Be Our Guest
Which Beauty and the Beast Character Fits Your Brand Voice?
We all know that finding your unique brand voice is essential to achieving a slew of social media goals. It makes the difference between being remembered and being forgotten. Every industry offers different goods and services, and social media styles within each vertical can be as varied as logos.
Defining an online voice takes time, as you carve and sculpt with each update, photo, and even customer service interactions like comments and replies. So with the live action remake of Beauty and the Beast coming to theaters soon, we at Thin Pig asked ourselves an important question:
WHY THE HECK are they remaking this movie?! Seriously, the trailer looks like a shot-for-shot xerox of the animated classic! Who asked for this???
...But we digress. This tale as old as time is chock full of memorable characters, whose personalities are widely varied, and who each serve a particular purpose in the story. So for social media nerds like us, the more relevant question raised by Disney’s masterpiece is:
Can businesses use its beloved characters as inspiration when determining the best online voice for their brand? Let’s give it a shot.
BELLE
Belle is the protagonist, the hero, and the person with whom the audience member is always identifying.
Brand Voice: Colloquial, familiar, casually humorous, locally minded, friendly but not subservient, intelligent but not patronizing, slanting feminine
Most Likely Industries: Cafes, shoes, drive-through restaurants, local bars, indulgent/comfort foods, hotels (style & culture)
GASTON
Gaston is a self-proclaimed expert of everything, and is clearly the town’s best source of entertainment.
Brand Voice: Loud, in your face, adventurous, inspiring, bragging about challenges and achievements, always encouraging you to join in, slanting masculine
Most Likely Industries: Competitive sports, athletic clothing, energy drinks, men’s deodorant
THE SERVANTS
Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, and the fancy French feather duster are available at the beck and call of their master, for whatever tasks or pampering are desired.
Brand Voice: Service-focused, formal, elegant, refined, inviting, always anticipating the audience’s comforts & desires, proud of elevated status & awards
Most Likely Industries: Hotels (luxury & business), high-end cars, credit cards, formal foods & restaurants
MAURICE, BELLE’S FATHER
Maurice is the wacky inventor who studies and tinkers all day, mocked as a weirdo by society but resolutely driven to lessen the burdens of daily life.
Brand Voice: Geeky, knowledgable, self-deprecatingly humorous, hopeful about the future, given to daydreaming, obsessed with statistics
Most Likely Industries: Gadgets, technology, innovation, specialty medicine, individual sports
BEAST
Don’t be the Beast. He’s a sloppy inconsiderate jerk who only changes his tune because he’s scared that the last rose petal falling will spell his doom. Plus he’s got giant paws for hands, so his typing is probably atrocious. Okay, fine, he turns out to be a good dude, but only because Belle is so awesome.
So which one is your business? Leave a comment below!