Your brand voice needs more than three adjectives
Brand voice guidelines should translate the organisation’s character into practical writing decisions. Define a small set of principles, explain how they change language and show examples across real situations. Keep the underlying voice recognisable while adjusting tone to the reader’s needs, particularly when the message concerns a problem or an important decision.
Put the advice into practice
Make your expertise look as considered as the work behind it
Bring brand, sales material and digital design into one coherent presentation.
Discuss your design briefWhy do adjectives leave so much unresolved?
“Confident, friendly and professional” can describe very different writing. One team may interpret confidence as blunt certainty. Another may add enthusiasm to every sentence. Without examples, both can believe they are following the guide.
Make each principle useful enough to resolve a choice. Explain how it changes sentence structure, claims, terminology, emphasis and the action requested. Include language the business should avoid because it creates the wrong relationship with the reader.
What could three practical principles look like?
| Principle | Writing decision | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Clear about the work | Name the service and useful outcome before broad brand language. | The reader can establish relevance quickly. |
| Confident with evidence | State the recommendation and support it with scope or proof. | The claim can be assessed. |
| Respectful of the reader | Explain the decision without implying a lack of ability or experience. | The conversation remains between capable people. |
How does that change a service page?
A hypothetical first draft might say: “We make complicated marketing easy for anyone to understand.” That centres the provider’s judgement about the reader and leaves the service vague.
A more useful version could say: “We connect the marketing plan, creative and reporting around the services you want to develop.” It identifies the work and the decision it supports. The rest of the page can explain the scope and evidence.
The second version is not a universal line to copy. It demonstrates how a principle becomes a practical editorial choice.
How should an email use the same voice?
Imagine a project update. “Amazing news! We’ve unlocked the next phase of your journey” adds excitement without explaining what happened. “The page structure is approved. Next, we’ll develop the design using the agreed content and imagery” gives the recipient useful information.
The message can still feel warm. A short acknowledgement and a clear request for the next approval are more useful than enthusiastic wording that obscures responsibilities or timing.
What changes when the message is difficult?
A missed deadline or service issue needs a tone suited to its consequence. Keep the voice accountable and specific. Explain the problem, what is being done and what the recipient needs to know next.
“Oops, a little hiccup!” can minimise a problem that matters to the client. A hypothetical alternative is: “The delivery is delayed because the supplied file needs correction. We are checking the revised artwork and will confirm the new timing after that review.” The information is clear without blaming or speaking down to the recipient.
How can tone be reviewed?
Nielsen Norman Group’s tone framework examines dimensions including formality, respectfulness, humour and enthusiasm. Use a framework as a way to discuss actual writing, rather than treating a collection of adjectives as a finished guide.
Test examples with the people who write and receive the material. Ask what the wording implies, what action is expected and whether the message fits the situation. Keep revisions that clarify the relationship and remove uncertainty.
What should the working guide contain?
Include the principles, annotated examples, approved service terminology and guidance for different situations. Keep factual claims and commercial terms under their appropriate approval processes. A voice guide cannot authorise an unsupported promise.
Grendesign’s brand and communication work can connect voice with visual presentation. For the broader application rules, see the practical brand guidelines checklist.
