In my previous life, I spent several years as a working musician. As I transitioned to a career in advertising, I quickly noticed that my new gig as a copywriter wasn’t that different from my old one as a songwriter. I had to find a way to write music that reflected my personality and enticed people to actively listen. If you’re trying to establish an identity for your business, you’re facing the same challenge. So here are a few tips to ensure that your brand messaging will strike a chord.

Play to Your Audience – First things first, you need to feel out the crowd. Do they feel like dancing, or do they want something mellow? Do they like oldies or new stuff? Knowing your target audience is key to developing effective messaging. You need to understand not just the demographics, but also the psychographics of the people you want to reach. Once you lock down your target audience you can start writing copy that communicates your brand’s personality in ways that your audience can relate to.

Keep it Consistent – An advertising campaign is like an album. Imagine if Led Zeppelin IV had included a country song about drinking beer and goin’ muddin’ in a pickup truck. It would have seemed out of place and hindered the overall feel of the record. Whether you’re writing a radio or print ad or copy for your website, the messaging should be consistent across all platforms. Brand recognition is all about exposure. The more your audience is exposed to a consistent message, the more likely it will be remembered.

Brevity is Best – No one wants to listen to a 14 minute song. And no one wants to see six long paragraphs of text on the homepage of your website. Keep it concise. This will help when you’re writing TV or radio spots, which are usually restricted to 30 seconds. That’s not a lot of time, so you want to make sure to get in your key messages in without any extra fluff.

Its Gotta Have a Hook – Your headline or tagline, depending on the medium, should be like the hook from a song that gets stuck in your head. You may only remember bits and pieces of the verses, or body copy, but there’s one line you can’t stop singing. Just like music, good advertisements should evoke emotions. Whether it be humor, nostalgia or excitement, you need to use an appeal that reflects the personality of your business and helps people form a connection to your brand. Good writing is essential to communicating the value of your business and turning your target audience into loyal fans.

Do you need help writing content that is music to your audience’s ears? Give us a call at 701-478-1111 or visit absolutemg.com/contact. We would love to help.