CONVERSATIONS | MAKE IT SING
By Marianne BarberWhen we talk to clients about creating or refining their brand voice—developing it, shaping it, coaxing it onto the page and sending it out into the world—we’re always heartened and encouraged when they talk about wanting it to sing. It means they appreciate the power of words—tone, nuance, rhythm and color—and want to harness that energy to elevate their brand.
We want those things as well. Speaking just for myself, it’s what I’ve always wanted in one form or another, although my career as a writer isn’t the one I was preparing for as a Voice Major at New York City’s LaGuardia High School for Music and the Arts.
Of course, most fledgling singing careers don’t make it too far out of the nest. Mine crashed abruptly the day the grand and glorious Edith Del Valle, Chairman of the Vocal Department, ambushed me after Senior Chorus to say she was thinking I could have a career in music if I really wanted one. In fact, she said, with a rare and slightly terrifying smile, I might actually have the chops to be a studio backup singer. That was the moment my teenage brain, still light years away from a mature prefrontal cortex, regrettably swerved to “Backup? I guess I don’t have a very good voice after all.”
Note to any and all backup singers reading this: I fully get how ridiculous my teenage self was.
And the truth is, singing backup is what I’ve done for almost my entire career. On the page, not on the stage, but it’s been a wonderful run. Because there’s always deep satisfaction to be had in supporting a great endeavor. At The Pensery, we’re here to support your brand—the star—in a way that allows you to be as great as you know you are, and to become as great as you’re capable of being.
One of the ways we do that is through copy that sings. Not just for splashy campaigns, high-profile launches and ta-da rebranding, but for the workhorse support materials as well. Even when the tone is intentionally deliberate and understated. Even when the copy’s principal role is to convey information. The words need to flow in a clear, well-modulated, distinctive voice so the perpetually distracted audience will pause to attention. Let’s call it what it is—a performance. We do, and we give it the attention it deserves.
If logos are created to be S.M.A.R.T., a brand voice should feel alive, created with the same tools as a vocal performance: Breath. Support. Context. Tone. And a deep respect for and connection with the audience.
