After you’ve successfully hooked your audience with the perfect marketing email, it’s time to ensure that your website content is also up to snuff. For today, let’s focus on taglines – arguably some of the most important and prominently displayed content on any website. Join Wordsmith and let’s polish up those web taglines!
A tagline demonstrates the company’s core values and the value provided to the customer.
What are taglines?
Like the subject line of an email, taglines are among the first things that someone sees when they click onto your website. However, it’s important to distinguish that taglines are not headlines, banner headings nor welcome messages.
A tagline is a short description of your message – think of it as a nutshell statement or a slogan about what you can do plus the services you offer. Taglines are:
· Typically placed near the top of the landing page
· Short and within 8 words
· Commonly depicted with some sort of special formatting to make it more visible (eg. bold, bigger font size, different font type or colour and so forth)
Obviously, a statement that is catchy and punchy will attract the most attention, but we must also consider the visitor’s perspective when they click onto your website. A quirky tagline can only carry you so far – if your visitors have to dig around to learn what your business does, they won’t be very inclined to choose your products or services.
According to Forbes Councils Member Hannah Trivette, the best taglines answer these questions:
1. What is your organisation/business?
2. What do you do?
3. Who is your target audience?
4. How do you accomplish what you do?
5. What are the benefits of choosing your organisation/business?
What makes a good tagline?
Your tagline must also show off your brand personality – a bland statement doesn’t inspire much confidence in potential customers.
When examining taglines, Trivette evaluates them based on the following criteria:
· Simplicity
Words that are easy to understand work best. Don’t bother with hard or obscure vocabulary, as it’ll alienate most people. “A simple phrase is also easier to remember than one that’s trying too hard to sound intelligent,” she recommends.
· Uniqueness
Just like with SEO, you need to identify key words that are unique to your business. It’s important to look at competitor websites to see what sort of keywords are already in use – if you see the same words used a lot already, it’s become “clichéd” and won’t help you stand out from the list of candidates for hire.
· Focus on benefits
People who click on to your website have a problem that you can (hopefully) fix. “Taglines should define what your client will get out of choosing your company,” Trivette writes. “Make this clear from the get-go so your website’s visitors know exactly what they can expect.”
· Meaningfulness
The best taglines also tie in with your company’s goals and values to create emotional connection with your audience. “While a tagline isn’t meant to be a wordy mission statement, you want to make it clear that your company cares about the work it does and applies its values to everything you accomplish,” she explains. Is your company all about professionalism and due diligence? Is it a trusted neighbourhood business? Or is it both? Your tagline should reflect that!
· Catchiness
Taglines that linger in visitors’ minds give your business a competitive edge over others running with generic taglines. Depending on the nature of your business, consider literary devices (or even puns and jokes) in your options.
Let’s look at some tagline examples – one is used by a professional accounting firm and the other by a small local office. Can you tell which is which?
i. Your friendly neighbourhood tax return specialists
ii. Where precision meets insight
For small businesses that serve their local community, it’s common to portray a friendly and approachable tone. On the other hand, bigger accounting firms need to demonstrate professionalism and skill to attract their target customers – often larger corporations or multi-national firms.
Lastly, remember that the tagline is often paired with a key visual – usually the banner image or your brand’s logo. “A tagline should feel like a natural part of a website,” writes Trivette. “Of course, you want it to be noticeable, but not obtrusive in that it doesn’t suit your website’s visual tone.” Make it stand out with special formatting, but hold back on the rainbow font and Comic Sans unless it’s part of your brand identity!
Your website tagline is a reflection of your company. Even though it’s hard to capture an entire company’s goals and drive in a scant few words, your audience will appreciate – and respond to – your efforts. Give your tagline proper care and thought, and you’ll find that a few well-chosen words can entice customers into your marketing funnel.