Does Your Brand Have a Voice People Actually Hear?
A couple years back, I was climbing in the Black Hills and needed a new sleeping pad. I wandered into a local outdoor shop—beautifully styled, packed with great gear, and staffed by people who clearly loved what they were doing.
But when I went to tell someone about it later, I pulled up their website and social media. The site looked like it hadn’t been touched since 2012. Their Facebook page had one blurry photo a year and no real message.
Here’s the disconnect: in person, their brand voice was confident, knowledgeable, and welcoming. Online, it was practically silent. And that gap costs business. Because when customers hear one thing in the store but see another online, they don’t know which version is real.
Your brand voice is more than a vibe—it’s the consistency that builds trust everywhere people meet your business.
Why Brand Voice Matters
Every message your business sends—social posts, website copy, even the way you answer customer questions—is your voice. A consistent voice builds trust. An inconsistent one confuses people and weakens your brand.
A Simple Brand Audit
We took a deep dive in a blog, and we shared four questions that quickly reveal your brand’s edge:
What do customers thank you for the most?
What’s one thing competitors can’t do as well as you?
What story or value drives your business?
What one word or phrase should customers always associate with you?
Answer these honestly, and you’ll start to see the foundation of your true voice.
From Audit to Edge Statement
Once you’ve got your answers, boil them down into what we call an edge statement.
Example:
“We’re the bakery that crafts gluten-free sourdough with local, organic ingredients for health-conscious foodies.”
It’s short, specific, and tells people exactly what makes you different. That statement becomes the north star for your brand voice.
How AI Can Help
AI tools like ChatGPT can take your raw notes and help you sharpen them. A simple workflow looks like this:
Paste in your mission, values, and bullet points.
Ask AI: “Turn this into a brand voice guide.”
Test outputs. Keep what fits, reject what doesn’t.
Prompt: “Based on this edge statement, write five tagline options for family, friends, and potential customers.”
The key? Don’t let AI define your brand—use it to refine what you already know to be true.
Prompt of the Week
Copy this straight into ChatGPT:
"You are my brand strategist. Based on this brand statement [paste yours], write five short taglines I can use—one for family, one for friends, one for potential clients, one for my website, and one for social media."
Your Turn
Your voice already exists in how customers describe you. The work is making it consistent. Try the audit questions, draft your edge statement, and run it through AI.
Then hit reply and tell us: What’s one word you want customers to always associate with your business?
Let’s Keep the Conversation Going
📌 Follow me on X: @RTungseth
📌 Connect with me on LinkedIn: Ryan Tungseth
📌 Explore more blogs and resources: Growth Forge Studio