Imagine entering a restaurant to chill and you sight a large advert board of their ice-cream with the tagline “Just like life, enjoy your ice-cream before it melts”.
What is the first thing that comes to mind? Is it, I should totally buy an ice-cream and spoil myself silly or, like me, was this a reminder that life can melt at any time?
The whole concept of logos and color sends a visual message about a brand but taglines are verbal messengers. In very few words, it communicates the core of a brand. It is like a sales person who keeps on reiterating the Unique value of a brand.
WHAT DO TAGLINE DO?
Differentiate!
It differentiates a brand from its competitors. Similar businesses in functions and operations could have strikingly different Value proposition and taglines help in making such distinctions clear.
For instance, a clothing brand could use “Sophistication and Class” while another uses “Comfortability with Style”. These brands basically offer the same fundamental thing: Dresses. But from the use of taglines you can easily decipher, without seeing any dress at all, which brand to go with when you want to look hot and sophisticated and which to use when you want a dress that would be super comfortable but still stylish.
Also, two insurance companies offering the same service can make their unique value evident in their tagline. Company A uses “Familiarity and Speed” because it is a neighborhood friendly insurance company and it prioritize quick response in times of unfortunate incidents, while Company B uses “Security and Dependability” because it is a long-standing insurance firm that has been tested and found secured and highly dependable over the years. Taglines are really useful in echoing your unique story in rowdy space.
IF THERE IS ANYTHING A TAGLINE SHOULD NOT HAVE…
It is Negative connotation.
Keep it simple. Keep it authentic, be real about your brand. Don’t try to be deep and complex when you should be simple, plain or playful and don’t try to be sarcastic or funny when you should be serious or straightforward with your tagline.
When I walked into the restaurant and saw “Just like life, enjoy your ice-cream before it melts”, I didn’t feel like making a purchase. Why? Because I was reminded of death!!
Who wants to think of something as serious and thoughtful as death in the face of buying some sweet ice-cream. . Something like “You know what’s sweeter than ice-cream, your life! Enjoy it” would have been better.
These two taglines have the same message: Enjoy your life, the same purpose: to persuade you to enjoy your life by purchasing ice-cream, but different effect: The first seems alright at first but has a serious connotation which I think is unnecessary for selling ice-cream while the second is all one need to buy scoops of ice-cream.
I’m not a branding expert or anything but if I were to make just one tagline rule, it would be:
“Be remarkable”.
Make sure you come up with a tagline that is memorable. One that sticks to the memory. One that people would remember even though they forget the brand name. A remarkable tagline can breed familiarity and keep your brand on customer’s lips. Consistent repetition of this tagline ensures that your brand is forever imprinted in the memory of people. However, it is not enough for your tagline to be memorable or remarkable. It must also be likable. It should not be one that creeps people out. There should be a balance between remarkability and likability.
Let's see how remarkable these taglines have been. Can you guess the brand name?
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