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Balancing a Professional Voice with a Fun Web Design

Torrenegra Labs, and the people within the company, really like showing off some personality on our website. A difficult situation for young companies, however, can be trying to decide how to balance the enthusiastic, fun portrayal of their teams on their sites without coming across as so young that they can’t be taken seriously. It can be difficult to balance the notion of producing a dynamic image without overdoing it and jeopardizing a company’s professionalism.

Share Personality, Gain Trust

An important thing to consider is whom your site is geared toward, especially whether you are a B2C or B2B company. B2C companies have more flexibility. Marketing for these businesses is usually aspirational; therefore, you may want to showcase the aspects of the personalities of your team members that your customers may want to imitate. For example, are you selling ski items? Showcase how adventurous the members of your team are. Does your service revolve around reviewing books? Demonstrate how book-savvy the team is. Do this, while still showing personality details of the members of the team that make them look human, and people will feel like they know your group.

B2B marketing is trickier, as it is usually focused on trust, rather than aspiration. How can you get someone to trust you right from the get-go? With this type of marketing, you want to show the traits of the members of your team that will make others feel as if they can trust them, such as smiling faces, knowledge, stability, and long-term commitment. Like the B2C companies, you still want to make the team members look human, but you don’t want to emphasize anything that might make them look weak. Nobody likes to flaunt their own weaknesses!

Concerning Age and Experience for the Youth

Do you run a young company? That’s not a problem; everyone has to start somewhere. I wouldn’t lie about the age of the company. Instead, focus on how early the idea was formulated. It seems in today’s society, age is not a huge issue…for most people. The experiences that the company has had are what will count and provide the support needed.

Plus, there are bonuses to having a younger company. Many people perceive newer businesses as being more enthusiastic and motivated to compete in the marketplace – and not as complacent as their more experienced counterparts. Because of the flexibility young companies have, consumers can feel that their work is more innovative and forward-thinking.

Putting on glasses and wearing a tie for the photo shoot couldn’t hurt, though.

Culture, Youth, and Fun

Companies can really play up their cultures and young spirits on their websites in three basic (yet essential!) ways. First, create a cool team page. The best way to find an example of this is to visit the sites of organizations you admire. What makes you click with them in a personal way is what will make your visitors find your own company compelling.

Second, the overall message and copy of the website help. Introduce safe jokes in forms and automated emails. This can help the user feel that he’s talking to a friend when interacting with your website, and it can lend a more conversational vibe.

Third, establish a mascot! This is a great idea for marketing because it gives people something that can be associated back to the website. Each company needs a great “visual bookmark,” and this can be yours. Some great examples are Hipmunk (B2C), MailChimp (B2B), and of course, VoiceBunny.

There are very few industries where you would need to completely shy away from showcasing a fun personality, so this shouldn’t be a major concern. If your business is part of the funeral industry or you work with cadavers, amusing sites probably aren’t welcomed by your target audience. Everyone else should feel free to try to get their visitors to crack a smile.

In general, your marketing strategy needs to try to get people to react positively when they think of you. The brain records smiles and emotions, and this will help your brand positioning for years to come. Showcasing a fun personality is an easy way of garnering such smiles.

Alex Torrenegra is the CEO of VoiceBunny, an online platform for crowdsourcing voiceovers from over 100,000 professionals in minutes.

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