Imagine a description of a Sunday morning walk in the
park by P.G. Woodhouse. Now imagine the same para being written by Douglas
Adams. You don’t have to read beyond the two lines to know who wrote what. Their
individual style of expression gives their writing a personality different from
others. That’s verbal identity.
Brands spend millions to express the right ‘look’
through logos, symbols and typefaces. But with growing importance of digital
media, it is becoming imperative for them to spend some valuable time developing a brand
language or a distinct verbal identity. A consistent language spoken in a
distinct tone of voice, devoid of any marketing gobbledygook will not only help
to humanize and sharpen a brand’s personality, it will also resonate better
with the social media savvy consumers for whom the secret of a stimulating and long term engagement is consistent verbal personality: what a brand says and how it says it.
Newspapers are a great example of how we choose a brand basis its verbal personality. Some of us like reading the Times Of India while others, The Hindustan Times basis the personality they put forth with words. They convey the same news but in a dramatically different manner. In the world of social media, for brands to stand out and have a meaningful relationship with their consumers, a strong verbal identity is a must.
We don’t have any doubt that the trend of verbal
identity is going to catch on in a big way. Major international brand strategy
firms such as Interbrand and Landor are already offering verbal identity
strategy as a separate service signaling its growing importance. Finally now the time has come to correct the imbalance between visual identity and verbal identity that has always existed in the world of branding.
To ensure your brand is ready for the digital world, review everything your brand 'says' via television to telecalling scripts. If you think your brand still needs a distinct verbal identity, call us, we can help!
