3 STRATEGIES To Strengthen Your Brand’s Social Voice

1. 3 S T R AT E G I E S
To Strengthen Your
Brand’s Social Voice

2. At its most integrated level, social media presents brands with
unprecedented opportunities for visibility, accessibility, efficiency and
growth. In return, fans, followers and customers expect a balanced value
exchange through responsiveness, care and profound levels of engagement.
Given the (seemingly) lighthearted nature and subtle nuances of the social media
marketplace, some brands’ social voice strategies could play on par with a
scrappy 140-character count. Yet simply because you publish according to
character limits, file types and fickle formats does not guarantee your tactics
present a consistent and compelling social voice.
The time to treat social marketing and engagement planning lightly has passed;
the creation of an online brand identity and social voice strategy is no longer a
nicety. Prosperous brands now grant socially driven employees, from CMOs to
social media specialists, rightfully earned seats at the table. So go ahead and sit
down, lean in—if you dare—but don’t get too comfortable without smart strategies
and calculated contributions.
Unsure where to begin or want to refine your existing approach? We offer three
strategies to achieve a more successful social voice. In short: Keep it clear, classy
and consistent.
3 Strategies to Strengthen Your Brand’s Social Voice
“Present a consistent &
compelling social voice”
sproutsocial.com

3. Clearly & Concisely Personify Your Brand
As a marketing leader within your organization, it is your job to accurately and acutely
engage the appropriate people and resources to generate a clear, concise brand voice.
You’ve hopefully addressed, at least conceptually, your brand voice for advertising, public
relations and other marketing efforts. Social, however, is in a league of its own because
brand conversations may not directly start from, end with or include your brand at all.
Lesson one: you never unilaterally control your brand’s social voice.
So why do many businesses still routinely, and sometimes hastily, throw team members
(often interns or junior associates) head first into social community management? Often
they have little to no understanding of how the voice they project will positively—or
negatively—affect the greater business. Others are more sophisticated, with human
horsepower and the technology to implement a social voice at scale. But without proper
alignment even the most prepared team will generate disjointed social experiences and
lackluster conversations. As an initial strategy, discuss with your team ways to establish
and maintain a cohesive voice.
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:
• What are our brand’s guiding principles and how do we extend them socially?
• How can we complement the style and voice of our inbound social conversations?
• Should our brand’s social voice be casual, formal or adaptive as necessary?
• What human qualities do we want to regularly exude?
• What are our tactical sentence structure, verb tense and grammar preferences?
If multiple people on your team manage the social process, the tone of your company’s
tweets and posts may differ depending on who publishes what content. Even if you agree
on a collective brand voice, each team member may personify it in a different way and, in
turn, cause disparate brand conversations. The devil is in the details and, while seemingly
inconsequential, setting the tone by which you operate will nicely unify your voice and
create a better brand experience.
sproutsocial.com
3 Strategies to Strengthen Your Brand’s Social Voice
“You never
unilaterally
control your
brand’s
social voice.”
1

4. Be Open & Responsive—But Stay Classy
In a few short years—and with more than a billion people on board—social engagement
now literally shapes worldwide conversations around topics from politics and celebrity to
business and brand loyalty. Naturally, questions arise of who, what, where, when and why
brands should start or jump into social conversations. Without preparation, situations can
get sticky, so find that appropriate balance to stay relevant but (please!) keep it classy.
Lesson two: steer clear of questionable conversations.
It is easy to get caught up in the moment and react to news, opinions and trivial social
commentary, especially within or around your brand category. While it is important to pay
attention and engage with the world around you, quick reactions and dives into
questionable conversations may lead to unwanted attention for your brand. Even with an
agreed upon brand voice, it is important to ensure published content stays on track and
conversations continued by social managers are on message.
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:
• What topics, if any, are off limits for our social communication channels?
• When is it appropriate to take conversations to direct or private message?
• How should we accurately differentiate personal opinions from brand opinions?
• How do we address conversations or questions about our competitors?
• Do we properly support and answer customer issues through social?
In light of these insights, and in concert with your brand marketing campaigns, set terms
of engagement to manage social conversations across channels and networks. Yes,
engage your audience, support varying viewpoints and spark healthy debate but, as
individuals, stay mindful that you represent an entity greater than yourself.
Acknowledgement of these terms is critical and as a team you should set standards
around your social voice that add value and engender positivity.
sproutsocial.com
3 Strategies to Strengthen Your Brand’s Social Voice
2“Steer clear of
questionable
conversations.”

5. Be Consistent & Refine in Real-Time
Every company—whether it’s a small business or a large enterprise—is full of varied
personalities in charge of social exchanges. A diverse corporate makeup is great for
innovation and culture, but may present challenges as you define your brand’s social
voice. Once you have determined the overall tone and timing of your company’s social
persona, put pen to paper yet remember to stay agile. Lesson three: social governance
should not prevent your brand from being interesting.
Before companies knew how to appropriately leverage social, most brand activity on
social platforms was an afterthought to comprehensive planning and well-timed
campaigns. As teams grow and players rotate, standards should include key points and
phrases as well as guidelines for the type and tone of social media content. If you ensure
that everyone is in agreement about your brand’s voice, it will help alleviate questions or
concerns about social conversations and who manages what content.
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:
• Who should participate in social conversations on behalf of our brand?
• Who is the point of contact for questions or content approval?
• How will we stay consistent with other ongoing brand marketing activities?
• Should we create formal social voice standards for the company?
• How do we monitor and measure effectiveness of our social voice?
After a set of standards is finalized, obtain approvals and sign offs from anyone in your
organization who should be involved in the process. Then communicate appropriately to
ensure understanding and (fingers crossed) avoid pleas of ignorance should something
go wrong. As you strive for consistency, you’ll likely realize some standards do not fit or
scenarios may arise for which you did not account. That’s perfectly okay. Follow
guidelines to ensure consistency, but refine in real-time and maintain a certain level of
spontaneity to keep your audience coming back for more.
sproutsocial.com
3 Strategies to Strengthen Your Brand’s Social Voice
3“Social
governance
should not
prevent you
from being
interesting.”

6. Sprout Social provides social media engagement,
publishing and analytic tools for top global brands
including AMD, McDonald’s, Pepsi, UPS and Yammer.
A powerful platform for social business, Sprout
enables brands to more effectively manage social
channels and provide an exceptional customer
experience. Headquartered in Chicago, Sprout is a
Twitter Certified Product and a Facebook Preferred
Marketing Developer.
For more information or to start a FREE, 30-day trial,
visit sproutsocial.com
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Building a clear, classy and consistent brand voice can be challenging, but
with the right individual and team techniques, you’ll reap the rewards of
heightened engagement. These three strategies certainly require work but, when
implemented, will solidify your brand’s social voice and establish meaningful
relationships that stretch beyond a status update to stand the test of time.
3 Strategies to Strengthen Your Brand’s Social Voice