brand-guidelines

## Building a Brand Voice Document 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. ### Brand Personality Profile 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." ### Communication Attributes (3-5) Each attribute needs four elements to prevent ambiguity: - A plain-language definition of what it means in practice - A boundary statement explaining what it does NOT mean - A sample sentence that embodies the attribute - A sample sentence that violates the attribute ### Target Audience Profile - Primary and secondary audiences the brand addresses - Core concerns and motivations of each audience - Level of domain expertise to assume - Communication expectations and preferences ### Messaging Pillars (3-5) - The recurring strategic themes the brand reinforces - Relative priority among pillars (which leads in any given context) - How each pillar maps to an audience need or pain point ### Contextual Tone Range How the voice flexes across situations while remaining unmistakably the same brand. See the Tone Modulation section below. ### Editorial Style Rules Concrete grammar, punctuation, and formatting standards. See Editorial Standards below. ### Vocabulary Controls Approved and prohibited terms. See Vocabulary Governance below. ## Defining Communication Attributes ### Attribute Spectrum Reference 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 | ### Attribute Documentation Template For every selected attribute, record: **[Attribute Name]** - **In practice**: [concrete behavioral description] - **Not to be confused with**: [the common misinterpretation] - **Sounds like**: [example sentence demonstrating it well] - **Does not sound like**: [example sentence that crosses the line] Example: **Welcoming** - **In practice**: inclusive, clear, free of jargon, equally respectful to newcomers and veterans - **Not to be confused with**: oversimplified, excessively informal, or lacking depth - **Sounds like**: "Getting set up takes about five minutes — here is how." - **Does not sound like**: "Yo! Even a total beginner can figure this out lol." ## Tone Modulation The brand voice is the constant; tone is the variable that adjusts based on context. Tone represents the emotional calibration applied to the voice. ### Tone by Communication Channel | Channel | Tone Shift | Illustration | |---------|-----------|-------------| | Blog | Educational, conversational, exploratory | "Here is a walkthrough of how this works and why your team should care." | | LinkedIn | 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." | ### Tone by Scenario | 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 | ### The Dial Principle Voice attributes remain constant. Tone turns their intensity up or down depending on the moment. For a brand that is "confident and warm": - At a product launch, confidence takes the lead - During an outage, warmth takes the lead - Neither quality vanishes; the emphasis shifts ## Editorial Standards ### Grammar and Mechanical Choices 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" | ### Formatting Conventions - Heading hierarchy rules (when H1, H2, H3 are appropriate) - Bold vs. italic purpose (bold for emphasis, italic for titles or introducing terms) - Hyperlink text standards (always descriptive; never "click here") - Image alt text requirements - Code formatting norms (for technical brands) - Use of callout or highlight boxes ### Punctuation and Emphasis Policies - Exclamation marks: use sparingly, never consecutively - Ellipses: avoid in professional content - All-caps: prohibited for emphasis; use bold instead - Emoji: prohibited in professional channels; acceptable in social where context warrants ## Vocabulary Governance ### Standardized Terms 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 | | email | e-mail | No hyphen; industry standard | | website | web site | Single word; modern convention | | data is (singular) | data are | Unless publication style mandates plural | ### Product and Feature Naming - Canonical capitalization for every product name - Rules for when to use the full name vs. an abbreviated form - Whether "the" precedes product names - How version numbers appear in copy - Trademark and registration symbol usage (where required and where to omit) ### Language Inclusivity - Default to gender-neutral pronouns (they/them for individuals of unknown gender) - Eliminate ableist expressions ("crazy", "blind spot", "lame") - Favor person-first phrasing where relevant - Steer clear of culturally-bound idioms that resist translation - Prefer "straightforward" or "simple" over "easy" — difficulty is subjective ### Technical and Industry Terminology - Catalogue which specialized terms the audience grasps without explanation - Identify jargon that must always be defined or replaced with plain language - Specify which acronyms require full expansion on first use - Build an audience-segmented glossary for terms with different meanings across reader groups ### Competitive and Market Language - Define your preferred framing for your product category - Establish how competitors are referenced (by name or generically) - Identify competitor-coined terms to avoid, so you do not reinforce rival positioning - Codify your preferred differentiation phrasing