Using your voice on your website is ingredient four for a great website.
Your website may be one of the only ways your audience experiences your business. So your brand – your voice – must shine through your site.
As we hear from marketers, your brand is not just your colors, fonts, logo, and graphics. It’s also your vibe, tone, mission, ideals, vision, and principles.
So my call to use your voice – means to communicate your brand in every possible way. Your website is just part of that communication.
Every interaction with your audience and customers teaches them what to expect from you as a business – including every interaction on your website.
Visual elements
Let’s start with those colors, fonts, logos, and graphics – the visual elements of your website.
The visual design of your website contributes to how your audience feels when interacting with it.
For example, blues indicate security and trust, while winter colors might suggest sophistication. Likewise, different fonts can help your website feel more friendly or more formal.
Graphics add to the feeling you are creating. Even the layout, from minimal and simple to complex and edgy, contributes to your site’s vibe.
Another example is making your visual elements accessible to people who have vision challenges or other conditions that may require extra thought put into the design. Showing you care enough to include accessible features on your website adds another piece of the puzzle to your brand.
Brand designers start with the feeling you want to create for your audience and select elements that fit. You can do the same to make sure your website is consistent with your brand.
Content
Your words and tone should fit seamlessly with your visual elements.
If your design is more formal and authoritative, your content tone should reflect that.
If your visual design is friendly and casual, use those contractions and throw in your favorite slang phrases.
Going deeper than the tone, the words you use to describe your business, your story, your products, and your ideas form a clear picture of your brand’s values. Make sure your words share the picture of your business you want your audience to see.
Functionality
Maybe it seems funny to think of using your voice in your website functionality.
Here’s an example: Your website has straightforward, simple navigation with a streamlined checkout page, simple options for customizing your checkout experience, and a thoughtful thank you page after checkout. You take the extra step of delighting your customer with an unexpected bonus when you deliver the product.
With your care for the details of your customer’s experience, you’ve just shouted to them, “We care about you, and we want to give you the best experience possible on our website and with our business in general.”
From a funny or thoughtful note sent with a physical product to care spent on the details of the website, you can communicate your brand through the functions of your website.
Your site can be a great ambassador for your business or a poor one.
A mismatch between the visual elements, content, and functionality of your site can decrease the trust of your audience in a hurry.
Conversely, a site where the design, content, and details of the site functionality all contribute to a coherent experience for your audience adds to the credibility of your brand.
Use your voice in your website’s design, content, and functionality to help them get a clear picture of your business and brand.
Click here to go on to ingredient five!
