The trouble with authenticity
Over the last couple weeks, I’ve been mulling over one question in particular: what does it mean to have an authentic brand voice?
And this one question – I'm pleased to report – has led me down some VERY interesting rabbit holes.
You see, this all started because the current marketing rhetoric of “Be yourself! Be unique! Be authentic!” juuuuust... wasn't quite doing it for me anymore.
From every angle, we’re told that authenticity and originality are the only true weapons we have against the march of AI, and that without a unique brand voice (an AUTHENTIC brand voice, mind you), our business is doomed.
And while there's undeniably a huge appeal to the idea that all you have to do to be successful is "be yourself", I've suspected for a while now that it's an incomplete prescription.
[Disclaimer: I fully admit I've talked about the importance of authenticity and uniqueness in my own content in the past. But as the saying goes, "Once you know better, do better".]
Now, it sounds simple enough to "be authentic" in your brand voice.
But the thing is, in practice it puts an enormous burden on us as business owners to:
Figure out what the heck is authentic to us
Make sure our “authentic” self is not only unique, but is in fact an excellent salesperson, outgoing, funny, and articulate (after all, if you're struggling in your business, it must be because you're not being yourself enough!)
Basically (as Joss Whedon is quoted as saying),
“Remember to always be yourself. Unless you suck.”
[Side note – this focus on authenticity also completely ignores brands that are bigger than just one person. For example, Oatly, a company I wrote about in my last email, has arguably one of the most funny, “authentic” voices out there. But whose voice is it? The founder’s? The CEO’s? The copy chief’s? What if they get a new CEO or a different head of marketing? Does that mean the voice has to change to remain authentic? But I digress…]
Luckily, on a call last week with Justin and Abbey – the two founders of the Codex Persona (now Brand Voice Academy) – I brought up this idea of authenticity and found myself going, “Yes, YES!” as Abbey described her take on it.
Basically, she pointed out that this obsession with authenticity in brand voice entirely misses one of the BIGGEST pieces of any conversation: context.
For example, when it comes to my voice there are about a million different options to choose from.
There's the voice I use with my partner.
The voice I use with my sister.
The voice I use with my mom.
The voice I use with my dogs.
The voice I use with my co-workers.
The voice I use with telemarketers.
You get the idea.
The list is quite literally endless.
Plus, you’ll get a different “me” when I’m hungry, or tired, or if I’ve just gone for an elating cold dip in the Atlantic.
And yet, they’re all “me”...right?
So which one is authentic?
Which “voice” do I use as my brand?
On our call together, Abbey pointed me to a book by Todd Herman called The Alter Ego Effect, and while I wait for that one to get in to my local library, I’ve started a different book called The Charisma Myth by Olivia Fox Cabane.
In it, Olivia argues that while charisma is often seen as being innate – something you either have or you don’t – it is in fact a learnable skill.
She’s discovered that once you understand the three pillars of what MAKES someone charismatic, you can reverse-engineer it and scientifically BECOME more charismatic (which, conveniently enough, mirrors what I've learned about brand voice!).
This then begs the question, is someone who’s learned to be charismatic – or to have a killer brand voice – still being authentic?
(And does it matter?)
There seems to be this acceptance that to be good at almost anything else in life – singing, surfing, sailing, sewing – we need to learn certain skills and practice them.
We also intuitively know that in different situations we'll show different sides of ourselves with how we talk and act.
But when it comes to creating a charismatic brand voice, god forbid it be something you do on purpose!
Now, my current thoughts on this are clearly a meld of multiple influences – from books, to mentors, to my personal (and perennial) dissatisfaction with the status quo.
And adding weight to this idea of authenticity perhaps being a touch overblown, is the maniacally brilliant mind of Daniel Throssell, who openly admits to having a completely different “persona” in his business than in his real life… and yet I’d argue he's one of the most compelling, charismatic marketers in the game.
For me, this all boils down to a few key takeaways:
Elevating authenticity above all else is an incomplete strategy. While it sounds nice in theory, focusing solely on authenticity leaves a huge blind spot; it completely overlooks context and dismisses the value of intentionally learning or honing skills.
Being “unique” isn’t enough (hat-tip to Justin Blackman for this one). Just because something is different doesn’t mean it’s useful or good. (Off the top of my head, a cup with a hole in the side of it comes to mind. It is unique. It’s not useful.)
A charismatic brand voice is an asset you can reverse-engineer and intentionally curate for your business. (Note that I haven't gone completely Machiavellian here – I still believe the strongest, most enduring personal brand voices are based on your particular values + perspective. But in *theory* one could create a compelling brand voice out of thin air).
Now, I’m still mulling these things over and adding new angles and shades each day, so I reserve the right to adjust my stance on this in the future.
But at the very least, I’ll say this:
There is MORE to having a successful, compelling, charismatic brand voice than being “authentic” and “unique”.
As with most things, there's a plethora of routes you can take to get there, and each approach has something different to offer.
For example, I recently worked with a gene key expert, and her input and perspective was incredibly helpful and insightful, in ways I hadn't encountered before!
That being said... if what you're looking for is a linguistic framework that adds a large dollop of charisma to your brand voice (in a way you can easily scale), I've got just the thing.
When you’re ready, send me an email and we’ll get the conversation started! (julia@juliamichelleagency.com)
Or, if you prefer a little face-to-face contact, you can book a call with me here.
Till next time,
Julia
PS. When it comes to brand voice, two words I like better than "authentic" are genuine and aligned.
This is because:
You can be genuinely good at something you've learned, which leaves room for you to acquire and hone new skills.
To me, being aligned means you've taken context into consideration – it's not so much about being the "real" you as much as being the "best you for the situation".
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