Brand Messaging and Tone of Voice Guides

Sarah Marriott

Contact for pricing

About this service

Summary

Your unique tone of voice underpins everything to do with your online copy and content. This guide will help you define the distinct way you connect with your audience through your words, make you stand out from the competition and solidify what you stand for.

Businesses that have one of these are serious about leveling up in their industry, and they want consistency and clarity in their messaging. It builds the foundations of your verbal identity so that you know how to attract your audience with your words and create fans for life.

Process

I offer 2 types of guides, so you can choose what you need!

Messaging + Strategy Guide:

WHAT IS IT?

The whole shebang. A comprehensive guide of everything you need to embrace your verbal identity down to a tee. No second guessing because you’ll know your brand and dream customer or client inside out!

Perfect for businesses that want to be the go-to in their industry and need to build a strong brand foundation. With this bible, you’ll know exactly what you stand for and who you serve so you can stand the test of time.

WHAT'S INSIDE?

-Brand values -Value beliefs -Mission statement -Brand origin story -Unique selling proposition (USP) -Elevator pitch -Competitor insights -Brand archetypes -Brand personality -Brand promise -Brand positioning -Dream customer/client profile -Dream customer/client archetypes -Tone of voice -Word + phrase stash -Content pillars -Do’s + don’ts -Copy samples: taglines, website copy snippets, 3x social media captions, 1x extra sample of your choice -Beautifully designed digital booklet created in Canva

INVESTMENT

$3,528 USD/$5,680 AUD

Tone of Voice Guide

WHAT IS IT?

A laser-focused book of dreams focused on your unmatchable verbal identity. This is for businesses that want to amplify their voice, stand out, exude their unique personality and leave a stamp on people’s minds.

Attract your perfect-match customers or clients with your one-of-a-kind tone of voice and keep them coming back time and time again.

WHAT'S INSIDE?

-Brand outline -Brand values -Brand archetypes -Dream customer/client profile -Dream customer/client archetypes -Competitor insights -Brand personality -Brand positioning -Tone of voice -Word + phrase stash -Guidelines (how the voice is used) -Do’s + don’ts -Copy samples: taglines, website copy snippets, 3x social media captions, 1x extra sample of your choice. -Beautifully designed digital booklet created in Canva

INVESTMENT

$2,857 USD/$4,600 AUD

All brand messaging/tone of voice packages include: -Super fun brand questionnaire -Briefing call -4x rounds of revisions -Optional check-in call -1x round of proofreading -1x round of design revisions -30 days of email support after your project has wrapped up

THE GENERAL PROCESS

ON-BOARDING DOCUMENTS + PROCESS Hooray, let’s get down to business! First, I’ll send you an easy client agreement to sign (no jargon) and a 30% deposit is required upfront. Once these are sorted, I’ll send you a comprehensive branding questionnaire to fill out. This essential document is for you to fill out to help me understand the nitty gritty of your brand, what you stand for and how you want to communicate with your customers. After this questionnaire, I offer an optional kick-off call (recommended). This is where we can discuss anything in the questionnaire in more detail to get crystal clear about expectations going forward.

RESEARCH COMPETITORS + CONCEPTS I research your top 3 competitors to see how they speak to their audience and how you can stack up against them. I do a SWOT analysis on each competitor. I look at their websites and social media to get a good idea of what they are doing well and not so well. I also research themes and creative angles to inject some creativity into your copy. I believe inspiration can come from anywhere, not just in your specific industry, so I look at brands in other industries to think outside the box and spark ideas!

PLANNING, CREATIVE THINKING + STRATEGY This stage is all about coming up with your strategy and making a start on your first draft for your guide. For your brand voice + tone element, if applicable, I may present you with 2 different options of proposed brand voices so that we can identify which direction you want to go in. Please note that the copy sample element of the guide will be done at a later stage once we have foundations in place (usually at draft 3).

WRITING DRAFTS - SUBMITTED TO CLIENT I will submit each draft to you. After each draft is submitted, you have the opportunity to submit revisions to me. I have a solid and easy process for submitting revisions, which will be clearly explained when we get to this stage. Please note that all writing drafts will be presented as a Google Doc. At any stage of this process, I offer one optional check-in call. This is for you to get clarification on anything you need or if you want to discuss things in more detail. Copy samples will be crafted at a later stage in this process but will also include the appropriate number of rounds of revisions so we can get them spot on.

FINAL WRITING DRAFT SUBMITTED TO CLIENT After all rounds of revisions are done, the final writing draft is submitted to you for approval and sign-off.

DESIGN DECK (CANVA) I make your guide into a powerful, living, neatly designed document in Canva. This is the only service I offer that includes graphic design elements. This document will be submitted for approval but will include 1 round of design revisions. This does not include copy edits. You also have the option of choosing a non-designed document and having your deliverable presented as a neatly typed-up Google Doc. Plain and simple. Once all signed off, you’ll get a high-res PDF, low-res PDF, editable Canva document and Google Doc for your team to refer to whenever you need it. You’ll be invoiced with the remainder of the price. And that’s it, you’re ready to rumble!

FAQs

Why would I need this? Can’t Chat GPT do this stuff for me?
Chat GPT is helpful for tasks like generating ideas, providing rough plans and assisting with customer research. But I believe it should never be solely responsible for writing your copy. Words spat out by Chat GPT can end up sounding generic and dull. No matter how fast or easy this robot is to use, it will never be a human. No matter how good your prompt is, It will never understand human emotions, feelings, fears or desires. Copywriting, brand messaging and tone of voice are all about connecting with people. Unfortunately, a bot can’t do that, but lucky for you, a word-obsessed human like me can!
How are you qualified to offer this service?
I’ve developed advanced creative skills from 8 years in the graphic design industry, specialising in consumer products and advertising. I also have 6+ years of sales and customer service experience and 3 years of copywriting experience. I have invested a crap load of money and time in my education to uplevel in tone of voice, brand messaging and creative copywriting. I’ve learnt all about marketing triggers, the psychology behind words, and how to connect and authentically sell. My priority is making sure your words connect with your audience so you can convert. I’ve helped brands with the struggle of writer's block, perfectionism, and the comparison trap. I’ve made them feel more confident about how they communicate online, and this does wonders for their brand's future!
This is out of my budget, but I like the sound of it. Do you offer a smaller guide?
I believe you need all the elements listed in my packages to be successful in achieving your ideal tone of voice and brand messaging. But I can also offer a stripped-backed version of the guide for those with budget constraints. My ‘Brand Voice Basics’ guide is perfect if you need to kick-start your brand messaging and tone of voice but don’t need all the bells and whistles right now. This guide includes: brand outline, brand values, brand personality, tone of voice, dream customer profile, copy samples: 5x phrases, 1x tagline, 1x website copy snippet or Instagram caption, basic designed document in Canva. While I highly recommend investing in the bigger guides for the best chance of brand clarity and conversion, this guide is a good starting point to get you moving with confidence. Contact me for a quote.
How long does it take to create a Brand Messaging/Tone of Voice guide?
This service is comprehensive and not for the half-hearted. So, I take the time to plan accordingly and ensure there’s enough time to create all elements in the best way possible. Timelines can vary, but we can come up with a plan before we start. Here is a general indication of how long it can take to craft your guide: Tone Of Voice Guide: 4-7 weeks Messaging + Strategy Guide: 5-10 weeks

What's included

Designed digital guide
You'll get an all-in-one, beautifully designed centralised PDF guide that clearly outlines your brand messaging and distinct tone of voice. Refer to it any time you need to write for marketing or advertising purposes (e.g. website, social media, emails, ads). Pass it to your team so that everyone can be on the same page (no co-worker dramas) and maintain brand consistency across all channels.

Example projects