A tagline isn’t the only part of your brand that marks your business, but it is an important part of your company identity. Having a good tagline can enhance your marketing efforts and clarify your company image. Here are some tips on writing a tagline that will stick with your customers.
- Keep it short. The best taglines are short and to the point. Try to make them no more than six or seven words.
- Keep it simple. Use words everyone can understand rather than jargon from your industry.
- Be specific.
- Be positive.
- Appeal to your target market. Advertising is the most effective when it speaks to the right audience, so you need to know what that is before you start your ad campaign. If you create a great tagline, but it isn’t focused to your target audience, then it’s not going to help you as much as it should.
This is a creative process and it helps to gather ideas from more than one person. First, brainstorm some keywords that relate to your business. Jot down anything that might relate to your products or services.
Next, brainstorm values and benefits for your customers. What do your clients value about your company’s products and services? Make a list of those keywords, too.
Now, combine those words and see what you come up with. Can you make a descriptive phrase out of what you’ve got? Start writing down ideas, without any editing, to see what you can make out of your keywords, trying different combinations.
Start picking out your favorites, discarding the ones that you don’t like. Go through all of your ideas, and look at how you can make them into a tagline, or if some of them work as is. Narrow your favorites down to two or three. Then test them on other people. See if people outside your business like them, understand them, and think they work.
A tagline isn’t necessary for every business, and it’s better not to have one than to have one that doesn’t work. Here’s some inspiration:
The 100 Most Influential Taglines Since 1948
From Tagline Guru
1. | Got milk? (1993) | California Milk Processor Board | |
2. | Don’t leave home without it. (1975) | American Express | |
3. | Just do it. (1988) | Nike | |
4. | Where’s the beef? (1984) | Wendy’s | |
5. | You’re in good hands with Allstate. (1956) | Allstate Insurance | |
6. | Think different. (1998) | Apple Computer | |
7. | We try harder. (1962) | Avis | |
8. | Tastes great, less filling. (1974) | Miller Lite | |
9. | Melts in your mouth, not in your hands. (1954) | M&M Candies | |
10. | Takes a licking and keeps on ticking. (1956) | Timex | |
11. | When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight. (1982) | FedEx | |
12. | Reach out and touch someone. (1979) | AT&T | |
13. | A diamond is forever. (1948) | DeBeers | |
14. | Finger-lickin’ good! (1952) | Kentucky Fried Chicken | |
15. | The uncola. (1973) | 7-Up | |
16. | Let your fingers do the walking. (1964) | Yellow Pages | |
17. | There are some things that money can’t buy. For everything else there’s MasterCard. (1997) | MasterCard | |
18. | What happens here, stays here. (2002) | Las Vegas | |
19. | You’ve come a long way, baby. (1968) | Virginia Slims Cigarettes | |
20. | We bring good things to life. (1981) | General Electric | |
21. | Please don’t squeeze the Charmin. (1964) | Charmin | |
22. | Does she or doesn’t she? (1964) | Clairol | |
23. | Have it your way. (1973) | Burger King | |
24. | I can’t believe I ate the whole thing. (1966) | Alka-Seltzer | |
25. | Come alive! You’re in the Pepsi generation. (1964) | Pepsi | |
26. | The ultimate driving machine. (1975) | BMW | |
27. | The quicker picker-upper. (1991) | Bounty | |
28. | Look, Ma, no cavities! (1958) | Crest | |
29. | Pork. The other white meat. (1986) | National Pork Board | |
30. | Pardon me, do you have any Grey Poupon? (1980) | Grey Poupon | |
31. | Friends don’t let friends drive drunk. (1992) | U.S. Dept. of Transportation | |
32. | Have a coke and smile. (1979) | Coca-Cola | |
33. | I love New York. (1977) | NY State Dept. of Econ. Development | |
34. | Betcha can’t eat just one. (1981) | Lay’s Potato Chips | |
35. | Think outside the bun. (1998) | Taco Bell | |
36. | The mind is a terrible thing to waste. (1972) | United Negro College Fund | |
37. | It keeps going, and going, and going… (1989) | Energizer Batteries | |
38. | Hey, Mikey…he likes it! (1972) | Life Cereal | |
39. | This is your brain. This is your brain on drugs. Any questions? (1987) | Partnership for a Drug-Free America | |
40. | They’re gr-r-r-eat! (1950s) | Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes | |
41. | The happiest place on earth. (1960s) | Disneyland | |
42. | Beef. It’s what’s for dinner. (late 1980s) | National Cattlemen’s Beef Assn. | |
43. | With a name like Smucker’s, it has to be good. (1962) | Smucker’s | |
44. | Nothing comes between me and my Calvins. (1979) | Calvin Klein Jeans | |
45. | Is it live or is it Memorex? (1970s) | Memorex | |
46. | Because I’m worth it. (1967) | L’Oréal | |
47. | The few, the proud, the Marines. (1991) | U.S. Marines | |
48. | Our repairmen are the loneliest guys in town. (1967) | Maytag Appliances | |
49. | Put a tiger in your tank. (1964) | Esso (Exxon) | |
50. | You quiero Taco Bell. (mid-1990s) | Taco Bell | |
51. | How do you spell relief? R-O-L-A-I-D-S. (1970s) | Rolaids | |
52. | This Bud’s for you. (1970s) | Budweiser | |
53. | When EF Hutton talks, people listen. (mid-1980s) | EF Hutton | |
54. | It’s everywhere you want to be. (1988) | VISA | |
55. | I’ve fallen and I can’t get up. (1990) | LifeCall | |
56. | We make the money the old-fashioned way—we earn it. (1980s) | Smith Barney | |
57. | Intel Inside. (early 1990s) | Intel | |
58. | Don’t get mad. Get GLAD. (early 1980s) | GLAD | |
59. | Like a rock. (1990) | Chevy Trucks | |
60. | It takes a tough man to make a tender chicken. (1972) | Perdue Chicken | |
61. | We will sell no wine before its time. (1970s) | Paul Masson | |
62. | Fly the friendly skies. (1966) | United Airlines | |
63. | Lifts and separates. (1960s) | Playtex Cross-Your-Heart Bra | |
64. | Thank you for your support. (1985) | Bartles & Jaymes | |
65. | Try it, you’ll like it. (1970s) | Alka-Seltzer | |
66. | Think small. (1962) | Volkswagen | |
67. | We answer to a higher authority. (1975) | Hebrew National | |
68. | Get a piece of the rock. (1970s) | Prudential | |
69. | The world’s favourite airline. (1983) | British Airways | |
70. | Nothing runs like a Deere. (1972) | John Deere | |
71. | Leave the driving to us. (1950s) | Greyhound | |
72. | The world’s online marketplace. (late 1990s) | eBay | |
73. | Quality is job one. (1979) | Ford | |
74. | Drivers wanted. (1995) | Volkswagen | |
75. | Think outside the box. (1990s) | Apple Computer | |
76. | Bayer works wonders. (1960s) | Bayer Aspirin | |
77. | The relentless pursuit of perfection. (1990s) | Lexus | |
78. | The king of beers. (1950s) | Budweiser | |
79. | Hertz puts you in the driver’s seat. (1961) | Hertz | |
80. | Cotton. The fabric of our lives. (1989) | Cotton Incorporated | |
81. | I want my Maypo. (1956) | Maypo | |
82. | RAID kills bugs dead. (1966) | RAID | |
83. | Fosters—Australian for beer. (1990s) | Fosters Australian Beer | |
84. | Catch our smile. (1970s) | Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) | |
85. | Pepperidge Farm remembers. (1970s) | Pepperidge Farm | |
86. | Solutions for a small planet. (mid-1990s) | IBM | |
87. | For those who think young. (1961) | Pepsi | |
88. | My wife, I think I’ll keep her. (1971) | Geritol | |
89. | Never let ‘em see you sweat. (1980s) | Gillette | |
90. | I’d rather fight than switch. (1960s) | Tareyton Cigarettes | |
91. | For fast, fast, fast relief. (1950s) | Anacin | |
92. | A silly millimeter longer. (1970s) | Chesterfield Cigarettes | |
93. | Take it all off. (1960s) | Noxzema | |
94. | The spirit of ’76. (1960s) | Unocal | |
95. | It’s not a job. It’s an adventure. (1980s) | U.S. Navy | |
96. | Did somebody say McDonald’s? (1997) | McDonald’s | |
97. | Ring around the collar. (1968) | Wisk Laundry Detergent | |
98. | It’s not your father’s Oldsmobile… (1980s) | Oldsmobile | |
99. | The toughest job you’ll ever love. (1970s) | U.S. Peace Corps | |
100. | Share moments. Share life. (1990s) | Kodak |
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