Powering Content

Chapter 5. Themes, Voice, and Tone

You already know what your goals, audience, and channels look like. At this point, it is all about figuring out what kinds of topics should be served to that audience, through those channels, to fulfill those goals. Throughout this chapter, we review how to find your brand’s core themes and convey them using an overarching brand voice, expressed in different tones depending on the situation.

Finding your brand’s core themes, the issues that you should be vocal about, is a much-needed first step in the content production process. A brand’s core themes are actionable, overarching topics that you can use as a starting point in content production.

Real-Life Examples of Core Themes

Let’s look at a few real-life examples of core themes. Table 5-1 presents the results of my team’s analysis of the content these brands consistently publish in their owned channels. You will also find a brief description of what each of these companies does.

Table 5-1. Core theme examples

Â	Core themes	What they do
National Geographic Society	Travel and adventurePhotographyEnvironmentWildlife	A global nonprofit committed to exploring and protecting the planet.
Asana	PlanningProject managementProductivityLeadership	A task-management software company creating an easy way for teams to track their work.
Airbnb	HospitalityWanderlust (travel)Local cultureTravel safety	An online marketplace for people to list, discover, and book accommodations around ...