Reader?

Have you ever tried defining your brand voice and ended up with some snooze-worthy adjectives like “professional,” “warm,” or “authentic”?

That’s about as helpful as your aunty telling you to “just be yourself” before the blind date she set you up with.

THANKS TITI, but that doesn’t tell me what to say when they ask me about my hobbies or how many kids I want.

(do people still have those....?)

The Shondaland Hack That’ll Save Your Damn Life:

So here’s what the TV world does and I’m stealing it cuz it WORKS.

When a jaded seasoned screenwriter pitches a show, they don’t waste time with long winded pitches or 4th grade adjectives.

They get straight to the point with what TV execs call:

"COMPS” (aka comparisons):

Let's try it out on some recent binge worthy series.

First up, we got Running Point from the mind of Mindy Kaling:

"Ted Lasso meets Succession with a dash of Devil Wears Prada -- but you ACTUALLY root for the sister.”

Or:

The Residences by Shondaland is a modern day "Sherlock Holmes meets Brooklyn 99 with a dash of West Wing, but instead of Cumberbatch's Sherlock it's a bird-watching obsessed, patriarchy smashing, Uzo Aduba!”

You can FEEL those shows in your funny bone w/o 👀 a single episode.

TF!? So Why Don't We Do This With Brand Voice?

Forget trying to jam yourself into some brand archetype that feels about as real as an IG filter that makes you look like a fetus.

Instead, just say:

“My brand voice is [personality 1] meets [personality 2] meets [personality 3].”

For me? Most of the time it’s “Michelle Buteau meets Broad City meets Gary Vee.”

That tells you my voice and vibes is a lil:

- Unserious but relatable and juicy Millennial coded (Michelle Buteau)

- Chaotic but authentic AF and NYC coded (Broad City)

- Practical and no holds barred about your messaging even if it hurts your feelings (and a lil sweary...) (Gary Vee)

Which is WAY more ME than “authentic, warm, irreverent or straightforward”

How to Create Your Own Studio Pitch (Even If You’re Not Hollywood Material *eyeroll*):

1. Who do people say you remind them of? My friends literally watch Michelle Buteau stand-up when they miss me. I’m not even making that up.
2. Who has a similar communication style to yours? I talk fast, make weird connections, and sometimes go on tangents like Ilana from Broad City — but I always bring it home.
3. Who in your industry has a philosophy you vibe with? I appreciate how Gary Vee cuts through the BS and focuses on what actually makes money.
4. BONUS: Pay attention to the algo -- you'll find content and voices that resonate with you also resonates with your followers, repeat buyers, and engagers #scrollforgood

Mix those moves together, and BOOM — you’ve got a brand voice that's uniquely YOU but makes sense to other humans.

THE BIGGEST HACK: It's the best for getting your AI tools to act right when it comes to crafting copy that sounds like you.
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​Why? Because no matter how "authentic" you think you're being or how much content you're churning out, your Hollywood doppelgangers have perfected it.

They have WAY MORE publicly available content to leverage. And have made BANK doing it.

Just tell ChatGPT or Claude.ai (my personal fave) to write in the voice of:

“[Personality 1] meets [Personality 2] meets [Personality 3].”

And watch your copy go from “who dis?” to “that's why I fux with you!” in seconds.

Your turn, boo! What three personalities would create YOUR pitch perfect brand voice? No for realz. Hit reply and spill the beans.

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Let's get weird ;)

Christina Torres​
​Chief Creative Officer
​Run & Tell That - Copy. Content. Culture.
​w: www.runandtellthat.co e: christina@runandtellthat.co​