Bringing fun & humour to your brand tone of voice: 4 mistakes to avoid
Do we need an introduction?
I feel like you know what you’re here for from the title…
Let’s just get into it.
Here are the 4 biggest mistakes you could make when trying to add fun to your brand tone of voice.
Mistake 1: Trying to be someone else
I get it, there are a lot of brands out there that are nailing fun and humour in their brand tone of voice. Their audience loves it. Their industry loves it. Marketers love it. I can see how you’d look at brands like this and be tempted to think “well, it’s working for them, let’s try it out with our own brand”.
In a sense, you are absolutely right to do that. Brands like Monzo, Aldi, Liquid Death, Duolingo, they’re all really good examples of how fun and humour can be integrated throughout a brand’s copy.
But a rinse and repeat approach isn’t going to work. Don’t try to imitate Monzo’s TOV. Not every brand is Monzo. Stick to your own definition of fun. Not only will that be easier and more sustainable for you to maintain, it also feels so much more authentic to your target audience.
Mistake 2: Not TRULY understanding your audience
For a lot of different brands and across different definitions of fun, humour is about pointing at the truth of your audience’s everyday experiences. That could be through:
Using experiences or situations in funny analogies
Drawing on scenarios that are ACTUALLY relatable (not just an airbrushed version of relatable)
You need to go beyond knowing what demographic they belong to, and really understand their everyday experiences, both in their role at work, and in their wider life as a human being. Without this information, the best you can hope for is a generic and cringe-inducing attempt to connect with your audience.
And guess what?
They can see right through it.
Mistake 3: Forgetting context & fumbling delivery
This is related to the point we’ve just covered about having an in depth understanding of your audience. Wow, it’s almost like someone has planned this blog?
You might come up with a definition of fun that feels right for your business, but if you don’t consider how your ACTUAL audience will respond to this, you risk alienating them altogether.
Look at what’s happening in people’s lives. In your industry. In the news. Think about how your fun is going to really, truly land with people.
Mistake 4: Smothering your true personality
Let’s say you’ve got a team filled with lovely people. They’re delightful to work with, and generally just all round good eggs. Tell me, would you want those good eggs to feel like they constantly have to filter themselves, their personalities, and their creative talents when working with your clients?
No??
Then stop attracting clients who would expect that.
This starts with your marketing. If your marketing requires you to smother your personality in order to be “professional”, then you will attract clients who do not vibe with your authentic personality.
Feels like a bit of a minefield…right?
This blog might have pointed out the major boo boo's you want to avoid, but I won’t lie to you, there are others.
What you want to avoid completely depends on your brand, your audience, and your value proposition.
Looking for some slightly more tailored advice on how to bring fun and humour to your brand tone of voice in the right way?