Definition
Tone of voice is the recognizable way a brand speaks — the attitude, register and language choices that make a text sound like the brand even without a logo attached. It is a component of verbal identity: the brand's voice defines its stable personality, while tone modulates it by context (an error message and a launch announcement share a voice but not a tone). It is documented as a system — principles, vocabulary, "like this / not like this" examples — so anyone writing for the brand sounds like it. In a brand-as-system approach, language is as systematizable as color or typography.
Relationships
is-a / broader
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types-of / more specific
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Concepts linked to this one by a real relationship in the glossary. Hover over each one to see why it's related.