How much effort does a tag line deserve? The short answer? A lot. Tag lines play a key role in determining how easily your company name comes to mind. Both for search engine optimization and conversion, the impact can be enormous. Let’s take a look at what makes taglines so important and how you can write a great one.
It’s Just a Tag Line, Right?
“Just Do It.” “A diamond is forever.” “Got milk?” Just tag lines? Tag lines have more influence in the SEO and conversion optimization arenas than most people give them credit for.
Search engines look at tag lines (among other things) to determine whether the page is relevant to a given search. And people associate a tag line with your brand long after they leave your website.
Elements of a Great Tag Line
Yes, they’re important, but how do you write one that people will remember and that accurately reflects your company in ten words or less? Here are four steps to punch-packing tag lines:
- Determine your unique value proposition.
Your unique value proposition communicates what you do and what makes you different from everyone else. Do you sell diamonds? Shoes? Energy drinks? Why are yours better than everyone else’s? Your tag line doesn’t necessarily have to state your UVP, but you should start here to create an effective company description.
- Choose keywords.
What words best represent your mission? Companies with memorable tag lines make them part of their title tag so when their search results are displayed visitors are reminded why they “love” the company. Including important keywords makes the results meaningful not only to your potential customers but provide important clues for the search engines.
- Communicate benefit.
Benefits speak louder than features. Consider this tag line: “Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance.” Here we see not only the benefit of saving money, but also the benefit of saving time, two commodities that are at a premium for just about everyone.
Determine what benefits are most important for your customers and find a way to communicate them through your tag line.
- Pep it up.
Your tag line can include all of the above elements, but without a little pep and pizzazz it will never stick in the reader’s mind. Use emotional language, puns, jingles, and descriptive adjectives to create a strong brand association that reflects your company image.
Take a trip on the tag line time machine
Here’s some of the most memorable tag lines of all time to inspire you:
- Takes a licking and keeps on ticking. (Timex)
- Where’s the beef? (Wendy’s)
- Melts in your mouth, not in your hands. (M&M)
- Finger lickin’ good. (KFC)
- Let your fingers do the walking. (Yellow Pages)
You can pay a lot of money to have someone else develop your tag line. Or you can follow these four rules yourself to create an effective slogan that boosts conversion optimization rates and sticks with the reader.
Do you have a favorite tag line? I happen to love the Skittles one “Experience the Rainbow”…. What’s yours?
