Sarah Fitzgerald, Self Communications Brand development conference www.charitycomms.org.uk/events

1. Your tone of voice
Sarah
Fitzgerald,
Director,
Self
Communica7ons
24
October
2013

2. About Self
We
work
with
the
public
sector,
not-­‐for-­‐profits
and
chari7es
to
help
your
values
shine
through…
-­‐ In
what
you
do
-­‐ In
what
you
say
-­‐ In
how
you
communicate

3. The Perfect Pitch guide
• Partnership
with
CharityComms
• Seminar:
Communica)ng
core
values
through
language
and
tone
of
voice
• A
dis)nc)ve
voice
survey
• Interviews
with
charity
communicators
• Supplement
to
Branding
Inside
Out

4. Which is most important?
55%
33%
12%
Visuals
Words
Both

5. What guidance do you have in
place?
97%
42%
Visual
ID
Tone
of
voice

6. The case for brand
language

7. There is a growing understanding internally that if we
sound fractured and not like one organisation, we lose
our credibility.
Fiona Furman, Spurgeons

9. Yes, we have our logos, our bubbles and colour palette
but language for me is one of our biggest brandbuilding weapons. We can make a beautiful TV ad and
do the billboards but it is that one-to-one daily
conversation that is also important.
Kat Ward-Smith, O2

10. @O2 B*****d big man ting I swear direct me to your
owner what happened to my internet connection
fam mans having to use the wifi and dat
@Tunde24_7 Have you tried to reset the
router ting fam, so mans can use the wifi
and dat?

11. Ready for brand
language?

12. We made the mistake of getting caught up on the
visuals. We had to play catch-up. Now it’s turned
around, and the visuals have just caught up with our
tone of voice.
Rachel Levett, Teach First

13. Overcoming barriers

14. We are very at ease in connecting with professionals.
Colloquial, every day language isn’t the default mode.
Sylvie Barr, RNIB
It’s not unprofessional to use straight-forward and
simple language – it’s actually more professional to
make it easier for someone to read.
Ruth Richards, Mind

15. For
professionals
For
people
with
cancer
You
might
already
be
aware
of
At
Macmillan,
we
understand
how
Macmillan’s
excellent
pallia7ve
care
vital
it
is
to
have
someone
by
your
services.
But
did
you
know
we
can
side
when
you're
affected
by
cancer.
complement
the
expert
care
and
A
team
who
can
provide
personal
support
you
provide
throughout
the
support
and
expert
informa7on.
cancer
journey?
We’re
here
for
That's
what
we
do.
We’re
here
for
people
with
cancer
at
diagnosis,
you,
whenever
you
need
us.
during
treatment
and
increasingly,
on
the
way
back
to
health.

16. How to approach
brand language

17. Looking back, my advice would be to give it time. I’ve
learnt how important it is to have an internal face for
this work, and for it to be championed constantly.
Ruth Richards, Mind

18. They were able to look at it from the outside, and find a
way through what sometimes felt like competing
voices. But the word carried on after they’d gone –
getting everyone else on board and using it.
Charity communicator

19. Research, research,
research

20. Research
Producing
guidance

22. Your brand language
toolbox

23. Brand proposition
We
are,
we
can,
we
do
• Bold
dynamic
• Real,
straight-­‐talking
• Thought-­‐provoking,
fresh
• Op7mis7c,
approachable

24. Name and strapline

25. Standard descriptors
We’ve
been
dedicated
to
the
health
and
happiness
of
pets
since
1897.
Abandoned
or
unwanted,
ill
or
injured
–
we
do
what’s
needed
to
give
every
pet
a
healthy
life
in
a
happy
home.
We’re
a
charity,
so
the
more
help
you
give
us,
the
more
help
we
can
give
pets.

26. Key messages
We
are
for
all
girls
We
give
girls
their
own
space
We
give
girls
a
voice
We
change
as
the
lives
of
girls
change

27. Tone of voice guidance
• Why
it
ma`ers
• Principles
• Puang
it
into
prac7ce
• Wri7ng
examples
• Specific
guidance

28. Principles
Personal
Inspiring
Straight-­‐forward
Ac7ve
PISA

29. Writing examples
Mind
commissioned
YouGov
Plc
to
conduct
a
survey
on
men
and
women’s
coping
mechanisms
and
help-­‐
seeking
behaviours.
We
asked
YouGov
to
carry
out
a
survey
for
us,
to
find
out
how
people
cope
with
a
mental
health
problem
and
seek
help.

30. Winning adoption

32. Measuring and
learning

33. Measuring and learning
• Reach
and
response
• Total
brand
strength
• Word
matching
• Social
media
brand
strength
• Response
to
calls
to
ac7on

34. The next challenge

36. The job is done if people feel confident to talk about
what we do in their own way, but still reflect what the
organisation is about.
Sylvie Barr, RNIB

37. www.selfcomms.co.uk
sarah@selfcomms.co.uk
07766
115431
@SarahatSelf
www.linkedin.com/in/sarahefitzgerald