Your tagline is a powerful component that serves many functions in branding your business. It gives customers information, evokes feelings or ideas, and establishes your voice.
But coming up with a memorable tagline isn’t easy. It requires careful consideration into different aspects of your business and the needs of your customers.
Knowing what makes a good tagline is the first step in this process. As your business evolves, so too will the message you send out in your marketing and social engagement. The following will help you understand how to create a memorable tagline that gives your business the right voice to reach new customers.
Why You Need a Tagline
You want more customers. That’s a given. But long-term relationships with customers require an understanding of the value you provide. Your tagline allows them to understand your company’s mission in a way that resonates with them.
A tagline takes all of the essential components of your product or service and communicates it in a way that’s clear and concise. Your customers will know exactly what benefits they’ll gain and how you’ll improve their lives.
The process of creating a memorable tagline serves you and your business by making you consider what unique value you provide your customers. This sets you apart from your competitors—in the customer’s mind and in yours.
Essentials of a Memorable Tagline
Your tagline sets tone for the personality of your business. Nike’s “Just Do It” and Apple’s “Think Different” are perfect examples of how a carefully crafted tagline can say so much with so little.
What ideas does your business value? What voice do you imagine would share those ideas with your customers? Take these answers and use them to create a tagline that embodies them clearly and effectively.
A tagline should be concise. You should be able to clearly state the vision of your business in as little as five words. If you can’t, then you need to keep honing it down until it works. A tagline that tries to say too much ends up saying very little in the end.
Make your tagline specific and focused. If it’s too general, it will likely be forgotten. By narrowing the focus of your tagline, customers remember you when the specific pain points that you solve come up in their lives.
The creation process
There are a number of approaches you can take in creating a memorable tagline. At the very core of the process are key questions that you and your team members must answer.
First, decide what the primary benefits are that you provide to your customers. Be careful not to confuse benefits with the features of your product or service. The biggest mistake you can make is to create a tagline that speaks more about the company rather than the needs of your customer.
Once you’ve identified the benefits, go deeper to consider the ways in which your business improves a customer’s life in general. Consider things like peace of mind, improved relationships with family and friends, or fulfillment in their work and personal lives.
Finally, define what makes your business different from your competitor’s. Your unique selling proposition (USP) is at the core of your tagline. It’s not enough to solve a customer’s problem, you have to do it in a way that sets you apart from the rest.
These elements will help you construct the perfect tagline that speaks directly to the needs of your current and future customers. They help give your business a voice and create a brand experience that can be summarised in just a few words.
A tagline provides clarity to customers and articulates the vision of your business. They’ll understand what you do, how you do it, and why you do it. More importantly, they’ll know why they should say “yes” to you.