Stop looking for a hook. You already have one.

We see this all the time in communications:

Teams spend months trying to “find” their story. Workshops. Decks. Frameworks. Trend reports. Everyone searching for the perfect angle, the one that will make the brand feel interesting, relevant, differentiated.

But let us throw a curve ball in here:

You don’t need to find your story. You already have one. And it is every campaign you’ve run, client you’ve helped, the challenges you’ve solved for customers. That’s the story people actually connect with.

Not the slogans, or market positioning, nor the shiny new slide in the brand book.

Those things matter but they are not the meaning. You are the meaning.

Often when brands try to create a story from scratch, they end up chasing whatever feels fashionable: “What’s trending on LinkedIn?” “What headline are competitors using?” “What do other brands sound like right now?”

That’s how brands start saying everything… and communicating nothing. When you try to sound like everyone else, you disappear and lose your true voice. When you speak from who you are, you stand out effortlessly.

People don’t connect with polish. They connect with presence.

It’s the same in branding as it is in life. We’ve all seen those picture-perfect campaigns that look good on paper but feel oddly hollow. Technically flawless, yet emotionally empty.

Audiences can tell immediately when a message is rehearsed, templated or “approved by ten people and a brand council”. They engage when it feels like a real person is behind the words.

They trust you when your voice sounds human, not manufactured.

Our advice is don’t chase the hook, the hook is how you think, work, care and communicate. And that’s something nobody else can replicate. Hence, it is gold-dust. Don’t try to be who you think you’re supposed to be, that’s a trap.

A gentle challenge from us at JAM

Before you tweak the headline, rewrite the tagline or change your tone of voice again, ask: Are we trying to reinvent ourselves? Or are we trying to express ourselves? – this one is liberating.

Your comms don’t need to perform as a character, rather, they need to introduce the real one.

And if you’re stuck, we’ve got you.

If your story feels fuzzy, if your messaging feels flat, or if you’re not sure how to express what makes your brand actually yours, JAM can help you find the words.

Not with a hook or a gimmick or a ludicrously expensive course.  

Simply your brand, understood and explained clearly, creatively, and confidently.

Just drop us a message. We’ll figure it out together.