Management Perspective – Tagline Tips

Creating a powerful, meaningful and memorable tagline is a tricky creative challenge. Done poorly, it falls flat and fails to bolster your brand position. Done well, it serves to significantly elevate your brand and help you stand out from your competition.

When developing tagline options, strive for the three C’s – clear, concise and creative.

Clear – Your tagline should be transparent, easily understood and descriptive. It should capture the essence of what makes your company different and be a clear reflection of its brand personality. Don’t make your audience work too hard to get the picture.

Concise – The best taglines are usually the ones that say the most with the fewest words. Great tags are elegant in their simplicity. Some are so effective they stand-alone and can evoke the brand outside of the context of the logo (“Just Do It”, “The Ultimate Driving Machine”, “We Try Harder”, “The Uncola”).

Creative – Here’s where the real genius kicks in: being highly creative and memorable without falling to the temptation of being too clever (something I have to constantly fight given my predilection for comedy and improvisation). Your goal should be to create the promise of an experience tied to your brand. Trying to be overly humorous, use puns, or be cute blurs the issue and often hurts credibility.

Two examples of taglines developed for clients by d.trio using the three C’s as a guide include Remedy Medical (mobile MRI scanning): “Turn down time into scan time.” and Opportunity Services (an agency serving adults with disabilities): “Pride. Put it to work”.

A great tagline is a powerful weapon in branding. Keep in mind the three C’s and you’ll increase your chances of striking gold.

-Fred