What’s Brand Messaging? (You Need It BEFORE Copywriting)
Forgot about brand messaging? Then your audience will forget about you.
Or better: your business won’t pop into their minds when they’re finally ready to invest in the type of services or products you sell.
Shall we bypass this not-so-delightful scenario?
Find out why you desperately need to work on your brand messaging (and yes, that’s before you write or invest in new copy).
Understanding brand messaging
Let’s start with a simple definition.
What is brand messaging?
Brand messaging is the way you talk and write about your business, what you focus on the most, and how you convey your specific value proposition to your target audience in a way that resonates with THEM.
It’s how you communicate your mission, brand story, and personality across all of your marketing channels.
And, of course, in order to communicate them effectively… you first need to be crystal clear on what they actually are for your business!
Brand messaging examples
Brand messaging isn’t really something you can “see”. It’s more about how you make your audience feel about your business and what you help them focus on (and remember).
Still, I’m gonna share a couple of snippets to give you a flavour of just how big a difference this can make.
The following brand messaging examples are from the websites of two coaches for female entrepreneurs:
MG Coach uses a straight-to-the-point, matter-of-fact tone that inspires confidence. Even though her services help her clients improve their overall life too, her focus is clearly on business. More specifically, on getting results “faster, better, easier.”
Becky Stanton has an uplifting tone, which makes her clients feel empowered and sense an instant connection with her (e.g. “and the truth is, that magic is already inside of you.”). Her focus is on helping them create an abundant life overall.
See? They’re both coaches and both working with female entrepreneurs, but their brand messaging paints a completely different picture right from the start.
When you master this, you’ll start attracting and connecting with your dream clients—and repelling the wrong prospects, which is just as important.
And what is a brand messaging framework?
A brand messaging framework is a document that clarifies elements like your value proposition, core focus, and tone of voice. It also includes guidelines on how to keep your communication consistent when talking about your business.
That way, it doesn’t matter if it’s just you, if you have a team, or if you’re planning on outsourcing some aspects of your business: a brand messaging framework will ensure that its focus stays consistent no matter who’s writing about it, when, and on what channel.
Why you need brand messaging—before hiring a copywriter
And for full transparency: this comes from someone who used to be known for her standalone copywriting services.
One of the main reasons why I pivoted and swapped them for a brand messaging & website copy offer?
Because I told you: you really do need to fine-tune your brand messaging before hiring a copywriter.
And I had to learn that the hard way.
I’ll tell you why through some examples, but let’s first focus on those core reasons.
1. Without clear brand messaging, you’re “just another option in your niche”
… and you’d be leaving a ton of money on the table.
Because if you:
❌ can’t communicate what sets you apart from your competitors
❌ haven’t got a clear and well-defined tone of voice—instead, you keep using the same sentences and buzzwords as your competition
❌don’t know how to talk about your services or products in a way that resonates with your audience
… why should your dream prospects choose you instead of your competitors?
Brand messaging, on the other hand, allows you to fine-tune your value proposition and communication so that they connect with your specific audience.
That way, choosing you will become a no-brainer.
2. If you’re not clear on it, you can’t expect your copywriter to convey your brand message through your copy
Newsflash: copywriters can’t read minds (yet).
That’s why, before starting a project, they’ll get you to fill in a brief. If you’ve never thought about your brand messaging, though, you won’t be able to do that. Or you’d end up giving extremely vague answers… which would then lead to extremely vague copy.
For example, before becoming a brand messaging consultant as well as a copywriter, I worked with clients who’d answer like “oh, we REALLY care.” The question? “What sets you apart from your competitors.”
You can see why that wouldn’t be enough, now, can’t you?
Or a fellow copywriter told me that a client expected her to nail their tone of voice even though all they had told her about it was: “our tone of voice? We’re like an oat milk latte.”
Instead, when you’re clear on your brand message, a copywriter will be able to clarify and amplify those core concepts through your copy. And match your specific tone of voice. And, overall, craft strategic copy that actually converts.
3. You’d end up confusing your audience whenever you write or talk about your business
When I used to offer standalone website copywriting services, my clients would obviously receive strategic words that positioned them as THE go-to solution in their dream audience’s eyes.
But then I realised there was a big problem:
sure, the website copy itself kept working in the background for them… but when those clients wrote about their business on social media, their blog, and other channels?
Most of them would end up muddling that core message.
Or making their own tone of voice sound off. Or go from “here’s what we can do for you” to “we are passionate about this and that and blah blah boring”.
And that’s something I see online ALL. THE. TIME.
❌ The website copy tells one story (e.g. “I’m a graphic designer on a mission”)
❌ Their Instagram bio offers a different business summary (e.g. “I offer graphic design services for solopreneurs”)
❌ So does their LinkedIn headline (“I’ve completed +100 graphic design projects and social media templates for my clients”)
❌ So do their social media posts (“I’m here to make your brand more colourful.”)
❌ And so on
That’s why I eventually introduced brand messaging guidelines and a storytelling framework as part of my signature offer—to make it a breeze for my clients to tell a consistent narrative and stay true to their brand messaging whenever they talk or write about their business.
Because here’s the truth: if your focus keeps changing, you can’t expect your audience to think of you when they’re finally ready to invest!
The right brand messaging helps your dream audience understand and remember exactly what you do and how it’ll benefit them.
So, make sure you focus on clarifying it first. And always keep it consistent.
Set yourself up for success with the🧲Magnetic Message & Web Copy Makeover✨
By now, I’m sure you understand the importance of a clear brand messaging framework, but… I get it: it’s not easy to define it when you’re so close to your business.
After all, what you’re personally excited about (“I’m so passionate about my work”) is unlikely to be what your audience needs to hear.
Well, that’s one of the reasons why I’ve become a brand messaging consultant as well as a copywriter: to unlock and fine-tune my clients’ core message and brand story.
Perfect for fellow female founders and service providers, the 🧲Magnetic Message & Web Copy Makeover✨ will give you:
🧲 A well-defined brand message and story to grab your dream audience’s attention, make you stand out against all competitors, and position you as a no-brainer. Not only will I use them to craft your new copy: I’ll also create some bespoke frameworks so that you can keep them consistent and use them to guide all your future content and communications
🧲 On-page SEO and keywords to help your dream audience find you organically
✨ Clear website copy that cuts through the noise, connects, and converts—even when you’re sleeping
Failing to define your brand message would make you forgettable. Investing in the 🧲Magnetic Message & Web Copy Makeover✨ will turn you into THE go-to solution in your dream audience’s eyes.
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