The Why:

The furniture retailer Joss & Main had established themselves with a traditionally editorial voice: formal, sophisticated, smart, and creative. However, the voice was no longer connecting with the audience—especially as creativity would oftentimes forsake clarity—and we were seeing dips in engagement. As Head of Content for the brand, I knew we needed to evolve the brand voice from one that felt intellectual and inaccessible to one that felt more like a friend—a trusted style ally our consumers could relate to.

The Articulation:

I developed a new brand voice guide that presented Joss & Main’s evolved way of speaking: like a cocktail conversation with a stylish and relatable friend. Updated voice filters paint clear parameters around the new expression—always in the know and confident, yet approachable: we’re Domino Mag, not Vogue Living. A clear formula explains how to execute every communication, establishing the balance between clarity, authority, and personality to ensure creativity never muddies the message. A cheat sheet, topics of conversation, and a “this, not that” section continues to clarify how our voice comes to life—not only redefining our expression, but empowering any writer for the brand to adopt the voice with confidence.

The Response:

The new voice guide became a uniting reference point across our marketing and creative org, reassuring stakeholders that our voice could once again authentically connect with the consumer while empowering our copywriters with clear direction, ultimately leading to increased engagement and conversion.