How to Develop Crystal Clear Messaging and Build Brands That Are as Strong as You Are

Women are total badasses in my book.

And right now, the world needs more of us. More female perspective. More women in leadership roles. Louder female voices. And less apologies for it.

Even as women’s rights are shrinking before our eyes, we’re still showing up and taking up space in male-dominated industries. But as we rise in rank, it’s not uncommon for us to still be the only woman in a room full of men.

And thanks to a global pandemic and the resulting Great Resignation, many of those rooms are completely virtual. Needless to say, a strong online presence has grown to become absolutely necessary.

Like it or not, our reality is we must work twice as hard to achieve the level of authority a man is inherently born with.

According to McKinsey’s latest Women in the Workplace report, “Women are still significantly underrepresented at all levels of management. And on top of this, women continue to have a worse day-to-day experience at work. Women are more likely than men to have their competence questioned and their authority undermined, and women of color and other women with traditionally marginalized identities are especially likely to face disrespectful and “othering” behavior.”

So what do we do?

We do what we’ve always done. We rise to the occasion.

In a world where a man’s voice is louder than ours even when his qualifications are lesser, how can women like us be heard? How do we cut through the noise? By commanding authority with powerful brand messaging.

This is how we change the narrative and grow our influence.
 

What is a brand message?

An effective brand message clearly conveys who you are, what you stand for and what you offer to your target audience, ultimately compelling them to book your services or buy your product. Brand messaging can include both verbal and nonverbal styles of communication. I call these your brand touchpoints. The goal is to consistently express a unique voice and tone wherever you have a digital presence.

There are obvious contributors to a brand message, such as the copy on your website or your social media captions. But even seemingly small details play a part.

Think subtle…

Consider the clothes you wear on a Zoom conference or to an industry event.

And the images and music you use for your social media posts.

Or the gifts you select for your clients.

These things may seem insignificant to your message, but they help communicate who you are as a business. In order to maximize the effectiveness of your marketing, a cohesive brand message should inform every single marketing decision and everything you touch — big or small.
 

How do you develop a brand message that’s clear and powerful?

It takes some time and focused effort to figure out your unique brand message. But making that investment now will result in marketing that effectively reaches your desired audience and forges a strong emotional connection.

Learn how to do it by following this three-phase process:

1. Self-Discovery

First and foremost, you’ll need clarity. Perform some deep soul searching on your mission and your bigger why for being in business to discover the one unique thing that makes you tick. Figure out who you are. Determine what values you stand for. Detail exactly how you help your clients. Explore the reasons why you do what you do.

I am deeply passionate about women’s equality, impact, and influence. This, coupled with my 25+ years of marketing and PR experience is what informed my decision to create SheBrand. My brand workbook, Style & Substance, offers plenty of deep dive questions to help you with this exercise.

2. Audience Discovery

Now it’s time to nail down exactly who your target audience is. It helps to get really specific here. How old are they? Where do they live? What’s their occupation and income? What phase are they going through in life? What do they like to do in their spare time? What are their life goals? What’s their outlook on life?

Explore their potential problems. Most importantly, figure out what’s important to them and what keeps them up at night.

Write out client persona outlines for each of your ideal client avatars. This really helps to humanize your audience and bring them to life. Some people even prefer to give their personas a name. Your brand’s messaging is much more powerful when you can picture exactly who you’re addressing – whether you’re at a speaking engagement or writing a blog post or social media update.

3. Documentation

Compile each piece of your brand’s personality in an official document. At SheBrand, we refer to this as your Brand Handbook. This should include your brand’s mission and attributes, unique value proposition, and core values. Refer to this document every time you need to make a marketing decision.

Keep in mind that your brand messaging will absolutely evolve over time as your business grows. You’ll need to revisit this process anytime things aren’t feeling quite as aligned as they need to be.
 

The importance of consistent brand messaging

When your brand messaging is clearly defined, it makes it so much easier to remain consistent across all your marketing platforms.

Why should you care so much about consistency? It builds trust. And in the ever-evolving digital world, trust is everything.

Your audience craves reliability. They’re tired of empty promises. Provide peace of mind by showing up consistently in everything you do. Every engagement between you and your prospect should leave them feeling exactly the same — whether you’re on their Instagram feed, in their inbox, in an ad, or on a call with them.

Consistency comes very naturally when you’ve already done the deep work of identifying what’s authentic for you and your brand.

Which leads me to this very important closing point…
 

Your brand shouldn’t be for everyone.

When you’re staying true to your brand’s values, it’s impossible to be liked and desired by every single person on the planet. In fact, the best brand messaging actively repels the wrong people.

But when you think about it… those aren’t your people anyway.

Due to our unique life experiences, every human on earth has a beautifully different perspective and outlook on life. You can’t possibly appeal to everyone. And the good news is: you don’t need to.

That’s because the goal here is to find your people and solve their unique problems.

John Michael Morgan, a friend and best-selling author, addresses this in his book, Brand Against the Machine. According to John, 20% of people will adore you. 60% won’t care. And 20% will hate you, no matter what you do.

So, you might as well stay true to YOU, because that person’s here to stay forever.
 

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