A list of 500 brand voice descriptions that aren’t professional or friendly

How does your brand sound?

If your brand were a person, who would they sound like?

If they were to sit down right here, right now, at this microphone, and start speaking, what voice would come out?

Calm and reassuring? Eloquent and sophisticated? Stern and authoritative? Poetic and imaginative?

Don’t say professional and/or friendly

Seriously, stay away from professional and friendly. Everyone says those. Plus, no copywriter is going to make you sound unprofessional or hostile, so they’re kinda redundant.

Professional and friendly will give you a beige, wishy-washy brand voice with no conviction or real personality.

And you don’t want to sound like every other bland brand — do you?

Find a unique brand voice

To find a unique brand voice, that works for you, you need to think about your brand, your product/service, your industry — and, most importantly, your target audience. What do they need to hear from you and how does that message need to be delivered?

Dare to be different, show some personality and make a different noise.

To help you find your sound, I’ve prepared a list of 500 brand voice descriptions you can choose from. For an interesting voice and a rounded personality, I’d recommend choosing 4-7 and a mix of the four elements described below.

The four elements of a brand voice

A brand voice is typically made up of four different elements:

1. The personality of your brand
2. The language you use to communicate
3. The tone, which sets the mood
4. The rhythm of your words.

Let’s break those down and look at each one.

Personality

Most brands want their communications to sound more human — because people buy from people.

When you put a brand voice together, you imagine your brand as a person, with human character traits that will give personality to everything you write.

Language

Language defines your use of words and vocabulary. To make it appropriate for your audience, you should be using their language rather than your own.

Tone

Tone covers the moods, feelings and attitude you want to convey through your words.

Rhythm

Rhythm is all about tempo, energy, flow and structure of your copy. This can be conveyed in your punctuation, the lengths of your sentences and the ease of your language.

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Need some guidance on how to choose your descriptions?

Read my article: What is brand voice and why does it matter? >>

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A list of 500 brand voice descriptions

Okay, so here’s the list, split into those four elements I described above.

The list gives opposite pairings where both values are valid in different contexts. And context is everything, because it’s not just about the words you choose, it’s how you define them.

Note that some of these descriptions may apply to more than one element.

Personality

If you were to personify your brand, which personality and character traits would it have?

Tone

These words describe the feelings or moods you want to convey.

Rhythm

These words describe the tempo, bounce and flow of the copy.

Language

These words describe the kinds of words and vocabulary to be used in the copy.

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Need some help with your brand tone of voice?

You’re a brand that celebrates your differences. And you don’t want to sound like everyone else — especially the brands who are currently using AI.

I’m Jenny Lucas, a freelance copywriter and content writer based in Leicester, UK.

With some wordy wizardry, I can help you clarify your brand values, define your messaging and create a brand voice that brings everything together.

You can learn more about me and the other services I offer here:

My main website >>

About me >>

My copywriting portfolio >>

My copywriting blog >>

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