How to Create a Memorable Slogan: Expert Tips and Tricks
Creating Slogans that stay in the customer's mind is an art. Powerful slogans are short and sweet but give your brand’s voice life. It can help you captivate the audience and establish yourself as a distinct leader in the market.
In terms of impact, both taglines and slogans are helpful. However, the main difference is when they stick around with a brand.
Tag lines are more permanent, while slogans can just be a part of a single ad campaign and never reappear. Some brands do make their slogans as their tags, too. So, it all comes down to preferences and priorities.
Nevertheless, this post will focus only on slogans and how you can craft them with quality. This way, you can maximise your earnings and secure a unique brand identity in the industry. So, let’s get started without delaying any longer, shall we?
Table of Contents
What are Slogans?
Below, we’ll overview a brief history and word definition of the word “slogan.” Then, we’ll take a look at the use cases.
Brief History
The word ‘slogan’ comes from a Scottish and Irish descent, meaning ‘army host cry.’ The word’s meaning has changed significantly from what we know today.
A probable reason could be the essence of the word being lost in translation over decades. What is the exact cause? Well, nobody knows about it.
The old times didn’t have phones or other means of communication. Hence, slogans would be used as passwords to recognise individuals at night or during confusion during the battle.
People also used slogans to declare themselves from a particular political party or idealogy. It was a gesture to show oneness to an organisation or a cult following.
Definition
In modern-day dictionaries, the word slogan is described as the following.
“A short, easily remembered phrase that can be used to advertise an idea or a product.”
With this definition, it is clear that the focus of slogans has shifted from association to an idealogy to monetary and materialist values.
Example use-sentence:
“Slogans for political campaigns make high promises to the public.”
Use-Cases
Nowadays, businesses use slogans to market their brand's products or services.
Online influencers also use slogans to leave a footprint on their viewers’ minds. For instance, a famous Swedish YouTuber, ‘Pewdiepie’, uses a slogan of ‘stay awesome bros’ that’s hit amongst his audiences.
The YouTuber utilised their unique slogan on their merchandise and gaming accessory product lines, creating a uniform brand voice for himself. Hence, consistent marketing is essential for brand-building with slogans (more on that later.)
However, the main goal is to attract as many customers as possible and make a name for yourself in the industry. That’s how a slogan should be used.
What’s the significance of Slogans?
Big brands like Nike realised the need to create a memorable slogan and invested at the right time. In 1988, the company developed the ‘Just Do It’ – three words that changed the athletic footwear industry.
Nick Knight, co-founder of Nike, said,
“The slogan became more than just the representation of the brand. It became a ‘mindset’, an ‘attitude’, a ‘call to action’.”
Hence, the slogan sold more than just Nike’s products. It sold an idea to the athletes that this brand would help them push themselves to the limit.
Soon enough, many star-celebrity athletes like Michael Jordan, Serena Williams, Cristiano Ronaldo, etc., partnered with Nike to be its brand ambassador. And the rest is history.
Tips to Write Expert-quality Slogans
To write top-quality slogans, follow the provided tips.
1 – Know Your Audience
Understand your audience's pain points and learn about their desires and needs. This will help you to create a slogan that resonates with them.
Knowing the audience also means learning about their background, knowledge level, sociopolitical belonging, etc. The crafted slogan must cater to all these needs and create a sense of belonging for the customer. Only then will you be able to keep the audience captured with your marketed vision.
To know your audience, you can utilise many sources of data, such as;
- Webinars
- Ground Surveys
- Questionnaires
- Think Polls, etc.
There can be other methods to collect audience data, too. However, our research should only be a starting point rather than vice versa.
2 – Focus On Being Benefit-Driven
Focus on what you will deliver to the people and why people should consider you as their go-to brand.
Example:
‘We bring families together’ – Disney.
The slogan explicitly lets their audiences know that their work is to spread joy and strengthen the emotional connection between loved ones.
Hence, focus on your USP (Unique Selling Point) and bring that element to your slogan. This will surely answer people’s ‘why’ and help them connect with your brand.
3 – Keep Slogans Short And Sweet
Slogans usually are concise phrases that are made to leave the most impact. Hence, it would be best if you stayed concise and to the point while crafting them.
The rule books have no specified word/character limit for slogans. However, according to our research, many sources mention an average length of 6-8 words.
Example:
“It's finger-lickin’ good” – KFC.
The above slogan has only four words. However, their impact is so huge that everyone still remembers it. So, while writing slogans, avoid quantity and accept quality.
4 – Do A Genius Wordplay
A wordplay is necessary for slogan creation. You’ll need to brainstorm long and hard before you land on the perfect, suitable option.
To approach this challenge, try creating a list of probable slogans. Then, say each one out loud and judge its rhythm. Go with the slogan that you feel flows the best.
Furthermore, ask yourself a few iterative questions before finalising a slogan.
- Are the used words too hard for a layman?
- Is there a better way of saying the same thing?
- Will the majority of the people read and pronounce my slogan correctly?
In addition to this, check if you can create a rhyme in your slogan. Such minor tweaks will guarantee an enormously memorable slogan.
Example:
“The quicker picker upper” – Bounty.
The above wordplay is rhythmic and rhyming, making it easier for people to remember.
5 – Make The Slogan Unique
When you bring your brand personality into your slogan, it will make your work authentic and unique.
Example:
“Think Different” – Apple.
The above slogan highlights a USP of ‘creating new designs and technology’ through the slogan.
As a result, fans eagerly wait for Apple’s annual launches to see what they have done new with their products. Hence, Apple has established itself as not a cutting-edge hardware provider but a tech innovator.
Besides that, you need to be vigilant and check for the originality of your slogan after crafting it.
You can do so by hopping on to Google and typing in the slogan. Add the marketed product name or service in the query and see if anything pops up. Similarly, if you’re a blogger, try going to blogger.com to check whether any other businesses exist with your name.
6 – Establish An Emotional Connection
Appeal to emotion is significant in getting the crowd on your side. Make people get attached to your brand’s feelings and vibe to establish a long-lasting connection. This way, you can sell sustainably and make a household name quickly.
Example:
“The power of dreams” – Honda.
This slogan instils a feeling that Honda produces extremely durable rides, helping people achieve their dreams by going the extra mile.
Moreover, Honda pushes adventurers, explorers, and travellers to go beyond their limits and reach new heights. Such marketing strategies surely help the brand grow into an industry leader.
7 – Stay Future-Proof
Similar to how trends die in fashion, your branding will wear out if it's just made for a particular time frame.
An outdated slogan will waste time and resources as you’ll have to make and publish a new one. Hence, the future-proofing of your slogan is vital.
Avoid using any trendy language, cultural/meme references, name of a person, and so on. Don’t stick to a particular background; target a global audience while writing slogans.
Example:
‘I'm Lovin’ it!” – McDonald’s.
The McDonald’s slogan dates way back to 2003; however, it is still cherished today. Also, it targets everyone globally, at any given age and time. Such is the power of a future-proof slogan.
8 – Write It In A Broad Context
Don’t specify your niche too much in your slogan. This will fixate your context to a particular product/service, making it challenging for you to expand your business in the future.
Example:
“Eat Fresh” – Subway.
The slogan does not mention any of Subway's products. It just refers to all their servings being fresh for their customers. This tactic allows Subway to expand its product line quickly without any problems.
On the contrary, if the slogan said “eat fresh sandwiches” or “eat fresh cookies”, the company's brand voice would conflict.
Hence, always write in a broad context so that you get an opportunity to expand in the future.
9 – Take Feedback To Refine Your Work
Getting a third-person perspective on something you would’ve spent hours and hours perfecting is essential.
Thus, take your finalised slogan to your friends, family, or colleagues and get their valuable feedback. Ask them for its flow, rhythm, and uniqueness and see if they like it.
Then, take reviews on more technical details like future-proofing, context, fitting the audience, and so on. Be gentle and encourage an environment that appreciates constructive criticism for extracting the best from the people around you.
As we say, “majority is authority” – so consider the changes that everyone suggests. This will benefit your brand as you’ll get a natural crowd response before the launch. You’ll get corrected in the initial stages rather than failing and returning from the final ones.
Return to the drawing board to make the required changes and finalise the slogan for the production team.
10 – Visualise The Slogan With Your Logo
The final step is visualising the slogan – put it next to your logo and see its suitability.
If the slogan is too long, it will overpower the logo, making the branding awkward. Conversely, if the slogan is too short and the logo too detailed, you’d need to adjust the branding accordingly.
Example:
“Drive One” – Ford
The above slogan is very unsuitable. Ford’s logo does not mention the number or letter one, making the branding inconsistent for the company.
In addition, word-wise, the slogan needs to capture something about how Ford is a better car company than others or anything along those lines.
Hence, always put time into making your slogan and reiterate any points from 1-9 to get the perfect draft.
An Alternative Method
If you’re still struggling to create a strong slogan for your company, we suggest an alternative method.
This is to use an online slogan generator that leverages AI technology to produce timeless, memorable slogans in no time. Below is a brief procedural guide you can follow to complete your work.
1 – Get to the main page.
We searched for ‘slogan generators’ online and found one with the top results. The high ranking on search engines spoke volumes about the trustworthiness of the tool.
We tested it out to see if it's worth it. This is how the tool looks like on the main page.
2 – Select a slogan topic.
The next step is to find and select a slogan topic. This can be a word or phrase you need in your slogan. For instance, our branding included the word ‘burger bliss’.
3 – Retrieve the results
Below are the results we got for our selected ‘slogan topic.’
As we can see, the slogan ‘Juicy and Delicious’ truly goes well with the brand name ‘Burger Bliss.’
Hence, you can get powerful slogans from the AI slogan generator with just a click. We don’t recommend you rely entirely on the said tool. However, you can use it to get ideas.
What To Do After Creating A Memorable Slogan?
You’ll need to take some additional steps to make your slogan work.
1 – Test On A Subject Audience
Go to a mall or a nearby convenience store to set up a stall. Put your slogan and logo to the work and see the audience’s reaction. Interact with people and learn how they’re perceiving your brand.
A real-life test will give you the verdict on how well your slogan is performing. Does it meet your required criteria? Is it compelling enough? Hopefully, you’ll get your answers.
2 – Market With Consistency
Employ different marketing channels to get your brand name across to the maximum number of people. Ensure a consistent marketing strategy by sliding in your slogan anywhere you can. Put it on your social media pages, physical shops (if any), merchandise (if possible), etc.
People should get a uniform message from your brand. If your voice is balanced, it will strengthen your overall message, appeal, and audience engagement.
3 – Get It Trademarked
Trademarking is an investment worth doing for your slogan. For this, you must ensure your phrase is unique (see our point 5 in the first section.)
Search different niches and trademark classes to understand which suits your mark.
Afterwards, contact a specialist lawyer to get all the required paperwork. However, it can be evident that slogans can’t be copyrighted as they’re too short to be classified as creative property; they’ll only be trademarked.
Some Good and Bad Examples of Slogans
Do we still need help with creating a suitable slogan? Don’t worry; we have some examples to help you in this process.
Good Examples
Below, we have listed the best slogans we’ve found through our research.
“Nationwide is on your side!” – Nationwide.
The flow is perfect, and the slogan has rhythm and rhyme. There are no pop-cultural/meme references to the phrase, making it future-proof and universal.
“Open happiness” – Coca-Cola.
No wonder the brand has faced numerous backlashes for being unhealthy and dangerous to well-being.
However, their marketing team is a slick genius in coming up with this slogan. The appeal to the emotion is just right, not too sobby or bland. They make people believe Coca-Cola is the reason for bringing joy to homes.
“It keeps going, and going, and going” – Energizer.
Judging from a shallow perspective, there’s repetition in the slogan. However, it’s there to establish an emotional connection with the audience and to ensure the people that their batteries never run out! Such ideas are truly unique.
“America runs on Dunkin’” – Dunkin’ Donuts.
Basketball is a major sport in the United States. So, the creative think tank of Dunkin’ Donuts did a genius wordplay. They added a double meaning to the slogan that America runs on dunking our doughnuts and the ball itself.
The slogan doesn’t have a universal appeal but does well in catering to the targeted audience.
“We bring good things to life’” – General Electric.
This slogan is straightforward for laymen to say. It conveys the company’s USP that they provide quality and make things happen. Sometimes, simplicity is the best policy in slogans, too.
Bad Examples
Listed below are the worst slogans that we found for any ad campaign.
“I will” – Under Armour.
This slogan is universal and future-proof. However, it fails to capture the brand's essence or the value it will provide to make a difference.
A slightly reworded version that we think would’ve worked can be “You will.” This gives off similar vibes to Nike’s “Just Do It.” But it makes sense since both are in the athletic apparel industry.
“Make 7-Up Yours” – 7-Up.
We probably can’t wrap our heads around what this slogan truly means. It’s way too straightforward, providing no USP to the customers and answering none of their questions.
A generous reply to one of such slogans would be, “No, I won’t.” Fail!
“Travel should take you places” – Hilton Hotels.
Why such a generic slogan? It doesn’t cover anything about the brand; it just reinforces a fact we already know. Nothing new is provided in the phrase, and it just feels too bogus.
“Because not everyone likes liquorice” – Bassett’s Fruit Allsorts.
The company made a massive mistake in specifying its brand around liquorice. They tried to keep the idea afloat but couldn’t do it for long.
Eventually, the brand was discontinued and merged with the ‘Maynards' in 2016.
“It’s not for women” – Dr. Pepper Ten.
Why would you exclude 50% of demographics from your general audience? This is a question that everyone asks after reading the slogan.
Whatever they were trying to do didn’t work out well for Drm. Dr Pepper faced severe backlash for its controversial slogan, which is still used as a joke in communities.
Please remember that we couldn’t include all examples in our lineup. However, these should be enough to help you craft a memorable slogan.
Final Thoughts
This post covered all the tricks and tips for creating a powerful, memorable slogan for your business. We learned the history and significance of slogans and how they’re employed in today’s world.
Then, we saw the steps to draft expert-quality slogans. Those were to write according to the audience, with conciseness and cleverness. Also, the slogan should be kept free of trendy language and made universal. Finally, take feedback positively and improve upon the draft.
That’s it for the post! We hope you enjoyed reading our content!
FAQs
What makes a memorable slogan?
Typically, a memorable slogan is short, catchy and easy to remember. It should express the brand or product initially and concisely, often with plays on words, rhymes or phrases that stick in people’s minds.
How long should a slogan be?
Many experts suggest slogans must have seven words or less; however, they are ideally about three to five words long. This is because shorter ones are easy to recall and more effective.
Should the slogan describe the service or product?
Although a slogan doesn’t have to state what it’s about, it must reflect one’s company’s identity and values. More importantly, it should evoke some emotional response among prospective customers, who would then identify with such feelings.
Can a question form part of a slogan?
Yes, they provided that it's attractive enough for people to consider before answering yes/no! For example, “Where’s The Beef?”. Wendy’s used this as their marketing message, which worked perfectly well since many were caught off guard when asked such an unexpected query disguised under advertisement strategy!
How can you best utilise puns or rhymes when creating taglines?
Puns and rhyming patterns tend to make them lively, thus making people not easily forget them. Nevertheless, care should be taken not to overdo these techniques, overshadowing the real meaning behind any given phrase.
Should my catchphrase describe what I do precisely or use metaphorical language instead?
Literal and metaphoric ones can work depending on your brand concept and intended message portrayal. Straightforwardness, forwardness, and clarity characterise literal descriptions, while figurative terms add depth and mystery to the communication process between business organisations/individuals involved.
Rhythm & Flow – How Important Are Those Elements In Catchy Slogans?
A good rhythm flows off the tongue easier and hence registers itself within individuals’ minds forever than one without. Notice how they sound together – cadence is irresistible when it's right at the tips of your fingers!
Can a slogan be in any language other than English?
Yes! A slogan can be written in any language that resonates well with the desired target audience. However, make sure to translate cultural nuances correctly so that people from diverse backgrounds can understand what message you want to convey.
Should catchy phrases have long shelf lives, or do they expire after some time?
Ideally, evergreen ones should never become outdated because this saves companies money, which could have been used otherwise during regular updates. But temporary adverts work wonders, especially if limited-period offers are available for customers.
How can I gauge whether my potential tagline is compelling enough or not?
Consider holding focus groups among members belonging to different segments within the community where they live/work, etc… Find out which lines proved most memorable, engaging them while aligning their responses to brand values.
