BUS265 - Voice, Segmenting & Concepts

For the past few weeks, I've been working on a fake advertising campaign selling a new type of drink: FZZZZZ! A hypothetical drink that stays carbonated no matter what, can be served hot or cold, gives a boost of energy, has a unique taste, contains lots of vitamin C, and is VERY purple.

This was a series of exercises on positioning the brand, choosing target segments, concepting ads, and using voice effectively.

One of my main takeaways while trying to market a product, service, or really anything else is asking, “What problem does this product solve?” For example, you could say FZZZZZ! could solve thirst on a basic level. However, you REALLY get into what makes your product special when you get more specific.

I chose to focus on a health exercise angle for my project, since the drink is healthy and energizing while still tasting good. The problem it solves is giving up good-tasting drinks (like soda) for the sake of being healthy. With FZZZZZ!, you can have both! It also solves the problem of blandness or boredom with drinks because of its unique traits (constant carbonation, served both cold and hot, unique flavor, purple). You can use this problem to build out your product's IDENTITY. You want to build your advertising outwards based on the problem or problems it solves – an underlying theme that motivates the rest of your messaging. Just make sure your solution APPLIES to the people you're targeting!

My other major talking point is USING VOICE. Voice is the specific tone used in written or spoken advertisements. It includes your general personality, tone, word choice, expressiveness, and other aspects that communicate what a person is like. Celebrity cameos in video ads are often DIRECTLY chosen for their voice. You have to pick a matching voice for the tone and attitude you want associated with your brand. For example, compare the speaking voice of someone like Weird Al to someone like Matthew McConaughey. They have very different voices associated with them and wouldn't be easily interchangeable in the same ad.

Voice is difficult to account for in a scripted format, so practicing it is key! Listen to the voice you want to mimic repeatedly, taking notes about little speech patterns. Are they expressive, monotone, or somewhere in between? What words do they tend to use more often? Do they raise their voice often, and by how much? How long do their sentences tend to go on? Do they describe things strictly factually or more like they're telling a story?

While you're doing this, don't be afraid to write down lines that come to your head, even half-formed ones! I'm lucky to be able to visualize people's speaking voices in my head, so I can easily compare them and see if it sounds right; however, even if you can't, take notes on what does and doesn't sound right when trying to write them. You might just find the perfect combination for that half-formed idea later on! If nothing else, it's good practice and helps you narrow down what to do and what not to do!

(And try to be patient with it! It can take a while and a lot of tries to nail down a voice. It's hard to break out of your natural speaking patterns, but it can be done! And remember to take a step away if it's especially frustrating you – you can always come back later with a clearer mind.)

Those are my primary notes and advice from the last few weeks. This has been a bite-sized chunk of good advice from marketing! Hopefully it helps you too!