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Define or enforce brand voice, messaging, terminology, tone, and style standards.
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| name | brand-guidelines |
| description | Define or enforce brand voice, messaging, terminology, tone, and style standards. |
A thorough voice reference covers the following areas. Use this structure to help teams articulate their voice from scratch or to interpret an existing voice configuration.
Describe the brand as though it were a human being. What character traits define it?
Example: "Our brand is the sharp-but-generous mentor — someone who breaks down hard ideas in plain language, takes genuine pride in your progress, and never condescends."
Each attribute needs four elements to prevent ambiguity:
How the voice flexes across situations while remaining unmistakably the same brand. See the Tone Modulation section below.
Concrete grammar, punctuation, and formatting standards. See Editorial Standards below.
Approved and prohibited terms. See Vocabulary Governance below.
Positioning attributes on a continuum helps teams calibrate. Common spectrums include:
| Dimension | End A | End B |
|---|---|---|
| Register | Formal, institutional | Relaxed, conversational |
| Expertise | Authoritative, expert | Collaborative, peer-level |
| Warmth | Empathetic, personal | Direct, no-nonsense |
| Technicality | Precise, specialized | Plain, universally accessible |
| Intensity | Bold, high-energy | Calm, understated |
| Levity | Playful, witty | Serious, measured |
| Orientation | Forward-looking, innovative | Established, reliability-focused |
For every selected attribute, record:
[Attribute Name]
Example:
Welcoming
The brand voice is the constant; tone is the variable that adjusts based on context. Tone represents the emotional calibration applied to the voice.
| Channel | Tone Shift | Illustration |
|---|---|---|
| Blog | Educational, conversational, exploratory | "Here is a walkthrough of how this works and why your team should care." |
| Professional, thought-provoking, compact | "Three takeaways from running 50 campaigns last quarter." | |
| Twitter/X | Sharp, concise, occasionally playful | "Your landing page gets 3 seconds. Spend them wisely." |
| Email marketing | Personal, supportive, action-oriented | "We built something we think will save you real time." |
| Sales materials | Assured, benefit-focused, evidence-backed | "Teams on our platform cut reporting overhead by 40%." |
| Help documentation | Patient, sequential, unambiguous | "If this error appears, follow these steps to resolve it." |
| Press releases | Formal, factual, newsworthy | "The company announced today the general availability of..." |
| Error states | Understanding, constructive, non-blaming | "We hit a snag on our side. Our team is already investigating." |
| Scenario | Tone Adjustment |
|---|---|
| Product launch | Confident, enthusiastic, forward-looking |
| Service disruption | Transparent, accountable, empathetic |
| Customer win | Celebratory, specific, customer-centered |
| Industry thought leadership | Nuanced, evidence-driven, authoritative |
| New user onboarding | Encouraging, clear, welcoming |
| Unwelcome news (price changes, deprecations) | Honest, respectful, solution-focused |
| Competitive positioning | Self-assured, factual, never disparaging |
Voice attributes remain constant. Tone turns their intensity up or down depending on the moment. For a brand that is "confident and warm":
Consistency matters more than any single choice. Document and enforce these decisions:
| Decision | Alternatives | Sample |
|---|---|---|
| Serial comma | Include / Omit | "fast, reliable, and secure" vs. "fast, reliable and secure" |
| Heading capitalization | Sentence case / Title case | "How to get started" vs. "How to Get Started" |
| Contractions | Permit / Avoid | "we're" vs. "we are" |
| Em dash style | No surrounding spaces / Spaces | "this—and more" vs. "this — and more" |
| Numeral rules | Spell out one through nine / Always use digits | "five features" vs. "5 features" |
| Percentage notation | Symbol / Word | "50%" vs. "50 percent" |
| Date styling | Month DD, YYYY / DD/MM/YYYY / other | "January 15, 2025" |
| Time styling | 12-hour / 24-hour | "3:00 PM" vs. "15:00" |
| List punctuation | Terminal periods / No periods on fragments | "Set up your account." vs. "Set up your account" |
Maintain an authoritative list of correct forms alongside common mistakes:
| Approved Form | Incorrect Form | Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| sign up (verb) | signup (verb) | "signup" is the noun/adjective form |
| log in (verb) | login (verb) | "login" is the noun/adjective form |
| set up (verb) | setup (verb) | "setup" is the noun/adjective form |
| No hyphen; industry standard | ||
| website | web site | Single word; modern convention |
| data is (singular) | data are | Unless publication style mandates plural |
