How to define your brand voice, so everything you write sounds like you.
Brand voice is how a business sounds in writing: the words it chooses, the tone it takes and the way it speaks to customers. This guide shows how to define one in five steps and turn it into a one-page guide that anyone writing for the business can follow.
- Voice is the personality of your writing. Tone is how it changes with the moment.
- Choose three or four traits, and write what each one means and does not mean.
- Test the voice on real pages, then keep it on one page that anyone can follow.
6 min readPublished By Domeq Solutions
What is brand voice?
Brand voice is the consistent personality in everything a business writes: the website, the emails, the social posts, the proposals and the replies to customers. It shows in word choice, sentence length, how formal or friendly the writing is and what the business chooses to say or not say.
Tone is related but different. Voice stays the same, and tone shifts with the moment. A business with a warm, plain voice still writes more gravely about a problem than about a launch. Think of voice as who is speaking, and tone as how they are speaking right now.
A clear voice is part of a brand identity, alongside the logo, colours and type. See what brand identity is for the other parts.
If you covered the logo, people should still know it was you.
What are the steps?
The method below takes an afternoon with the people who write for the business. It starts from real examples rather than from adjectives chosen in the abstract.
From examples to a one-page guide.
Gather
Collect writing you like and dislike.
Choose traits
Pick three or four that fit.
Write the rules
What each trait does and does not mean.
Test
Rewrite a real page in the voice.
Keep it on one page
A guide anyone can use.
Five steps in detail.
Gather real writing
Collect a handful of pieces your business has written that felt right, a few that felt wrong, and some from other brands you admire. Mark what you like or dislike about each.
Choose three or four traits
Pick words that describe how you want to sound, such as warm, direct, expert or playful. Fewer than five, or the voice becomes vague.
Define each trait with limits
For each, write what it means and what it does not. 'Direct' means short sentences and a clear answer, and it does not mean blunt or cold.
Test it on a real page
Rewrite a service page, an email or a post in the new voice. If it feels forced, adjust the trait, not the page.
Write the one-page guide
Record the traits, examples of good and bad, words you use and words you avoid, so that a new writer can follow it on day one.
What does a trait look like in practice?
A trait is only useful when it changes what gets written. The table shows how four common traits turn into rules, and where each one goes wrong when it is taken too far.
Four traits, with their rules and their risks.
| Aspect | Warm | Direct | Expert | Playful |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Means | Friendly and human | Clear and brief | Knowledgeable and calm | Light and a little fun |
| In writing | Uses 'you' and 'we', and plain words | Short sentences, the answer first | Explains terms, gives reasons | Occasional humour, never at the reader's expense |
| Overdone | Gushing, too casual | Blunt, cold | Jargon, talking down | Forced jokes, unclear meaning |
These are examples. Choose the traits that are true of your business, not the ones that sound best.
What goes into the one-page guide?
The guide should be short enough that people actually read it. A single page that can be pinned beside a desk beats a long document that nobody opens.
Eight things for the one page.
- Your three or four traits, each with a one-line meaning
- A sentence on who you are writing for
- Words and phrases you like to use
- Words and phrases you avoid, such as empty buzzwords
- How formal to be on the website, on social and in email
- How you write about prices, results and promises, so nothing is overstated
- Two short before-and-after examples
- Who to ask when a writer is unsure
Which mistakes should you avoid?
Voice work goes wrong in familiar ways.
Five brand voice mistakes.
Choosing flattering adjectives
'Innovative' and 'passionate' describe everyone. Pick traits that are true and that change what you write.
Too many traits
Seven traits cannot all be followed. Three or four are enough.
Writing the guide and filing it
A voice lives in the writing. Use the guide when you draft, review and brief other people.
Different voices on different channels
Tone can shift between a post and a proposal, but the personality should stay.
Claiming what you cannot prove
A confident voice is not an exaggerating one. Keep claims plain and true.
How do you use it?
Share the guide with everyone who writes: the team, freelancers and any agency. Review one piece a month against it, and revise the guide when the business changes. A voice defined well is easy to hand over, which also makes a branding brief stronger.
Domeq's Branding & Visual Identity work covers the written side of an identity along with the visual one, and Graphic Design and Social Media Marketing carry it into posts. See the content calendar template for putting it into a routine.
Questions, answered.
What is brand voice?
It is the consistent personality in everything a business writes: its choice of words, sentence style and the way it speaks to customers. It makes the business recognisable even without the logo.
What is the difference between brand voice and tone?
Voice is the constant personality. Tone is how that personality adjusts to the moment, such as a launch or a complaint. The voice stays the same while the tone shifts.
How many brand voice traits should I choose?
Three or four. Fewer is vague and more cannot all be followed. Define what each trait means and what it does not mean.
Can a small business have a brand voice?
Yes. A small business usually already has one, shaped by the founder. The work is to notice it, write it down and keep it consistent as more people write.
Do I need a brand voice guide if I write everything myself?
It still helps, because it keeps your writing consistent over time. It becomes essential the moment someone else writes for you.
How long should a brand voice guide be?
One page. Short enough to be read and used, with the traits, words to use and avoid, and a couple of examples.
Does Domeq help define brand voice?
Yes. Branding & Visual Identity covers the written side of an identity as well as the visual one, and the work is agreed around your business.
Keep reading.
More guides on the same topic, and on the ones around it.
- What Is Brand Identity? The Parts, and How They Fit TogetherWhat is brand identity? Learn how it differs from a logo and from branding, the parts a complete identity contains and how to know when yours needs work.Branding & Visual Identity
- How to Write a Branding Brief: A Template You Can Use TodayA branding brief template: ten questions to answer, what to gather and the mistakes that make briefs fail. Use it before you brief a designer.Branding & Visual Identity
- Instagram Business Profile Setup: A Step-by-Step GuideHow to set up an Instagram business profile: switch to a professional account, write the bio, pick a profile picture, add a link and plan the first posts.Social Media Marketing
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