I’ve been thinking a lot about the concept of “voice” in writing and marketing.
Lots of entrepreneurial types try “outsourcing” their voices… meaning they want other people – the “marketing experts” or their friends – to fully determine the tone of their marketing.
Or maybe they don’t ask other people, and instead try to mold their voices after someone else’s style.
So I wrote a little ditty about it… see below. (And below that’s a transcript if you prefer.)
TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO:
Hi! It’s Mary Beth Huwe, writer and content strategist for the entrepreneur. You can find me online at marybethhuwe.com
And “Huwe” is spelled just like you probably think it is: h-u-w-e.
marybethhuwe.com
Today I wrote you a little song!
A little something that popped into my head as I’ve been thinking about the way people relate to their marketing, and particularly the marketing of their services.
I find that so many people want to be rescued in marketing. And they want someone else to shape their message and their voice – and this is a big mistake, especially for an entrepreneur.
What makes your services interesting is actually you – how you infuse your business with your personality, your ethics, and your approach. And all of that should come out in your voice, in what I call your voice, in writing and marketing.
What’s your tone? What’s your style?
And I think that a lot of people are outsourcing their voice because they want someone just to come in and make them something slick and pretty that is real impressive, makes them look like a corporation, and actually doesn’t communicate reality at all.
So! Here’s a little ditty I wrote for you. I hope you like it:
Don’t outsource your voice
It’s the best thing you’ve got
It’s how people know that
They’ve found what they sought
It’s the thing that will linger
The thing that goes on,
So don’t outsource your voice,
Don’t try someone’s on.
Your message it don’t need
No Autotune
We all know the fakers
In every room
If you’re writing to client, prospect, or friend
You can still be yourself
You don’t have to pretend
Now Amy’s all business
Jim works from the heart
Ben’s a straight talker
And Lee’s wicked smart
For each of these styles
We’ll find the right words
To free up the message
And get themselves heard
Don’t outsource your voice
It’s how we know you are you
It tells us you mean it
Shows us what you can do
If your voice is somethin’
That you’d like to know
Just give me a holler
And I’ll help it show.
You just give me a holler
And I’ll help it grow.
Recorded here, in the studios of Appalachia. Thank you very much.
Mary Beth Huwe is a writer, an editor, and a strategist. She helps people identify, articulate, and translate their most essential messages into kickin’ content that is both communicative and practical.
These essays are forays into the art and essence of communication. They have not been subjected to the full scrutiny of said editor’s eye, and may contain typos. (But you’ll probably never find apostrophe abuse, because that’s just cruel.)
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