Tagline
Writing Services to Brand Your Business
Many busines owners don't think
that it's necessary to have a company tagline. If
you plan to advertise across multiple forms of media,
it most certainly is. Taglines use the art of repetition
to drill information about your company into the minds
of your future customers. Big corporations know this
all too well - which is why they spent hundreds of
thousands of dollars working on their brand, testing
their marketing, changing things, refining, and testing
again.
It's all about that line. That one
line that cuts through the constant streams of blaring
communication and tells people, "You want to
do business with us! It's worth it." Think about
it: how many companies have you known in your lifetime
solely by the tagline that rings in your ears when
you hear certain words, or see a sign, or recognize
a familiar jingle?
"Good to the last drop... Maxwell
House"
"Kentucky Fried Chicken. We
do chicken right!"
"Dawn cuts the grease"
"Raise your hand... if you're
Sure"
Tagline Writing Tip: Read Out Loud
Copywriters typically write taglines
as brainstorm lists. We come up with whatever words
and phrases seem to best explain the company's unique
selling proposition. Then we narrow down to the ones
that flow the best and ring truest for our company.
We also eliminate the taglines that aren't already
in use by someone else. (You may want to check the
availability of your tagline before incorporating
it into your logo design.)
Once you've gotten to about a page
worth of decent taglines, read each one aloud, inserting
the company name up front. Do it in your best announcer
voice (trust me, this really works). Watch for repeated
words (you definitely don't want a tagline that uses
the same word as your company name). Make sure your
tagline isn't too cumbersome. If you have to, take
whole sentences (that means you've included a subject
and a predicate) and reduce to phrases. It's okay
to not write in complete sentences when you're working
on taglines.
Some advertisers like to develop
taglines around a running theme, where they can switch
out one word and replace with another, according to
the season, item they're selling, or what have you.
You certainly are not expected to do this... but it's
an option that's worth investigating if you plan to
run seasonal campaigns all year, or pitch to different
audiences.
What about a Company Slogan?
Many people confuse taglines and
slogans. Your tagline might remain the same for
many years, but your company slogan changes each
time you launch a new advertising campaign with
a new theme. Some people use these terms interchangeably,
and that's okay, as long as your copywriter understands
what she will be creating for you, where, and in
front of whom will it appear.
