Developing a claim and a slogan

Under most logos sits a line nobody remembers, produced in a workshop and defended ever since.

The four tests

1. The competitor test. Put a competitor's logo above your claim. Does it still work? If yes, it says nothing about you.

"Quality you can rely on" passes for every firm in every trade. That is the definition of a failed claim.

2. The recall test. Say it to five people, wait an hour, ask them to repeat it. Under three out of five, it is too long or too abstract.

3. The truth test. Is it demonstrably true today, not aspirationally? A claim promising something the business does not deliver is the most expensive kind, because the disappointment attaches to the brand.

4. The endurance test. Will it still be right in ten years? Claims tied to a current technology, a trend or a single product age badly and force a change that costs more than the claim was worth.

The three types that work

The third type is what most firms attempt and only large brands can afford, because it requires enough exposure for the attitude to become associated with the name.

Smaller firms should almost always choose the first or second. They are less elegant and they work without a media budget.

Length

Three to six words. Longer lines are not repeated, and a claim that is not repeated is not a claim.

When to keep what you have

If your existing line passes the competitor test and has been in use for more than five years, keep it even if you have grown tired of it.

Internal fatigue is not a reason to change. The audience has seen it a fraction as often as you have, and the accumulated recognition is an asset with a real value that a rewrite writes off entirely.

The practical process

Write forty lines over a week, not in one session. Discard everything containing the words solutions, quality, passion or partner. Test the surviving five against the four checks. Choose the one that is true and specific, not the one that is clever.