Amplifying Your Brand with a Message Megaphone

“Different is better than better.”

This wisdom came to me by way of an interview between Tyra Banks and Phoebe Robinson for Phoebe’s podcast Sooo Many White Guys. In the first part of the interview, Tyra talked about the class she teaches at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business on personal branding. One of the first lessons Tyra teaches is different is better than better.

Tyra arrived at this wisdom by way of her career blazing trails. For more than three decades she has been a model, an actress, a TV personality, a producer, writer and most GIF-able supermodel ever. There is no denying that there is no other Tyra Banks. Her top lesson in building a brand is one of my absolute truths and a mantra we apply to brand efforts for SiteCrafting and our clients.

Creating Content People Connect With

Branding is a practice of differentiating with intention. An important, and often crucial, component of every branding practice is content. The ultimate goal of content is to connect people with your brand because:

• Content creates connection points for your audiences that amplify differentiation.
• Content gives people reasons to believe in your product or service.
• Content can inspire engagement.

So how do you know if you are creating the right content, for the right audience, at the right time and in a way that would make Tyra smize with pride? It starts with a solid messaging strategy that is rooted in your brand DNA. A simple yet effective framework that builds on your brand DNA is the brand message megaphone.

The megaphone is made of four parts:

WHY – This is the essence of your brand. Why do you exist and what would the world be missing without you?
WHO – This is where we layer in your personas. Think about the mindset these groups share and what matters to them.
HOW – This is the narrative through persona lenses. Take your brand promise (what people can expect from every interaction with your brand) and blend it with your purpose  (why you exist beyond making money) to find a series of sweet spots for your persona groups.
WHAT – This is where you bring your brand narrative to life through stories, products and services.

The Megaphone in Action

To make the megaphone amplify your brand messaging, connect the circles from left to right (or right to left).

For example, if you are talking about one of your services, filter it through your purpose + promise and tailor your message to each persona group. Don’t stop there, make sure that the message is rooted in your mission and you’ve created a series of messages that are meaningful to multiple groups of people.

Looking through the SiteCrafting megaphone, Content Strategy is one of our services that occupy the WHAT phase of the framework. Efficiency is a shared value (the HOW) among our consumer groups (the WHO), specifically personas that live in marketing and website management roles. To deliver on our mission (the WHY) to inspire, empower and delight.

When you look at the series of content about content lessons inspired by the Hamilton the Musical, created by Angie Carson, our Manager of Web Strategy, you can trace each piece back through the megaphone. The framework helps us reimagine how we talk about our content strategy through the lens of Hamilton in ways that connect with multiple persona groups, in multiple ways that are always rooted in our mission.

From Inspiration to Differentiation

Feeling low on inspiration? The brand message megaphone can provide you the support you need to explore new ideas. In a rut of creating content for the sake of having something to post or email? Make time to revisit why you exist, who you are communicating with, how you tailor your messages for each audience group and what stories you tell.

While there is only one Tyra, we can all channel her wisdom and confidence in everything that we do. May the brand message megaphone empower you to create fierce content that forges meaningful connections.

Want to learn more? Watch the Building a Brand Megaphone webinar.