Businesses starting out or rebranding tend to forget an important element in their business; the tagline. For the most part, it’s not deemed necessary and considered something to be done when the brand expands. Although it’s not a branding necessity from the onset, it’s a sure way to make your brand stick in people’s minds.

A tagline is essentially a shorter version of the mission statement- a one liner of what your business does. The main element is that it be short, memorable and accurate to your brand. It is something you share with stakeholders (clients and potential clients) as a way to set you apart from other brands in a similar niche. It is however not to be confused with a slogan. A slogan is often a phrase used during marketing activities such as launches, campaigns or product advertising. It changes regularly according to one’s needs. A tagline does not change unless when rebranding.

When you think of slogans, one such as Coca Cola comes to mind. It says ‘Open Happiness’. It is likely that they paid big money to come up with the perfect tagline but you don’t have to have a huge marketing budget to do the same. The basic concept is how something (state the product or service) makes you feel when you use it. It also adds to how it’s likely to make your life better or what the benefits of using the same are.

Creating the tagline

One of the questions to ask yourself is the ‘why’ of your business. Narrowing down to the why, in a brief statement, helps you give an idea of the direction to take when creating your tagline. It is usually the core reason for your company’s existence. You may find that it largely has to do with solving a problem and being of service to others. It doesn’t have to be a non-profit; it could also be a barber shop Toronto has and wishes to stand out.

Your target market is another aspect to identify. Knowing the demographic helps you tailor your tagline accordingly to make it as specific and appropriate for whom you’re trying to reach. It is likely that you’re not the only business trying to reach this population. You therefore have to go a step deeper and establish what makes you different from the crowd. Keep this in mind when formulating the tagline as it’s essentially what will help your audience identify you and single you out among the many voices competing for their attention.

Lastly, your brand personality ought to come out in the statement. The brand personality is the character behind your business. Are you formal or playful? Your tone and words you use should give people an emotional impression of the type of company you are. With these tools, gather a team and available resources to make the perfect tagline for your business.

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Marketing

Branding