Brand language
Encyclopedia
Brand language is the body of words and systems for their use in written and verbal communication associated with an organisation and/or its separate product offerings or business units. Brand Language consists of brand vocabulary and brand tone of voice. Vocabulary is what a brand
is talking about, and tone of voice is how it is talking about it.
It is part of verbal brand identity, which also includes corporate naming (organisation/corporation: Sony
), brand or product line naming (Sony product brands: Walkman
/Playstation
/Bravia
) and straplines or positioning statements (Sony corporate strapline: 'make. believe').
The brand language can also be associated with competing for investors, recruiting talent, or acquiring business partners.
Brand language is used in internal communications, particularly in leadership and motivational situations. Brand language is closely associated with brand values, as the language needs to reinforce the qualities with which the brand or organisation differentiates itself.
While naming and straplines work mainly at a strategic level, brand language is the everyday tactical application of competitive persuasion by the written and spoken word.
quotes extensive word association research carried out by Millward Brown
demonstrating the strong link between the words “magic” and “kingdom” and Disney. Disney appears to have made a successful investment in “owning” these words. A competing brand would have to make a considerably larger investment in attempting to own them than they would in trying to establish their own brand language.
The disadvantage of very strong brand language associations is that they may prove a hindrance if a brand wishes to position itself differently.
Digital presence is now one of the most important starting points for any corporate communication. As social media
have expanded, it is no longer realistic to attempt to control what people are saying legally about your brand or organisation. Worldwide marketing communications group Publicis promote their own strap line of ‘Contagious Conversations’ and it is widely accepted that organisations must now contribute to conversations about themselves. The starting point for an organisation or brand’s own communications is its digital presence.
Brand language is delivered externally through formal marketing communications, such as advertising
and public relations
. It is present wherever written and spoken language is used to communicate a proposition. This includes recruitment, corporate communications
, investor relations
, sales presentations, conference speaking, retail
staff and whenever an individual answers the telephone on behalf of the brand.
Internally, brand language is delivered primarily through internal presentations, staff conferences and through intranet sites.
Because brand language is so widespread, it has many internal and external contributors. This diversity of sources and contributors makes it very difficult to control. Visual identity is produced from a central source, usually a design agency. It is usually delivered with a set of design guidelines produced to ensure the consistent delivery of design. Variations from these guidelines can be identified relatively easily by the brand’s managers. This is much more difficult with language.
Brand
The American Marketing Association defines a brand as a "Name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers."...
is talking about, and tone of voice is how it is talking about it.
It is part of verbal brand identity, which also includes corporate naming (organisation/corporation: Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
), brand or product line naming (Sony product brands: Walkman
Walkman
Walkman is a Sony brand tradename originally used for portable audio cassette, and now used to market Sony's portable audio and video players as well as a line of Sony Ericsson mobile phones...
/Playstation
PlayStation
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...
/Bravia
Bravia
Bravia can refer to:* Sony BRAVIA, a range of televisions* Bravia , an airline* Bravia , a Portuguese vehicle manufacturer...
) and straplines or positioning statements (Sony corporate strapline: 'make. believe').
Primary role
The primary role of organisational brand language is to differentiate a company and its distinctive offerings from its competitors.The brand language can also be associated with competing for investors, recruiting talent, or acquiring business partners.
Brand language is used in internal communications, particularly in leadership and motivational situations. Brand language is closely associated with brand values, as the language needs to reinforce the qualities with which the brand or organisation differentiates itself.
While naming and straplines work mainly at a strategic level, brand language is the everyday tactical application of competitive persuasion by the written and spoken word.
Words as assets
When positive words become strongly associated with particular brands, these words can become assets—to the point that competing brands may find the words difficult to use. For example, in his book Brand Sense (Kogan Page, 2005) Martin LindstromMartin Lindstrom
Martin Lindstrom is an author and Time Magazine Influential 100 Honoree. Lindstrom's books include Buyology - Truth and Lies About Why We Buy and Brandwashed - Tricks Companies Use to Manipulate Our Minds and Persuade Us to Buy , his first title written for consumers, for which Lindstrom...
quotes extensive word association research carried out by Millward Brown
Millward Brown
Millward Brown is a global company focused on brands, media and communications. It is part of Kantar Group, the insights arm of WPP plc, and the world’s second largest market research organization after Nielsen Company.-Leadership:...
demonstrating the strong link between the words “magic” and “kingdom” and Disney. Disney appears to have made a successful investment in “owning” these words. A competing brand would have to make a considerably larger investment in attempting to own them than they would in trying to establish their own brand language.
The disadvantage of very strong brand language associations is that they may prove a hindrance if a brand wishes to position itself differently.
Delivery channels
In Brand Sense, Lindstrom says brand language starts from the bottom up and “not suddenly placed on top like a piece of decorative icing”. So, as well as being competitive, brand language should be delivered as consistently as possible through all formal delivery channels.Digital presence is now one of the most important starting points for any corporate communication. As social media
Social media
The term Social Media refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into an interactive dialogue. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0,...
have expanded, it is no longer realistic to attempt to control what people are saying legally about your brand or organisation. Worldwide marketing communications group Publicis promote their own strap line of ‘Contagious Conversations’ and it is widely accepted that organisations must now contribute to conversations about themselves. The starting point for an organisation or brand’s own communications is its digital presence.
Brand language is delivered externally through formal marketing communications, such as advertising
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
and public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
. It is present wherever written and spoken language is used to communicate a proposition. This includes recruitment, corporate communications
Corporate communications
Corporate communication is the message issued by a corporate organization, body, or institute to its publics. "Publics" can be both internal Corporate communication is the message issued by a corporate organization, body, or institute to its publics. "Publics" can be both internal Corporate...
, investor relations
Investor relations
Investor Relations is a strategic management responsibility that integrates finance, communication, marketing and securities law compliance to enable the most effective two-way communication between a company, the financial community, and other constituencies, which ultimately contributes to a...
, sales presentations, conference speaking, retail
Retail
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
staff and whenever an individual answers the telephone on behalf of the brand.
Internally, brand language is delivered primarily through internal presentations, staff conferences and through intranet sites.
Because brand language is so widespread, it has many internal and external contributors. This diversity of sources and contributors makes it very difficult to control. Visual identity is produced from a central source, usually a design agency. It is usually delivered with a set of design guidelines produced to ensure the consistent delivery of design. Variations from these guidelines can be identified relatively easily by the brand’s managers. This is much more difficult with language.
Brand agencies
Brand design agencies have diversified beyond their roots in brand logo and packaging design into corporate identity and brand language. They are global businesses with the scope to ensure that brand naming and brand language works in different languages. In English-speaking countries, leaders include Landor and The Brand Union, both part of WPP Group, and Interbrand. Interbrand has dedicated verbal identity departments in both London and New York.Digital and social media companies
Brands are tracking social media in order to understand how people are talking about them. In English-speaking countries, practitioners include Visible Technologies, Lexalytics and Polecat. The corollary is that they contribute to how brands are talking about themselves. Linguabrand claims to have invented brand language analytics and to provide brand vocabulary and tone of voice measurement.Copywriters
There are large numbers of freelance copywriters. Many have repositioned themselves as brand language experts. Where copywriting agencies exist they tend to be smaller, domestic businesses lacking the global reach of the big brand agencies. John Simmons, a copywriter, has written extensively on how brands can use words more effectively. His books include We, Me, Them and It (Texerre), Dark angels (Cyan) and The Invisible Grail (Cyan). Simmons was also a founding director of 26, a UK-based organisation promoting the use of better brand language.See also
- Brand architectureBrand architectureBrand architecture is the structure of brands within an organizational entity. It is the way in which the brands within a company’s portfolio are related to, and differentiated from, one another...
- Brand equityBrand equityBrand equity is the marketing effects and outcomes that accrue to a product with its brand name compared with those that would accrue if the same product did not have the brand name. Fact of the well-known brand name is that, the company can sometimes charge premium prices from the consumer . And,...
- Brand implementationBrand implementationBrand implementation refers to the physical representation and consistent application of brand identity across visual and verbal identity carriers. In visual terms, this can include signage, uniforms, liveries, interior design and branded merchandise...
- Brand loyaltyBrand loyaltyThe American Marketing Association defines brand loyalty as:# The situation in which a consumer generally buys the same manufacturer-originated product or service repeatedly over time rather than buying from multiple suppliers within the category .# The degree to which a consumer consistently...
- Branding agencyBranding agencyA branding agency is a type of marketing agency which specialises in creating and launching brands as well as rebranding. Branding agencies create, plan and manage branding strategies, independent of their clients...
- Content marketingContent marketingContent marketing is an umbrella term encompassing all marketing formats that involve the creation or sharing of content for the purpose of engaging current and potential consumer bases. Content marketing subscribes to the notion that delivering high-quality, relevant and valuable information to...
- Integrated marketing communicationsIntegrated Marketing CommunicationsIntegrated Marketing Communications is defined as customer centric, data driven method of communicating with the customer. IMC is the coordination and integration of all marketing communication tools, avenues, functions and sources within a company into a seamless program that maximizes the impact...
- Visual brand languageVisual brand languageVisual brand language is branding terminology for a unique "alphabet" of design elements – such as shape, color, materials, finish, typography and composition – which directly and subliminally communicate a company's values and personality through compelling imagery and design style...