Brand Identity Fundamentals

Sarah

Strategist, Marketer, Creator

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Part strategy, part craft, Tone Up is designed to sharpen your strategic thinking, elevate your communication, and help you create brand identities that stand out.

In the world of branding, language isn’t just about information. It's how you make meaning. Words guide. They stir emotion. They tell stories. They shape the entire experience of your brand. Words can either build trust, or break it. Create connection, or indifference. Inspire action, or dilute your message. Your brand’s language is your leverage.

What you’ll learn

Take your brand voice from cookie-cutter to strategically sharp verbal identity that tells stories and sells products.

Understand what brand identity is, why it matters and how to shape one that's true to your business and personality.
Learn how to use language as a strategic tool while defining an ownable point of view.
Gain the clarity and confidence to define a brand identity that feels authentic, distinctive and aligned with your business.

Explore hundreds of brand voice examples, from B2B, to healthcare to beauty and beyond.
Understand how different brands translate strategy into a distinctive voice across industries.
Identify the patterns, techniques and language choices that make brand voices feel unique and memorable.

Learn how to adapt your tone for different channels, audiences and situations while staying recognisably on-brand.
Consider depth, nuance and tone in a way that creates expressiveness.
Know exactly how your brand should sound in different situations, from marketing campaigns to customer support.

Build a strategic language system that helps your brand communicate consistently, earn trust and stay relevant as your business grows.
Create distinctive language that makes your brand easier to recognise and remember.
Turn everyday interactions into opportunities to reinforce your brand identity.

Learn directly from Sarah

Sarah

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Brand strategist with 10+ years' experience helping businesses stand out

See all products from Sarah Fretwell

Who this course is for

Designers. Great visuals are only half the story. When you understand voice, you can create more cohesive, expressive, and dynamic brands.
Copywriters. Whether you’re writing bold billboards or bite-sized captions, learn to sharpen your instinct for tone, rhythm, and intention.
Strategists & founders. Gain the language, structure, and confidence to define, guide and sell in voices that move brands forward.

What's included

Live sessions

Learn directly from Sarah in a real-time, interactive format.

Lifetime access

Go back to course content and recordings whenever you need to.

Certificate of completion

Share your new skills with your employer or on LinkedIn.

4+ hours of video content

Over 4 hours of engaging video lessons that each build on the last, layering insight with action.

260+ pages of course slides

260+ pages of annotated slides and brand examples for exposure to other brands and industries

Community of peers

Interactive group sessions, a cohort to learn alongside, and a private Slack community.

Exercises, projects, and tools

Tried, tested, and proven exercises to help you workshop, refine and action your verbal identity.

Bonus resources

A reusable toolkit – templates, worksheets, and prompts you can use again and again.

70+ brand voice examples

A library of 70+ brand voice examples – from the ones that hit the mark to the ones that miss entirely.

Live 1:1 feedback

1:1 feedback on your work submissions, project crits, and direct access to the instructor feedback on participants' work

Monthly course updates

Monthly updates to the course content, ensuring it stays fresh and relevant.

Maven Guarantee

Your purchase is backed by the Maven Guarantee.

Course syllabus

3 live sessions • 9 lessons • 5 projects

Week 1

Sep 1—Sep 6

Sep

Live Session: Introduction to Verbal Identity

Tue 9/17:00 PM—8:00 PM (UTC)

Introduction

1 item

Week 2

Sep 7—Sep 13

Rooting your Voice in Strategy

3 items

Crafting a Dynamic Voice

2 items

Schedule

Live sessions

3 hrs

Tue, Sep 1
7:00 PM—8:00 PM (UTC)
Tue, Sep 15
7:00 PM—8:00 PM (UTC)
Tue, Sep 29
7:00 PM—8:00 PM (UTC)

Projects

3 hrs

Async content

2 hrs

Testimonials

I absolutely loved this tone of voice course. The lessons all built on one another in a clever way and the information shared was really practical and digestible. As a brand strategist it gave me a great toolkit and deeper understanding around the nuances of tone of voice. Examples for each lesson were great, interesting and easy to understand.
Orlaith Dilleen
OD&CO Digital
As someone who regularly works with businesses that lack a clear brand voice, this course gave me practical tools to develop and articulate consistent messaging for my clients. The exercises are immediately applicable and in fact I was able to use some of the tips immediately with one of my website copy clients.
Claire Cunningham
Word Craft Services
Sarah’s course on brand voice is a game-changer. She shows you how to calibrate your voice and shares powerful insights you can apply to your brand or your clients’. Worth every second.
Alex Rezgui
Moon Studio