With the advancement in AI and the shift in the last 30 years to the use of more informal language in our marketing communications, it's becoming more important than ever to find unique, emotional connections with our audience.
I was taught formal writing at school but this genre is more commonly seen now in serious writing and documents like scholarly texts, company reporting and legal stuff.
We mustn't end up all sounding the same which is why we need to find our unique voice, a tone we are comfortable with and suits our audience.
13 tips on setting a conversational tone that will resonate
Know your audience. Research your VOC (Voice Of Customer)
Vary your sentence length
Ask questions
Start sentences with conjunctions
Personalise your writing using you and I
Throw in some similes and metaphors but don't overdo it!
Consider the readability of your writing. Break up the text, make it skimmable and include pauses for impact
Include contractions, you're and I'm for example
Don't be repetitive with words. A Thesaurus of synonyms is your friend
Use storytelling. Storytelling and your unique superpower so use it
Voice and tone. The easiest way to explain the difference is, for example getting a teenage child to tidy their room. The first time you ask is your voice, the 5th time is your tone! Establish a brand Tone of Voice Guidelines
Use unexpected words. Not highfalutin nonsense, but words to catch the reader off-guard
Inject your personality. Imagine you are talking to one person. Use plainer language. Be more direct. Be more personable and engaging
So, with the rise of machines and the threat of everything sounding the same, we all need to be more Sarah Connor and fight back with our humanity!