Nine Reasons You Need a Brand Messaging Audit NOW
What message is your brand really sending? Are your potential clients resonating with your content and ads, or are they rolling their eyes as they scroll past your desperate efforts to prove your expertise?
There’s a lot of noise out there, and much of it reeks of inauthenticity and pretentious, company-centric narcissism. How many times do we have to endure the nonsensical Facebook and YouTube ads with self-proclaimed “influencers” posing in front of a Lambo parked outside of a multi-million-dollar estate claiming to have a system that will get you to eight figures in six months?
This isn’t to say that these individuals aren’t selling a viable product, though I maintain a little skepticism. However, the way many small business owners are portraying themselves and their offer is doing more harm than good.
It is likely that many entrepreneurs are imitating what they are seeing from others in their space, and assuming that’s the way to get the word out and excite potential customers. What they are failing to consider is whether this peacocking method appeals to their target audience.
While this caricature is one that is easy to spot — and enjoyable to mock — there are many other more subtle examples of companies that are missing the mark in their brand messaging. It can be as simple as using an overly formal tone of voice when attempting to appeal to the “every man” archetype. Or maybe there’s a disconnect when emphasizing the features of your product or service when your ideal client would resonate much more to the emotional benefits.
The best way to determine the effectiveness of your messaging is by performing a messaging audit. These audits are designed to analyze how your company presents itself to and is perceived by your target audience.
They evaluate the effectiveness of your content and communication efforts across your website and social channels to determine its impact on your brand identity, positioning, customer engagement and public perception. You may also want to include an audit of your email campaigns, advertising, sales copy, and any other public facing content that is used to communicate with your target audience.
What to Look for In Your Audit
While there are a number of factors to evaluate, I would recommend analyzing the following:
Consistency and prevalence of:
- Core brand messages
- Differentiation
- Value proposition
- Target market engagement
- Brand voice
- Brand personality
- Persona targeting
Use of emotion and psychology to persuade, influence and connect with clients
Content popularity and engagement
Alignment of desired brand identity and positioning to content and communications efforts
Nine Reasons to Conduct an Audit
Among the many reasons to conduct a brand messaging audit, it is highly recommended that you do one if:
- You are developing a new content, social media, or email marketing strategy or digital marketing campaign
- You are concerned about your brand’s perception or reputation
- You are considering a rebrand
- You want to scale your business
- You are facing fierce competition from other brands
- You are not seeing ROI from your communication efforts
- You want to launch another category/sub-category under that brand
- You want to sell your brand
- You want to change your business stance or reposition your brand for another target audience
How an Audit Will Boost Your Bottom Line
The final deliverable for an audit like this should be a report containing key findings and insights regarding any gaps or discrepancies as well as general recommendations for improving your overall brand messaging and communication strategies.
With improved messaging that connects with your audience on a deeper level and speaks to their needs, desires and goals, you can expect to enjoy the following results:
- Generate and convert more leads
- Build authority
- Increase customer engagement
- Better differentiate yourself from your competitors
- Attract the clients you want
- Increase customer retention
- Improve visibility
If you’re interested in learning more about how a brand messaging audit can grow your business, feel free to set up a free consultation to discuss how we can help.
