As soon as your company publishes something officially — to customers, to the press, to advertising partners — it is choosing words, a style and a register that leave a particular impression. That is corporate wording: it keeps B2B and B2C communication on the right track, and the more precisely you define it, the more your company gains from it.
Corporate wording: the search for a language identity
Above all, companies want to stand out from their competitors. Unique selling points make it easier to stay in a customer’s memory, and they are built through a whole range of measures — corporate wording among them. It settles questions such as these:
- Word choice: which terminology do we use for our audience?
- Tone: how do we address our audience?
- Style and culture: what impression of our company do we convey?
Corporate wording helps to define the relationship between a company and its audience more precisely.
A company communicates differently from a public authority. The authority has to inform factually; the company is trying to build a relationship with the people it addresses.
“Companies that manage this pack their own identity into their language and make sure they stay in the audience’s memory — for months or even years.”
Relationships with customers stay “fresh” that way. In the long run it becomes easier to build a consistent picture of your company: a clear line that customers can orient themselves by and that they value. That is why it is worth developing a strong corporate wording that fits the company in question.
Why is corporate wording so important?
There are plenty of good reasons for it:
- Differentiation: you stand out from the competition with a lively language of your own that stays in people’s minds and keeps you present.
- Identity: language expresses who you are. In German, the choice between the informal address (“duzen”) and the formal one (“Siezen”) alone changes how a company is perceived — a decision English does not offer, as it has a single second person.
- Trust: consistent language over a long period shows that you think and plan for the long term. That creates confidence in your future.
- Emotion: feelings sell products and services, and they tie people to you. Use your language to trigger particular emotions and strengthen customer loyalty.
Getting there can be hard work, though, depending on how far your own corporate wording has developed so far.
How does my company find its corporate wording?
It starts with a concept that is worked out and later handed on to staff in a clearly defined form. First develop the language style that fits: think about the philosophy your company stands for. Which values do you want to convey — and which words reflect those values? After that comes guidance on how the definition works in everyday practice. Some companies keep a list of words that must never appear alongside a list of words that should be in every text. Draft standardised templates for every area where they make sense — but it is best to leave room for creative freedom.
Forms of address and resistant words
Give some thought to forms of address: personal or not? Do you mention titles? How do you handle gender-inclusive language? A clear rulebook shows staff how to speak and write on behalf of the company — but allow as much freedom as possible inside those rules. Fencing in the language of your company so tightly that nothing can develop is dangerous.
It is just as important to find resistant words. These are terms that others can hardly copy and that stay with readers over a long period. Study the websites of large corporations that put serious effort into their corporate wording and you will certainly come across particular terms that keep recurring. We associate those terms with that company without noticing. Words of this kind are always positive in nature: quality, fair, versatile, expressive, just, breathtaking, and so on.
Corporate wording as an everyday example
A straightforward example from the German-speaking market is Microsoft. Visit the site and it becomes clear that product descriptions for professional users always take the formal address, while other products — the Xbox gaming range, for instance — take the informal one. That is no coincidence: at this size of company the question is analysed down to the last detail before the general corporate wording is finally set to the informal form in one case and the formal form in the other.
Replies to support requests are another familiar case. At large companies they often open by acknowledging the question that was asked — along the lines of “We can see that you are having a problem with our product. We would be glad to help.” In the German original that sentence stands in the formal register. It will be laid down in that company’s corporate wording in exactly this form, probably with the reasoning that showing understanding and sympathy creates a personal bond with the customer.
Corporate design and corporate wording: what are the differences?
Not everything to do with words automatically belongs to corporate wording. An example: a company could specify that headings are set in a particular typeface at 12 point with a spacing (the distance between the letters) of 0.5 point.
That, however, is part of the corporate design, not of the corporate wording. Wording covers expression only, never form. The example shows that not everything involving words falls into the field of corporate wording. The boundaries are fluid, though, because the intended effects can reinforce each other. The better you know both fields, the more you can use them for the overall impression your company makes.
Conclusion: no language without corporate wording
Only corporate wording that suits your company will earn you long-term loyalty from your audience. Tackle the subject early and it will pay off: language is a core element of every marketing instrument. Using it properly leads to positive communication with customers and, over time, to more growth.
