Tone of Voice Essay (Copywriting)
In today’s competitive global market, the likelihood of creating a product or service that is unique, or has few competitors, is low. Most sectors are heavily saturated. To be successful, businesses must persuade potential customers that they are different, better than their competitors, and more deserving of their repeated custom. An effective means of achieving this – alongside offering a quality product or service – is by creating and maintaining a strong brand identity. This essay will explore how tone of voice contributes to brand identity and significantly impacts brand success, by drawing on industry examples, academic sources, and my own experience working on client briefs.
An effective brand identity conveys a clear message to consumers about who a brand is, what they do, where they’ve come from, and where they are going. It also reveals a brand’s ethics and vision. Neeha Curtis explains, ‘…brands are promises, assuring the customer of a certain quality, experience or value’ (Curtis, 2024). Key elements of brand identity include – but are not limited to – brand story, brand personality, visual identity, tone of voice, product or service offered, brand name, and sensory identity (Andrivet, 2023).
When creating a brand identity, businesses are advised to weave their core vision and values together with the needs and values of their intended audience. If they can do this while maintaining authenticity, they will ensure their relevance and appeal to potential customers. As put by David Penn, MD of agency Conquest, ‘…Those who love a brand do tend to identify strongly with its values. And what really defines the most successful brands is their ability to 'match' their lovers on the values they hold dear’ (Penn, 2017).
The world’s leading sportswear and apparel brand, Nike, has one of the most recognised and successful brand identities globally. Its trademark swoosh (tick symbol) and slogan ‘Just Do It’ have become synonymous with the brand. Every element of Nike has been curated to align with its mission statement: ‘Our purpose is to move the world forward through the power of sport. Worldwide, we're leveling the playing field, doing our part to protect our collective playground and expanding access to sport for everyone’ (Nike, 2025). The name itself is taken from the Greek goddess of victory (Digital Brand Blueprint, 2023).
Nike’s visual identity is distinct, inspiring and innovative. The brand uses bold typefaces in primarily black and white, against striking visuals with pops of neon colour. Their product images and campaigns champion inclusivity, depicting a diverse range of people being active and ‘breaking barriers’ alongside the slogan: *If You Have a Body, You’re an Athlete.
The cohesion in Nike’s brand identity – including its bold stance on equality, inclusion and diversity (EDI), and sustainability – has built a trusted relationship between the sportswear manufacturer and its target audience, cultivating customer loyalty. People wear Nike not just because it’s popular and recognisable, or because the products are trusted to be better than others, but because it makes them feel part of something greater than themselves: an inspiring global movement.
Although all aspects of brand identity are integral to brand success, tone of voice is arguably the most imperative. Effective communication is made up of two components: what is being said, and how it is being said. If messaging about a brand’s mission, story, and product or service are not loud and clear, visuals and vision are likely to be lost. People have to be listening in order to pay attention. It is unlikely that Nike would have achieved such success if its story hadn’t been as effectively communicated. As put by Mark Shaw, ‘… we’re becoming a bit blasé about stunning visuals, amazing concepts and slick photography… The messages they carry and the way those messages are expressed are the essence of effective communication’ (Shaw, 2012).
Roger Horberry defines tone of voice as ‘personality in print’ (Horberry, 2010). When cultivating their tone of voice, brands must first decide which messages they want to communicate to their audience. Secondly, they must decide how they want to sound in these communications. This includes granular choices such as specific word usage, whether to include phrases or idioms, and if they prefer contractions or more formal sentence structures. They must consider if their tone should be friendly, passionate, sophisticated – or a combination of any other characteristics that align with the brand. Thirdly, brands must carefully consider their target audience. They must ask themselves who exactly they are appealing to, and whether their way of communicating will resonate with – and be memorable for – this audience. Should they be unique, creative and trendy in their approach? Or would a simple and trustworthy tone of voice get their message across more effectively?
In the third year of my Copywriting module, our class-run copywriting agency, Noteworthy, was given a brief by agency Stratton Craig. A luxury cruise brand, Oceanic Wonders, required website copy for excursions they offered. They were clear that their copy should include sensorial details, lesser-used descriptive words and sound like the voice of a cultured traveller. Their tone of voice guidelines included ‘brand’ words and ‘banned’ words, short phrases explaining the vibe of the cruise company, and additional pointers. One of these additional guidelines stated that the highlights section of the excursion description should be written in ‘plainer English.’ This was to ensure that all travellers, not just native-English speakers, would understand the key points of each trip.
These guidelines were a great example of a brand considering its tone to appeal to a varied audience whilst remaining true to their voice. As instructed by the brief, the body of my excursion description used inspiring and evocative language to appeal to travellers seeking exceptional experiences, whereas the highlights section used simplified and accessible language so that other audiences were not alienated. Tone of voice is not only incredibly important in helping a brand connect with and appeal to its customers, but it also has the power to make other brands pay attention and shake up the market.
One brand that used effectively used tone of voice to become a top competitor in its sector is Oatly – a Swedish manufacturer of oat-based alternatives to dairy. The brand, best known for its range of oat milks, initially struggled to garner attention in the milk industry; the conversation was dominated by dairy brands. Their branding was described as ‘overly safe,’ with nicely coloured but unremarkable packaging and copy. Oatly needed to be able to stand out if they were going to succeed, and so they took their meagre 2% media budget to the creative collective Forsman & Bodenfors (The Go Branding, 2021).
Forsman & Bodenfors said of their approach to rebranding Oatly, ‘We started by shifting the approach to oat-based products from being a niche segment for people with allergies to a lifestyle choice for a conscious generation. We rebuilt Oatly into a rebellious brand ready to take on the world with a clear point of view and a bold attitude’ (Forsman & Bodenfors, 2025). Some of their more provocative brand slogans include: ‘It’s like milk but made for humans’ and ‘plant-based is the new normal.’ This playful and unapologetic messaging appealed to audiences. Today, purchasing Oatly products is about more than choosing a dairy alternative: it’s a way to rebel against the norm and show people you care about environmental issues.
Although it’s important for brands to maintain consistency of tone of voice in their communications, there are some cases where it can be adjusted. On social media, for example, tone of voice can be moulded to resonate with the audiences who interact with these platforms. Airline group Ryanair, for instance, has been successful in adjusting their approach when communicating through Instagram, TikTok and X.
The company’s website copy is simple and to-the-point, advertising budget-friendly flights with phrases like ‘Big Sale Small Prices’. However, their social media communications take a much more daring and obnoxious approach (Ryanair, n.d). In an effort to appeal to younger audiences, the brand has adopted a playful and cheeky tone. Social media posts including phrases like ‘good morning to passengers who said they’d never fly Ryanair again but did’, far from alienating and offending customers, garner higher levels of interaction from their followers (Ryanair, 2025). These communications have been – for the most part – praised for their bold and humorous approach, and increased the likeability of the often-unreliable airline (Collins, 2023). This proves that tone of voice gives brands the opportunity to cultivate relationships with their audience in a memorable and direct way. These communications become more about how the brand makes the user feel, than the product or service they offer.
This essay has explored the importance of creating and maintaining a brand identity in today’s competitive market. It has outlined the different aspects that make up brand identity, highlighting that – while these elements working together cohesively is ideal for brand success – a strong and effective tone of voice can be what sets a brand apart from its competitors.
References
Andrivet, M. (2023) The Power of a Strong Brand Identity: Definition, Importance, and Key Elements. The Branding Journal [online]. 29 March. Available from: https://www.thebrandingjournal.com/2023/03/brand-identity/#:~:text=Brand%20identity%20is%20a%20vital,%2C%20personality%2C%20and%20visual%20identity. [Accessed 22 April 2025].
Collins, R. (2023) Ryanair: How a budget airline took off on TikTok. BBC [online]. 11 November. Available from: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/newsbeat-67333386#:~:text=By%20Riyah%20Collins,X [Accessed 24 April 2025].
Curtis, N. (2024) Why Brand Identity Is More Important Than Ever In 2024. Forbes [online]. 23 January. Available from: https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbescommunicationscouncil/2024/01/23/why-brand-identity-is-more-important-than-ever-in-2024/ [Accessed 23 April 2025].
Digital Brand Blueprint (2023) Brand Profile: Nike, Inc. Available from: https://digitalbrandblueprint.com/brand-profile-nike-inc/ [Accessed 23 April 2025].
Forsman & Bodenfors (2025) Changing How People Think of Milk. Available from: https://www.forsman.com/work/oatly/ [Accessed 22 April 2025].
Horberry, R. (2010) Brilliant Copywriting. Harlow: Pearson Business. [Accessed 28 April 2025].
Nike (2025) Impact. Available from: https://about.nike.com/en/impact [Accessed 23 April 2025].
Penn, D. (2017) Decoding brand identity: The hidden truth behind brand love. Warc [online]. 06 March. Available from: https://www.warc.com/newsandopinion/opinion/decoding-brand-identity-the-hidden-truth-behind-brand-love/en-gb/2409?utm_source=chatgpt.com [Accessed 25 April 2025].
Ryanair (2025) welcome back […] [Instagram]. 11 March. Available from: https://www.instagram.com/p/DHDngq_sf7j/?hl=en [Accessed 24 April 2025]
Ryanair (n.d.) Ryanair. Available from: https://www.ryanair.com/gb/en [Accessed 26 April 2025].
Shaw, M. (2012) Copywriting. Successful writing for design, advertising and marketing. London: Laurence King [Accessed 27 March 2025].
The Go Branding (2021) Oatly and How the Branding Game Evolves. Medium [online]. 14 January. Available from: https://medium.com/thegobranding/oatly-and-how-the-branding-game-evolves-f53ddf7bb612 [Accessed 23 April 2025].