Verbal Guidelines

Our voice archetype: the British agency owner with 40 years of experience

We’re a branding supergroup. We love this work, but we also approach it from a perspective of restraint. We value creativity (obviously). But we won’t blow things out of proportion, cowboy-style. When writing for us, try to put on the “hat” of an agency owner who has frameworks they trust and have built over decades of experience. We know exactly when to get a little weird.

When writing for BrandStack, keep these ideas in mind:

• Our outlook: We have a positive outlook on the world of B2B branding. We wholeheartedly believe that more and more companies are going to recognise brand as one of their most valuable assets in the coming years. We want to help smaller businesses that have hit PMF know how to go from a scrappy startup into sleek scale up.
• Our relationship: We’re friendly with our customers, but we aren’t friends. Our customers know and trust us because we explain things in a way that feels easy to understand.
• Our actions: Above all else, we’re helpful and encouraging. We give clear, actionable advice to our audience, and deliver it in an entertaining way.

Our word choice is how we build a relationship

Our vocabulary is accessible, but we use mid-length words to come off as more professional. We want to come off as knowledgeable and sophisticated, but still clear. Our audience is likely busy business pros, so we want to keep things direct and to the point.

For example a welcome that began with:

• "Greetings and salutations. We are pleased to see that you have downloaded a report from our website. Our hope is that you enjoy it. ...is too formal and forced. “Greetings and salutations” is convoluted, and the sentence structure is bizarre.
• “*Hey soul shine! Thanks for finding us on this crazy blue marble we call Earth and sharing a piece of your radiance with us! We can’t wait to see you shine brighter and we ♥️ you!”...would be much too casual and familiar for our brand.
• “Hi, Eric. Thanks for downloading our report. We hope you enjoy it.”...would strike the balance between straightforward and easy to understand, but would still maintain a bit of professional distance.

Choose vocabulary that is…

Understandable

‍Throw your ten-dollar words out the window. Our primary goal is to make ourselves understandable.

Precise

We’re talking to busy business professionals. Assume they know what they’re doing, and that they can smell bullshit from miles away.

Choose words with positive connotations

Every word can have a positive or a negative spin to it, depending on the frame. For ShareWillow, choose words that affirm, rather than words that shame.

Keep an eye out for words that sound upbeat and happy. We’re fans of soft semivowels like F, H, J, L, M, N, R S, V, and W because they feel open and inviting.

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Feel free to use marketing jargon

We assume that we’re talking to marketers and founders who know what acronyms like PMF, PMM, and GTM mean, so we’re not afraid to use “jargon” language.

Tone is how we show our outlook.

Our primary tones

Primary tones are the ones we want to hit on across the board. Think of it like the core of our personality.

• Quirky: We like to have fun, and we want to come off as creative, out-of-the-box thinkers. Feel free to be playful with your language or use similes, analogies, and metaphors that seem a little “out there”. Brand can (and should) be fun.
• Optimistic: We really see a future where every business has a brand that represents them, and which attracts their ideal audience. We want to help people succeed and grow.
• Realistic: We’re not pie-in-the-sky kind of people. We want our audience to understand that brand is a great investment, but only if it’s treated that way. We’ll help smaller startups wrap their head around branding, but we won’t make outrageous promises about the value of a brand.
• Encouraging: Brand is a big business decision, but it’s one that’s totally possible to execute fully. We’re here to coach our audience through real business changes.
• Helpful: We give clear, actionable advice to startups who are ready to rebrand. If we introduce a problem, we give people resources on how to solve it. We should have helpful, useful documents at every step on the customer journey.

Positive, everyday tones

Though we want to hit on the above tones across the board, you can use the following tones to add texture to your everyday writing.

• Enthusiastic: We have an optimistic and positive energy in everything we do, and a deeper, focused sense of commitment to our work and customers. We can afford a bit of enthusiasm when things go well, but it should never tip into “giddy” territory.
• Lighthearted: We are naturally informal people, and we are friendly. Feel free to make easy, digestible jokes when appropriate.
• Daring: It takes guts to build a memorable brand. We want to challenge people a little bit and motivate them to take the next step.

Risk management tones

You can’t always have sunshine and rainbows. If we need to address something, defend an idea, or give advice, turn up the knob on these tones:

• Involved: We’re a really hands-on group of people. We’re not afraid to roll up our sleeves and help clients solve a problem.
• Sincere: We say what we mean, and we mean what we say. Don’t say anything without considering it from all angles, first.

Cadence is how we show authority.

Use shorter sentences to make a point.

In general, we want to use short, clear sentences. This is especially true though when we want to make a point or show our authority. Short sentences act a bit like anchors. They force you to slow down and consider an idea.

Use longer sentences and rhetorical questions to explain a process or lay out a concept.

Use questions like “Does any of this sound familiar?” or “When should you avoid a rebrand?” to force the reader to turn inwards. When we talk about the problem, we want the reader to reflect and think about their own situation. Longer sentences can take them on a journey to do that — we act like a coach pulling you through a scenario.

Use parenthetical asides to make the writing feel conversational.

Parentheses and asides, like “(re)brand” and “PS: need some help convincing your team…”, give a conversational feel. Our goal is to make complex topics more approachable.