brand voice traits and brand personality traits. Establishing these will help you as you move forward with your content creation.
PRO TIP: Want to check if your content is consistent with your brand voice and brand personality? Try the Brand Voice Analyzer tool from “Word.Studio” (free).
Create Messaging And Rules For Using Your Blog Brand Voice
Once you have determined your three key brand personality traits and your brand voice, it’s time to create rules around how you communicate.
You’ll want to create a simple table for yourself broken down like this:
| Brand Voice | Description | Do | Don’t |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authentic | We’ll find you the right insights and tools, and contacts to help you achieve your goals: even if they go beyond our products and services. | – Keep to your word – Tell it like it is – Be honest and direct | – Over promise – Be untruthful – Be unrealistic with setting expectations |
| Conversational | We treat our readers and clients as if they were our good friends: we want them to see them succeed at their goals. | – Be personable and friendly, showing the reader you understand where they are coming from. – Use everyday language and idioms you would use in a face-to-face conversation – Be informal and relaxed. | – Be authoritative and information-focused. – Use jargon – Come across a condescending and snobby. |
| Trustworthy | We strive to be a credible resource for our readers and clients, helping them get the correct answers they need every time. | – Give knowledgeable/well-researched answers – Engage readers/clients in meaningful conversations – Use personal examples when possible when sharing strategies and tips | – Provide inaccurate information – Come across as focused only on making money – Create content without “walking the talk” |
Brand Personality Traits: Brand Personality Adjectives List
Stuck wondering what adjectives can be used for your brand personality traits?
Here’s a list of over 105 brand personality adjectives to get you started.
This is by no means an exhaustive list, so it’s a good idea to have your thesaurus close by!
- Accessible
- Active
- Adaptable
- Adventurous
- Ambitious
- Approachable
- Aspirational
- Assertive
- Authoritative
- Bohemian
- Bold
- Brave
- Bright
- Bubbly
- Calm
- Candid
- Carefree
- Casual
- Charming
- Cheerful
- Classic
- Collaborative
- Colourful
- Cool
- Comprehensive
- Cozy
- Crafty
- Creative
- Cultured
- Cutting Edge
- Daring
- Delicate
- Distinctive
- Down to Earth
- Dynamic
- Edgy
- Elegant
- Eloquent
- Energetic
- Established
- Fearless
- Formal
- Fun
- Genuine
- Harmonious
- Heartfelt
- Helpful
- High-end
- Honest
- Hopeful
- Inclusive
- Industrial
- Informal
- Innovative
- Inspirational
- Intentional
- Inviting
- Joyful
- Kind
- Knowledgeable
- Lively
- Logical
- Loyal
- Luxurious
- Magical
- Mature
- Meaningful
- Mindful
- Minimal
- Modern
- Motivated
- Original
- Natural
- Passionate
- Playful
- Positive
- Practical
- Progressive
- Professional
- Quirky
- Reflective
- Relaxed
- Resourceful
- Romantic
- Sassy
- Serious
- Sincere
- Sophisticated
- Strategic
- Sustainable
- Thoughtful
- Timeless
- Traditional
- Transparent
- Trendy
- Trustworthy
- Unique
- Uplifting
- Urban
- Visionary
- Warm
- Whimsical
- Wild
- Witty
- Youthful
- Zany
Finding the right brand voice for bloggers can seem overwhelming. But lists like these make it so much easier.
I hope you find the right words in this list!
Write Down Your Brand Personality Traits For Your Blog Or Business
You’ll be tempted to just think about your brand personality traits but not record them.
I made this mistake and then forgot which ones I had chosen. This often happens when you’re a busy working mom with a blogging side hustle and you’re over 40.
It’s a good idea to have your brand voice and personality adjectives listed with your notes on your brand palette, style and fonts.
Some people create a “branding bible”: a document which has all key information listed.
You can use it to ensure you’re keeping to your brand strategy at all times.
It’s also helpful when you work with guest bloggers who write and create content for you.
I created something that will help you with this. It’s a printable one-pager for your branding info.
It includes a bonus page for your usernames and passwords for key plugins and social media accounts.
How To Add Your Brand Voice To Content
Now that you have an idea of your brand personality and tone of voice, how will you infuse your content with them?
Consider all of the different types of content to which you can add your brand voice:
- Your blog content
- Social media post captions
- Your social media profile descriptions
- Your About Me, Work With Me and Contact pages
- Sales landing pages
- Your freebie opt-in welcome email series
- Email newsletters
- Videos
- Podcasts
When it comes to making sure your content is consistently using your brand voice, follow my trick: read it out loud before you hit publish.
Not only will you probably catch grammar errors, but you’ll see if it sounds like you!
PRO TIP: One of the best places to build your personal brand voice is in your very own Facebook group. You set the tone! Read up on how to create a Facebook group for your blog.
| RELATED: 16 Types Of Blog Posts That Generate Clicks
Find Your Blog Tone Of Voice And Start Attracting Followers
When I started focusing on using a consistent brand voice in my blog content, social media posts and email newsletter, I noticed a great change in my community.
My readers, subscribers, Facebook group members and followers all engaged with me more!
I started to get amazing feedback, with people understanding my “vibe” and my blog’s mission. And I started generating more blog coaching and blog audit clients.
If you’re reading this, you’re truly vested in understanding how you can brand your blog, beyond the visuals.
Remember to do the following:
- Consider your personal branding: infuse your blog or business content with your personal voice
- Choose three brand personality traits and build out a list of adjectives that fleshes them out
- Note the brand voice adjectives you’ve chosen: write them down in your “Brand Standards” document or bible
- Be consistent in your communication style and tone of voice!
You’ll start seeing your audience and customers “getting it” when it comes to your brand.
If you’re looking to get some awesome templates for branding your blog, check out my friend Gia Rose.
QUESTION: What three brand personality adjectives best describe your blog/business brand? What is your brand voice?
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Oh, that list is awesome! Thanks for sharing. I am going to use this to streamline my messaging. It’s so important to not get distracted by what everyone else is doing and stay true to yourself.
Margaret this is an excellent guide. I always wanted to stand out by blogging from my heart. Sure I cover similar topics in many regards compared to fellow blogging tips bloggers. But my brand voice varied a bit from my rough and ready, sometimes unorthodox style. When I honored this approach I did OK; when I did not, I struggled. Lesson officially learned by me, quite a while back.
Keep up the good blogging work.
Ryan
Yes!! I can completely pick up your “voice” in your posts. It makes for a great, interesting read. Keep it up too!!
i think I have a brand voice, but I haven’t put it down on paper. Reading this, sounds like it’s an important step that will keep it consistent. Will work in this!
I was just listening to a podcast about how important it is to find your brand voice. This post is the perfect resource! Thanks for sharing and for making it easier!
I don’t think I’ve ever heard of the term ‘brand voice’ before. But it does make sense; after all, the tone and the core of your blog comes from the way the author writes. I’m definitely going to be thinking about this more in depth for my own blog! Thank you so much for sharing this with us!