scott digital marketing tagline marketing fargo minneapolis

Pound for pound, the tagline you develop for your business is the most hard-hitting copy you’ll ever craft.

A compelling tagline will provoke attention, accentuate your abilities, and make you irresistible to your prospects.

When it’s well-crafted, your tagline is a huge advantage especially in competitive situations. When you fail at it, however, you’re losing a golden opportunity to communicate value.

So, why is your tagline so important, and how do you write a tagline that’s too powerful to be resisted?

1. Keep it relevant to your customers’ pain points

Nobody wants to hear about you or your business.

It’s true.

It’s the most common mistake I see, and it happens because we assume that everybody cares about our business the same way that you and I do.

Your prospective customers want to know four things:

  1. How your business will help them solve a problem.
  2. How your solution will meet a need.
  3. How your product or service will save time.
  4. How your service will make your prospect money.

In other words, what’s in it for them.

Here’s an example. Let’s compare two taglines that are completely fake.

The Valley Region’s best provider of banking solutions

Or:

Good-quality banking solutions that give you a better quality of life

I’m sure you’ve seen examples like this first one, before. It’s very matter of fact and only about the business. It’s nice.

The second variation tugs at your emotions because it shows the value proposition to prospects and customers. The second one is much more persuasive because it’s not only about banking, rather it’s about helping people live better quality lives. By keeping your tagline relevant and compelling you instantly become more engaging and effective.

2. Avoid industry jargon and technical vernacular

Here’s an example of a tagline that’s vague, ambitious, and boring.

Allowing business owners in niche verticals to leverage synergies that allow them to win new business when in competitive customer situations.

Huh?

Every industry has its own language complete with terms, acronyms, and verbiage that can confuse. And many of these taglines are simply train wrecks, like the ones showcased above. Writing insider vernacular in your messaging is probably second nature to you, and that’s okay to do, just not in your tagline.

Compare these two taglines:

Delivering payment solutions for channel partners

Making it easy for your technology company to get paid

See the difference? The second tagline explains what you do very clearly, without using industry jargon. If prospects have to work hard to figure out what you’re communicating, they’re going to be confused and move on to your competition. Insider language ultimately impedes your ability to comprehend.

3. Too cute

One of the problems I see with taglines is when businesses get cute.

In high school, everyone loved the class clown. In real life, where you need to be an adult, no one likes unprofessional humor.

For an award-winning tagline that improves your marketing while generating sales, clarity beats clever every time.

Let’s say you own and run a plumbing and drain cleaning business.

For a laugh, you could go with:

The Number 1 Company In the Number 2 Business

But since humor doesn’t pay bills, you’ll probably get more results from something clear like this one:

Reliable Plumbing and Drain Cleaning You’ll Love

See the difference? One looks borderline unprofessional, while the other speaks clearly to your audience.

4. Make sure your tagline is flexible

Make a list of everywhere you’ll use your tagline before you finalize it because a tagline that’s too long can become problematic.

Write down places you’ll use it like your website, business cards, email campaign headers, videos, letterhead, trade show booth material, and the side of your custom chopper.

Make sure your tagline fits on all these types of types of locations. Everything needs to look consistent and look proportional. Remember, less is more when creating your tagline.

Take a look at these taglines that are too long, then one that’s just right.

High-quality marketing strategies that help your business become professional, profitable, and productive

Or something much simpler, like this one: (remember, brevity is the soul of wit)

Creating and execute marketing strategies for businesses

Last of all, don’t give up. Keep pressing ahead and create a tagline that best reveals your unique selling proposition, in a handful of words. No one said it would be easy. After all, this wisdom will help you create the most important copy for your business.