Voice and Tone

Creating content for humans

@katekiefer
voiceandtone.com
mailchimp.com
Find your voice
Speak onto the page
Watch your tone
Know when to keep a straight face
Be honest
Find your voice
Speak onto the page
Watch your tone
Know when to keep a straight face
Be honest

Ask questions
What does your company do?
Why did you start your company?
Why do people visit your website?
Who are your customers?
What other companies do you admire?
If your brand were a person, how would you describe them?
Show me a few examples of content that suits your brand.
What other companies do you admire?
How do you want people to feel when they visit your website?

Ask questions
If your brand were a person, how would you
describe him or her?
Show me a few examples of content that
suits your brand.
How do you want people to feel when they
visit your website?

MailChimp is
fun but not childish.
clever but not silly.
powerful but not complicated.
smart but not stodgy.
cool but not alienating.
informal but not sloppy.
helpful but not overbearing.
expert but not bossy.

Design persona (Aarron Walter)
Voice guidelines
company's mission
content types
specifc content examples
brand traits
personality explanation
reader/customer types
visual guidelines

Yaaaawn.

styleguide.yahoo.com
"It is insight into human nature that
is key to the communicator's skill.
For whereas the writer is concerned
with what he puts into his writings,
the communicator is concerned
with what the reader gets out of it.
He therefore becomes a student of
how people read or listen."
William Bernbach
Find your voice
Speak onto the page
Watch your tone
Know when to keep a straight face
Be honest
"A good teacher I know, Jennifer
Auger, has a simple but efective
technique for the writing classroom.
When her students have blah
voiceless writing, she makes them
speak the following words to her
before reading their text: 'Listen to
me, I have something to tell you.'"
Peter Elbow
Vernacular Eloquence: What Speech Can Bring to Writing
Jerrold, a Nerdbot
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Any questions?
Next up:
Watch your tone
Know when to keep a straight face
Be honest
Find your voice
Speak onto the page
Watch your tone
Know when to keep a straight face
Be honest

Style guide: content types
Te app
Te application is MailChimps heart. Its language helps people along
as they create, send and track email campaigns. People using the app
already know and love MailChimp, so we can have a little fun with the
languagethough our priority is helping them get their work done
quickly.
Why we do it: Duh.
Microcopy
Microcopy is that small but oh-so-important instructional copy that
you usually see in forms and feedback messages. It might remind a
user that her password has to contain a number or explain that email
communication will only be used regarding a specifc order. We also
call it help text, and you see it both in the app and on the public site.
Its short and to-the-point.
Why we do it: To help users complete tasks.
MailChimp newsletter
MailChimps email newsletter is a company update written by our
CEO, Ben. Its full of photos, stories, experiments, links and
announcements for customers who want to know more about
MailChimp. Its casual and entertaining.
Why we do it: To give customers more MailChimp news and provide an
occasional behind-the-scenes look at how the company works. We are
an email service, after all.
Mascots jokes: an extra layer of humor
Compliance alert: bad news
Plutchiks Wheel of Emotions
"If advertising had a little more
respect for the public, the public
would have a lot more respect for
advertising."
James Randolph Adams

To determine your tone
of voice, consider:
1. Content type
2. Te reader's emotional state

Ask yourself
What situation is the reader in that's bringing
her to this content?
What situation will this content put her in?
How does the reader feel right now?
How will this content make her feel?
What can I do to maintain the reader's state
of mind or put her in a better one?
Touchy subjects
health and medicine
religion
politics
money and banking
private information
fundraising
Sensitive content types
help content
contact page
FAQ
forms
privacy policies and terms of use
failure messages and alerts
"No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader."
Robert Frost

"No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader."
Robert Frost
Tufts Universitys voice and tone guidelines

Tufts Universitys voice and tone wiki
wikis.uit.tufts.edu
Tufts Universitys voice and tone guidelines
wikis.uit.tufts.edu
Indiana University Alumni Association
IU Alumni Associations word oppositions
alumni.indiana.edu
be.macmillan.org.uk

Macmillan Cancer Supports writing guide
be.macmillan.org.uk

Gov.UKs style guide
Some examples
(and mistakes Ive made)

WRONG tone of voice


Playful tone of voice
Obama campaigns unsubscribe screen
fickr.com/whitehouse
Romney campaigns unsubscribe screen
Photojojos unsubscribe form
Photojojos unsubscribe screen
Tea Muses unsubscribe screen
"Te consumer isnt a moron. She is your wife."
David Ogilvy
Find your voice
Speak onto the page
Watch your tone
Know when to keep a straight face
Be honest
Current 404
mint.com 404
404 reject
Woots product description
woot.com
Woots contact page
woot.com
More questions!
Next up:
Be honest
Find your voice
Speak onto the page
Watch your tone
Know when to keep a straight face
Be honest
Warby Parkers roots
warbyparker.com
Warby Parkers library
warbyparker.com
Warby Parkers writing guide
Warby Parkers story page
warbyparker.com
Oh, really?
makersmark.com
Were humbled by your overwhelming response and passion for
Makers Mark. While we thought we were doing whats right, this is
your brand and you told us in large numbers to change our
decision.
You spoke. We listened. And were sincerely sorry we let you down.
Makers Marks apology
"Ive learned that people will forget
what you said, people will forget
what you did, but people will never
forget how you made them feel."
Maya Angelou

Thanks.
@katekiefer
voiceandtone.com
mailchimp.com