Big companies write voice guides so a hundred people sound like one. You need one so your AI tools sound like you.
What a voice guide is for
A voice guide answers one question: would I say it like this? For years you could answer that in your head. Now a tool writes your first drafts, and it cannot read your head.
Write the answer down once. One page is enough.
The one-page template
Copy these six parts into a document and fill them in.
- Who you talk to. One sentence about your reader, in their words.
- How you sound. Three words, each with a "which means".
- Always. Three to five things every piece of writing does.
- Never. Three to five things you do not do.
- Words. The words you use, next to the words you avoid.
- Samples. One piece that sounds right and one that sounds wrong.
A filled-in example
Here is the template for a made-up bookkeeper who works with freelance designers.
- Who you talk to. Freelance designers who put off their bookkeeping until it hurts.
- How you sound. Plain, which means everyday words and no accounting terms. Calm, which means no pressure and no countdowns. Direct, which means the answer comes first.
- Always. Open with the point. Give one next step. Say what it costs.
- Never. No exclamation marks. No "just checking in". No promises about tax savings.
- Words. Say invoice, never receivable. Say customers, never clients.
- Samples. A reply to a price question that got a yes. A newsletter that sounded like a bank.
Rules that work, and rules that do not
A voice rule is only useful if you can check a draft against it.
Our tone is friendly, professional and approachable.
Write the way you would to a customer you have known for a year. Short sentences. No exclamation marks.
The first line describes almost every company. The second one tells a writer, or a model, what to do.
- Give a number where you can. Sentences under 20 words.
- Name the exact word. Never say cheap.
- Describe a person. Write like a calm founder talking to another founder.
- Say what happens in hard moments. In an apology, say what went wrong first.
How to use it with AI
Paste the guide before you ask for a draft, or keep it in the tool's custom instructions. Then read the draft with the guide next to it. The steps are in how to make AI sound like you.
The guide is one part of what a tool needs to know about you. The rest is covered in giving AI context about your business.
Keep it alive
A voice guide is finished the day you stop using it. Each time a draft makes you wince, add one line to the "never" list. Each time a piece works, save it as a sample.
Nive's own voice guide has rules like these: sentences under 20 words, everyday words and no hype. This post was checked against them.
Nive is being built to hold a guide like yours and check each draft against it, starting with cold emails. Join the waitlist to get the demo first.