Sounds like a tall order when you are only working with ten words or less doesn’t it? However, you really can do this. When I am working with clients to develop taglines, I always have them start by creating a word cloud. A word cloud lets you see what text you are already using and assigns it a size based on the frequency of use. I recommend wordclouds.com, which is a free application that allows you to create your own cloud with ease. This application even lets you change the color, theme, font, shape, and size of your word cloud for free.
I’ve included a step by step tutorial which is located right after this article on how to use wordclouds.com to create your own cloud. I'd like to challenge you to make your own cloud and submit it to us for a chance to be published in the next issue!
Once you’ve created your word cloud, see if there are any words that jump out at you, that describe your company, or could be used in a way
to accomplish the above four goals.
Some examples of great taglines
include:
A diamond is forever – DeBeers,
1948
Maybe she’s born with it; maybe it’s Maybelline – L’Oreal, 1991
Good to the last drop – Maxwell House, 1959
These three examples are likely ingrained in your memory because they are so timeless. The DeBeers tagline is often credited with creating the entire diamond engagement ring industry because it fabricated a market where there previously was none, identified a new luxury, and became a status symbol that is still going strong nearly seventy years later.
Each of these taglines are memorable, identifies a clear benefit, differentiates the brand, and uses positive language. Avoid using colloquialisms specific to your region or references to technology that may end up being fleeting. For example, you wouldn’t want to use a tagline for your live streaming video service that references VCRs would you?