Tag: brand personality

BEHIND THE CURTAIN: ADDING PERSONALITY TO CORPORATE STORYTELLING

Posted on February 11, 2021 by

Identifying a newsworthy story within an organisation sits at the heart of public relations. Although well written copy, a strong pitch and good media contacts can contribute towards securing coverage, the content of the story itself is ultimately what journalists focus on.

In an increasingly competitive media market, journalists are inundated with press releases every single day. Although there is no definitive definition of a newsworthy story, to secure editorial space it must garner a journalist’s attention and be worth their time to publish.

They want a story that will not only be informative and enjoyable for their readers, but also differentiate from usual churn that falls into the news desk’s inbox.

The are many aspects that go into distributing a story but increasing its chances of securing coverage relies on the relevance of its news angle. No matter whether it’s trade, regional or national media that are the target, ensuring it has a human or personal interest is critical to reaching the largest possible audience.

PERSONALISING PRESS STORIES

There will always be a place in the media sphere for press releases that cover company announcements or new investments, the launch of a new service or product, but pulling back the curtain of any business is a valuable tool when you want to attract real attention.

First and foremost, people are inherently curious about the lives of others. This is no different within the marketplace. There is an appetite to know who is working where, how they are performing and what they are achieving.

It is important to work with journalists and the media to fill this gap and educate the audience. With this approach in mind, stories should focus on new appointments and promotions, business milestones, awards, achievements and examples of best practice from industry leaders.

Covering these topics will educate and inform readers, while also reinforcing experience, authority and trust from the brand and business.

STAYING RELEVANT TO READERS

There is also significant value in steering away from the corporate mindset and creating personal profiles of employees, especially those who work in executive or senior management positions. Businesses must identify media outlets that put spotlights on individuals and pursue these opportunities.

This could be anything from employees offering commentary on topical trends in the sector, personal opinion about the news agenda or simply shining a spotlight on their hobbies and lives away from the office.

There are a plethora of opportunities to create human-centric angles that can be deemed newsworthy.

To impact of these stories can also go far beyond coverage in the media. As digital communications becomes more embedded into society and our daily lives, people from around the world can interact and engage with one another instantaneously.

TRANSPARENCY IS KEY

For industry, this means that transparency has never been so important. As mentioned, taking a more personal approach with the public, as well as the media, can create a sense of loyalty, familiarity and attachment towards a business, which should not be underestimated.

Ultimately, as readers and audiences are continually introduced to the people behind a business through media coverage, stronger relationships with existing customers are established and new business opportunities are created.

Securing media coverage is undoubtedly the most effective way to generate and maintain a positive perception among the public, but to maximise and maintain this relies upon stories that are more personable as well as relevant.

ALIGNING TONE OF VOICE WITH BRAND PERSONALITY

Posted on June 16, 2020 by

We all have our own range of quirks which make us unique. These traits mark us as distinctly different to others. And, often, they’re what our family and friends love the most about us. Brands are no different. In order to stand out from the crowd and build up an affinity with consumers, it’s vital that a business is more than just the products that it sells – but a personality in its own right.

An important part of what differentiates each of our personalities is the way that we communicate. This includes the vocabulary that we choose to use. Without being consciously aware of it, we all have a mix of words and phrases which others associate with us. This combination of what we say and how we say it gives us our own, unique tone of voice.

The building blocks of brand personality

Leveraging this concept is one of the most important steps in building a relatable brand personality. After all, while a business can exist without a recognisable brand, it makes life far more difficult than it needs to be.

These days, where there are more businesses, there is increased competition and less consumer loyalty. ‘Deals’ are commonplace, and people switch far more frequently in search of a bargain. Therefore, more often than not, people need an additional reason to choose you over your competitors. This is where personality and tone of voice comes in to play.

If your brand was a person, who would it be?

It can seem more than a little daunting figuring out exactly ‘who’ your brand is. But assigning human characteristics is a great place to start and will really help in the process of figuring out exactly how you’d like to communicate with your customers.

Importantly, remember to remain authentic. The personality behind the brand needs to be an extension of the values of your business. Perhaps you’re a recruitment business with a ‘work hard, play hard’ culture, this should be reflected in what you say and how you say it.

It may be that you’re a toy manufacturer, in which case fun and playful would be top of your list. Maybe, as part of the healthcare sector, your personality is kind and compassionate – this can be showcased in the way that you communicate and the language you use.

Putting it all into words

Once you’ve established what your brand personality is all about, it’s time to put it into words. A favourite past time of ours, as we’re sure you can imagine!

It’s time to think about what you’ll say and how you’ll go about saying it. Mapping out the vocabulary that is, and isn’t, to be used is a must. Remember to adjust tone of voice when needed. As a modern female fashion brand, ‘hun’ might be a frequent greeting but it could just be the thing that pushes a complaining customer to boiling point – so beware!

Similarly, while social media and email marketing is a fantastic place to unleash this newly established personality and tone of voice, tweaks will be needed in other areas. One size doesn’t fit all, and what works in consumer facing communications, won’t necessarily translate so well to a corporate press release, for example.

We love nothing more than to help brands to build and share their personality with their customers, their colleagues and the media. If you’d like to chat to us about the next steps in your brand building journey, and what else you can expect from PR, call a member of the team on 01924 862477 or email us at info@opencomms.co.uk – we’d love to hear from you!

LEVERAGING BRAND PERSONALITY ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Posted on April 23, 2020 by

Social Media

Brands and businesses often misjudge social media and the way it should be utilised. In the midst of polishing and refining a picture perfect online presence, brands can sometimes lose sight of what makes them different.

Every brand has its own story waiting to be shared online.

Social media simply acts as the medium which assists with a brands storytelling process and through this helps express its unique personality. This is not as simple as plastering a logo or copying and pasting the same 30 character long bio across all social channels.

Consumers nowadays crave authentic interaction and exciting content. Which is why injecting personality into every aspect of a brands social media presence is so important.

It’s what makes you and your content stand out.

Establishing a brand personality online can seem daunting at first, especially if social media is an entirely new territory for your business, so here’s a few tips to help get you started-

Focus on the brand, not the product –

Websites are for selling products. Social media is where you tell people about who you are, what you do and how you came about. Consumers want to know more about the brands they buy from and social media is the easiest way to share this information.

Bespoke interactions –

Avoid sounding scripted or generic and take a more personalised approach when engaging with people. This is a simple, yet effective way to take ownership of how your brand is perceived online.

Explore trending topics –

Social media is constantly evolving and trends change at the speed of light. Some of which you may not even know about. This is where google alerts come in very handy. Set up google alerts of key words that are relevant to your brand, so that you never miss an opportunity to reap the benefits of a trending topic!

Develop a social media handbook –

A social media handbook plays a vital role in sustaining a brands online presence, but unfortunately is often overlooked. Essentially, a social media handbook should outline your brands personality traits. It might also include a list of words or phrases that your brand should use or maybe topics that your brand should ‘watch out’ for. Either way, this handbook should act as a bible for you or your team to follow and will help to create relevant content for social media that is consistent with your brand and its personality.

Gone are the days when a product was enough to attract consumers. Now, brand personality is the driving force behind capturing the attention of audiences. For more tips on how to tell your brands story, read Lindsey’s blog here.

If you are wanting to explore social media or PR further, please do give us a call or email.