I Broke This Boring Brand Rule + Accidentally Activated Creatrix Mode (Hell Yeah!)

Let me tell you one thing that I've given up on completely and that's trying to find my “brand voice”. Now, I'm not the kind of person who gives up easily. In fact I've got more grit and determination than any person you’re likely to meet! But let me tell you... I feel SO much better now that I've completely abandoned all attempts to discover  or "stick to" a brand voice. Liberated! Light and free! I'll tell you why I gave up in a second, but first I want to define brand voice for those who may not be familiar with the term:

Brand voice refers to the distinct personality, tone, mood or style that a business uses to communicate with its audience across all channels. 

What’s recommended is that you basically “pick” a brand voice and stick with it so that all of your content sounds consistent. 

I’ll use Jenna Kutcher for example. Love her! Any content of hers that you come across is distinctly cheerful and warm and cozy. It's consistent across all channels and platforms.

On the other end of the brand voice spectrum, you've got The New York Times, which sounds authoritative, informative, and serious. Less emotion, more in depth analysis. 

While I absolutely do see the merit in finding and deciding on a brand voice, I’ve decided I personally just don't care. 

Gawd, it would stress me out so bad if I had to sound cheerful and warm ALL the time. It would stress me out if I “had to” sound unconventional and badass ALL the time. It would stress me out if I had to sound “serious and authoritativel” ALL the time. Because I don’t FEEL those ways all the time.

I’m not a robot. I’m human, with fluctuating moods and tones and styles and feelings. 

NOTE: I’m not ideological about it; if someone wants to settle on a brand voice that’s rad and I support that fully. 

But, here’s the way I see it... as a solopreneur, content creation/marketing is an art form and I see it as a fun act of authentic self expression. I write/ create content whenever the mood suddenly strikes and sometimes let it pour out like a river all willy nilly. I’ll slap it in a blog or send the email without using spell check and let the chips fall where they may. Sometimes it’s some mildly incoherent bullshit.

Other times I’m in the mood to really sit down, focus and craft a serious and well structured technical tutorial that has a distinct beginning, middle and end. I’ll even cite sources. I’ll use proper blog headers. And Grammarly. My college English professor would be so proud!

Sometimes my blogs and email have a “point”, other times... not.

Sometimes when I write, it’s very left brained, sometimes very right brained. I write when I’m happy, sad or feeling silly. Sometimes the stuff I write sounds psychedelic, other times professional.

Sometimes the tone is sweet, other times spicy. 

The way I write after I do two hours of Ashtanga yoga and pop a CBD gummy is going to sound different from how I write if I’m in the midst of a highly caffeinated manic episode. 

It would cramp/destroy my creativity if I had to “stick with” sounding a “certain way” every time I sat down to write. 

I would rather just be in creative flow than worried about how it sounds. 

If anything, a brand, especially for solopreneurs, should feel HUMAN and humans are multidimensional and complex. Humans have different styles, moods and tones throughout the day and throughout the week and throughout their lifetime.

We are ever evolving, shapeshifting creatures and full of contradictions. 

Sometimes I wear yoga gear, other times all black and combat boots, other times flowy sundresses. If I talk in private to my grandma I’ll let the hillbilly in me come ALL the way out. If I’m talking to my kids I may sound sweeter and more maternal. If I’m talking to my BFF in private I may have level 10 potty mouth.

I’m not trying to sell you on abandoning the quest to discover your brand voice; I’m just giving you permission to not mind so much. 

Don’t get too “attached” to your brand; your brand is just YOU, and YOU are constantly evolving and growing and discovering who you are in every moment. 

In short... I tried giving less fucks and decided to just enjoy the creative process and it unlocked something powerful and potent and infinitely more FUN in regards to content creation.

I can create 100x more content that's 10x better. Five stars, highly recommend. 

Does my brand have multiple personality disorder? Maybe! But at least it's not boring. 

A few brand quotes to inspire you...

Ann Handley, content marketing expert:
"Your brand is not what you sell. It’s who you are. And, in today’s world, people crave authenticity and a brand that feels human."

Gary Vaynerchuk, entrepreneur and marketing expert:
"There’s no reason to be robotic or corporate. People want to do business with other people, not faceless companies. Be human in your brand voice."

Seth Godin, marketing author and speaker:
"People do not buy goods and services. They buy relationships, stories, and magic."

David Meerman Scott, marketing strategist:
"The most human company wins."

Bernadette Jiwa, brand strategist and author:
"A brand is not a logo, a color palette, or a slogan. It’s a feeling people have about you. It’s how you make them feel about themselves when they interact with you."

Xoxo,

Melynda