The key to successful small business marketing is developing a recognizable brand for your company. People are more likely to think of you when you need your goods or services. The best way to make your brand memorable is to devise a catchy slogan or tagline that people will remember. A slogan in business is a catchy phrase that typically sums up what a company does, its partners, and how it does it.

Your brand becomes more recognizable and memorable when it has a slogan. It briefly expresses what makes your brand appealing.  A catchphrase known as a slogan is also regarded as part of the company’s brand. Not every company needs a slogan, and not all slogans are used as standalone marketing tools. Still, slogans offer the possibility of developing a phrase that will eventually become associated with the business.

Slogans With Staying Power

If you’re creating a new product or business slogan, you want something that represents your brand and is easy to remember. Some well-known slogan examples are:

• Just Do It. (Nike)
• I’m Lovin’ It (McDonald’s)
• Finger Lickin’ Good (KFC)
• Melts In Your Mouth, Not In Your Hand (M&Ms)

Although the above slogans are likely already at the tip of your tongue, there are many other great ones. Recognize these?

• Because You’re Worth It. (L’Oreal)
• What’s In Your Wallet? (Capital One)
• Shave Time. Shave Money. (Dollar Shave Club)
• They’re G-R-R-REAT! (Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes)
• M’m! M’m! Good! (Campbell’s)
• Get In The Zone (AutoZone)
• The Quicker Picker Upper! (Bounty)
• Save Money. Live Better. (Walmart)
• Maybe She’s Born With It. Maybe It’s Maybelline. (Maybelline)
• Challenge Everything (EA)

Similar to naming a company, coming up with a slogan requires creativity and a clear understanding of the response you want the words to produce. To help you create catchy slogans for your business, here are ten tips to get your creative juices flowing:

1. Start From Scratch 

Use information from your marketing strategy, or start from scratch with a summary of your company’s fundamentals. For instance, what services do you offer, with whom do you collaborate, how do you differ from your rivals, and how do you want your clients to consider you?

2. Keep It Brief and Simple

You want to devise a slogan that your target audience will easily remember. Avoid using more than one sentence. Your slogan shouldn’t be at most 10 words since you should keep in mind that your target audience has a limited attention span.  Try to keep it simple. Even better would be to add some rhyme. However, you may make a small exception if necessary.

3. Be Reliable

Consistent branding is essential whether you work in a small business or are a household name. Ensure your chosen slogan fits in with your brand’s name, logo, and projected image.

4.  Create a List of Words Related to Your Industry

Make a list of all the words that best describe your brand first. What does your business do, and how is it unique from its rivals? What need does your company meet? What feeling do customers hope to experience after buying your goods or services? Write down adjectives that best describe your target market and your interests as the company’s founder.

Next, open a dictionary online and look up some additional words that might fit. Keep them basic enough that any student in 5th-grade school can understand and remember them. Which words on your word list stand out to you when you look at them? Which encourage your customer to picture achieving their objectives? You will probably use those in the end. Short and simple is best.

5. Keep Your Audience in Mind, Not Your Business

The most memorable taglines focus on your customers rather than your business. Your customers will need clarification about how it applies to them if you center your tagline on your business. However, you’ll build a stronger brand association by putting your customers first. Making promises in taglines is a mistake many businesses make (which puts the focus on the company). Instead of making promises, convey advantages.

6. Make it everlasting

Believe your phrase having a “lifespan” and how long you think it might continue until it organically fades from significance. You want a catchphrase with a lengthy shelf life and global influence. It is particularly true if your organization is in the automotive or technology industries, which are constantly changing. Choose a style of phrasing that will endure the test of time, in other words.

7. Think about your target market.

Do you have local, national, or foreign clients? Feel free to use a local slang phrase as your tagline if you cater to a local audience. But remember that it can leave viewers needing clarification outside your area. If your company serves a global clientele, be aware that translating your slogan into a foreign language might substantially alter its meaning.

8. Make sure your company’s slogan compares to the rest of your branding

A brand is defined in part by its logo. Many business owners and small firms believe a company’s logo represents its brand; It isn’t. Like a logo, a tagline aids in defining your brand. You want your tagline to capture the essence of your business since it will be a key component of your overall branding. Ensure that your tagline’s style, voice, and other components match the logo’s style, voice, and other components.

9. Examine your slogans

After writing:

1. Choose your top three and create a loose poll.
2. Find out which of the three is your customers, family’s, and friend’s favorites.
3. Don’t explain them or provide any background information.
4. Remember that only some people who read the slogan will be able to ask you to explain it to them, so it must make sense on its own.

10. Get Input

Being creative is a tough job, but there are ways to avoid going it alone. Use VerticalResponse’s Surveys feature to get opinions from your followers. Take to social media like Facebook or Twitter to host a slogan contest with a designated hashtag to track entries. Or consider some free tagline generators, like Slogan Generator, to get your brain warmed up.

Done right, a memorable slogan will stick around long after consumers interact with your brand. Use these tips, or leverage expert designers, to create a catchy slogan that fits your business.

Conclusion:

An essential component of a company’s marketing is coming up with a distinctive tagline or slogan. But more than just coming up with a smart term is required. Additionally, you must ensure that your slogan reflects your brand and is memorable to your target market. The ideal strategy is to generate several ideas, test them, and then stay with the one that performs the best for your company.

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Editor’s note: This article was originally published in 2015 and has been revised for accuracy and relevance.

© 2019, Contributing Author. All rights reserved.