Brands use many different ways to connect with an audience and ensure that their messaging lands effectively. One of the key ingredients of successful brand communication is appropriately considered copywriting. Put simply, brand copywriting is a discipline within communication design that uses language to engage people in a way that positively reflects a company, its values and personality.
Language has the power to motivate, inspire and attract consumers — when combined with a unique brand character and the correct tone of voice, brand language can be one of the key reasons an audience resonates with a business.
This article will introduce the important concept of brand copywriting, its history, core principles and the various types of branded copy.
Brand copywriting has its roots in the advertising industry dating back to the early 20th century. During this period, ambitious companies were busy creating their own brand identities and communication strategies. Many of these companies quickly realised that to stand out from the competition, they needed to communicate their brand message in a tone of voice that consumers would respond to positively. Many of the early examples of brand copywriting can be traced to the 1950s when it was widely applied to the product packaging and advertising. Brands such as Coca-Cola are widely known to have used brand copywriting in their product packaging and advertising to great effect.
From the early 60s onwards, branded copy was regarded as an essential part of any strong brand identity. As more companies embraced this method of communication, consumer audiences slowly became more comfortable with companies speaking with them directly or in a personal tone. From this tipping point, it quickly became essential for businesses to strike the right tone with their messaging to ensure products and services were explained and delivered effectively.
Recent examples of branded copy include the Halley Stevensons proposition and service offering, Max McCance product descriptions and The Feather Company environmental and ethical policies.
Brand copywriting sits at the heart of any brand communication. It helps to create a sense of character and clarity across all brand communications — this can be particularly useful when dealing with complex messages that need to reach diverging audiences across multiple channels. In this increasingly connected landscape, branded copy can essentially become the glue that holds a communication strategy together.
Brand writing also plays a vital role in brand strategy as it helps to communicate ideas across all mediums from print and digital to experiential campaigns and product launches. In a time when so many avenues are available for communication, it can be challenging to decide how best to approach brand copywriting. Thankfully, there is an almost equal number of copywriting types available to help with this. Some of them include
Advertising copy must attract attention and convey brand messages. It needs to grab the reader’s interest, state what makes it different from competitors and make them want to take action by buying that product or service. Traditional advertising copywriting can also have supporting objectives such as changing behaviour, motivating brand loyalty and educating audiences.
To ensure that a brand identity is clearly understood by as many people as possible, branded writing is often used to set the right tone. This type of branded copy is often considered to be top-level company information. In addition to writing the original brand voice and playing a significant role in marketing strategy, initial product and service copy is often written by the brand identity writer. The brand identity writer’s job is to make complex ideas simple so that it comes across as simply as possible through any communication channel.
Creating a brand’s unique ‘tone of voice’ requires a great deal of skill and understanding, as written communications must resonate with audiences without compromising on brand values or personal brand style. The tone must be carefully considered in all short and long-form brand copywriting so that language can not only set the brand apart but also engage audiences and inspire brand loyalty.
Brand copywriting is an interactive type of brand writing which allows brands to communicate directly with customers in real-time through social media channels such as Facebook or Twitter. Social platforms are revolutionising how brands communicate with their audiences, allowing companies to create brand awareness and brand engagement in a direct, personalised manner. This type of branded copy often requires direct language that users can respond to quickly.
Brands should always be clear about products and services while staying true to their voice. Technical writers play an important role as they are responsible for conveying complex ideas in a simple manner that can be quickly grasped. Technical copywriting is the brand’s opportunity to demonstrate its expertise in a specific industry while clearly explaining product features and benefits. This type of brand copywriting often mixes complex and simplified language to build user knowledge while making the content accessible.
Product writing is an expansive area that comprises product awareness, brand engagement and brand loyalty. This brand copywriting approach uses storytelling to express a product’s character while explaining the traits and features that make it different. Product writing often involves emotive language as it presents opportunities for brands to demonstrate their knowledge through brand storytelling. This type of brand writing will often use a combination of technical and emotive language to educate and persuade an audience.
Editorial brand writing is a type of brand communication where writers are encouraged to be creative with language while staying relevant and consistent across all platforms. Editorial copywriting for newsletters, magazines and blogs will always stay true to a brand’s character and house style. The style, tone of voice and house rules will have been defined during a brand identity exercise. This approach allows brands to convey both individual and collective personalities through unique brand content.
Corporate brand writing is often found in annual reports, leaflets and press releases. While this type of brand communication can be written by a technical writer or editorial brand writer, it should always follow brand guidelines set out during the brand identity process. Corporate copywriting allows brands to explain their values through storytelling while maintaining all corporate house rules so that company brand communications are consistent and effective.
Brand copywriting is a vital part of general brand communications as it allows brands to give audiences insight into their goals, voice and worldview through different writing styles. All brands should have guidelines for how they talk into their core audience groups. This is so that everything they do will be easily understood and consistent. Guidelines are also good for staff and other people who work with the brand.
Many brands produce a wide range of long-form content for use on their website or blog. This style of brand writing is important because it can give brand readers an insight into the brand’s worldview and values. It often uses a tone of voice that is different to other brand communications such as social media posts or product descriptions. Often, blog writing can feel more informal as it is considered a ‘behind-the-scenes’ view into a companies world. This type of brand writing will often adopt a more relaxed style, particularly when writing long-form copy that is aimed at casual readers that may first encounter the content via a search engine.
SEO brand writing is a specialist type of brand copywriting that helps brands rank in search engines like Google. SEO brand writing can often be technical or editorial while following brand guidelines and best practice house rules for online content. This style of brand communication will use keywords, short sentences and simple language to ensure the maximum number of people can find brand websites when searching on Google.
If your business would benefit from a fresh approach to content creation, please get in touch and we will be happy to advise on the best route forward. We recommend that a strong brand identity is defined to ensure all printed, physical and online materials are unique, consistent and effective.
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