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Resource — Template
Brand Voice & Messaging Template
A working document to capture your brand's voice, tone, language rules, and message hierarchy — so your team can communicate consistently without routing every piece through you.
Voice Descriptors
Choose 3–5 adjectives that define how the brand sounds. For each one, write a short explanation of what it means in practice and one example of it in use. These become the standard your team checks their writing against.
Tone by Context
The voice stays constant. The tone shifts depending on context. Mark where each channel sits on the formality and warmth scales, then add a note on what that looks like in practice.
Language Guidelines
Specific words and phrases the brand uses — and avoids. This is the fastest section to refer to when editing someone else's writing.
Words & phrases we use
Words & phrases we avoid
Jargon & industry terms — our position
Some industry terms are useful with certain audiences and off-putting with others. Note how we handle each here.
| Term | How we use it (or why we don't) | Context where it's OK |
|---|---|---|
Message Hierarchy
What the brand always says, what it sometimes says, and what it never leads with. This tells your team how to prioritize when they're writing anything from a LinkedIn post to a proposal opening.
Audience Language
The exact words and phrases your clients use when describing their own problem. Mirror this language in your marketing and sales communications — it signals that you understand them before they have to explain themselves.
How clients describe the problem when they first reach outBefore & After Examples
Write 3 rewrites that show the difference between off-brand and on-brand writing for your firm. These become the clearest reference point for your team — faster to absorb than rules.
Example 1 — Website or proposal language
Example 2 — Email or outreach
Example 3 — How we describe what we do