🔥 5 Steps to Better Brand Copy

The 5-Step Playbook for Building a Brand Voice

Most brand voice guides feel like they were written by a committee.

Too generic. Too safe. No real personality. Too many cooks in the kitchen. 

But, building a clear, consistent voice isn’t optional.

It’s how brands earn trust, stand out, and actually connect with REAL people.

The way you talk is just as important as what you’re selling. It shapes how people remember you, how they talk about you, and whether they listen at all.

This 5-step process breaks it down simply. So you can build a voice for your brand. A good 1. 

Step 1️⃣: Build the Character Before the Copy

Don’t start with words. Start with identity.

Way too many brands jump straight into writing without knowing WHO they’re writing as.

That’s how you end up with the “We’re innovative, disruptive, customer-obsessed” clone voice that sounds like a robot in a Patagonia vest.

So here’s what to do:

Create a personality profile like you’re casting for a Netflix series.

• What’s their origin story?
• What keeps them up at night?
• What hill would they die on?
• What’s their role in the group chat? (Leader, instigator, chaos agent?)
• What emojis would they NEVER use?
• Where do they live?

You want to go deep here.

This character isn’t just your tone. It’s what you’re striving for.

Once you lock that in, every word after that gets easier.

Because when you know who you are, you never wonder what to say.

Step 2️⃣: Get Ruthlessly Clear on What You’re Not

This is where you stop trying to please everyone.

Trying to be “relatable” and “aspirational,” “bold” and “buttoned-up,” “funny” and “professional”…

That’s how you end up sounding like every other brand in your space. Safe, vague, forgettable.

If your tone is a blur, your message won’t land.

Clarity comes from cutting. 

So do this:

Make a “NOT list.”

• What won’t your brand ever sound like?
• We’re not sarcastic just to be clever.
• We’re not chasing trends that don’t fit.
• We’re not fake hype and empty slogans.
• We’re not stuffed with buzzwords.
• We’re not trying too hard to go viral.

Now flip it:

• We are friendly, but not forced.
• We are current, but not reactive.
• We are meaningful, not fluffy.
• We are clear, not complicated.
• We are engaging, not attention-hungry.

This step eliminates confusion.

It tells your team what not to write. Which is sometimes more powerful than what to say.

Draw hard lines. HAVE GUARDRAILS.

That’s how you build a voice that actually sticks.

Step 3️⃣: Match Your Audience’s Energy

Your brand doesn’t talk into the void. It talks to ACTUAL PEOPLE.

And, if your tone doesn’t meet their energy and style, they’ll scroll past without a second thought.

This isn’t about copying their slang or forcing memes.

It’s about understanding how they naturally communicate. And ALIGNING with that.

Where to look:

• Comments on your own posts (and your competitors’- but with a grain of salt)
• Customer reviews and testimonials
• Community forums (Reddit, Discord, Slack groups)
• LinkedIn and Twitter replies
• DMs and email replies
• Podcast reviews or YouTube comments
• TikTok comment sections (a goldmine for unfiltered thoughts. It gets ruthless in there lol.)

What to notice:

• Are they casual or buttoned-up?
• Do they use emojis, slang, inside jokes?
• Are they ranting? Geeking out? Hyping each other up?
• Do they value expertise, humor, relatability?

Then adjust YOUR tone to meet them where they are:

• If they’re sharp and playful, be clever. Be fun. 
• If they’re skeptical, be transparent. Not salesy.
• If they’re supportive and thoughtful, match that warmth. <3 

This is how you go from TALKING AT your audience to TALKING WITH them.

That’s where trust begins. 

Step 4️⃣: Turn Voice Into a Playbook

You’ve nailed the energy. Now make it repeatable.

Because if only 1 person can write correctly “on brand,” your voice doesn’t scale. You need a simple voice PLAYBOOK that anyone on your team can use. From social to support to the CEO.

What to include:

Voice Pillars
Core traits that define how your brand sounds. Make them specific and paired with contrast:

• Friendly, but not exclamation points
• Expert,  but no huge words
• Bold, but never dogging anyone else
• Casual, but spell-checked

Keep it to 3–5. Less is more.

Tone Sliders

Your tone flexes based on the channel. So, show the range:

• Formal ↔️ Casual
• Punchy ↔️ Detailed
• High-energy ↔️ Calm

Social might lean casual and punchy.

Support might lean calm and helpful.

Do’s and Don’ts with Real Examples

This is the most useful section. Show what “on-brand” looks like in action.

Do: “Here’s what actually worked.”

Don’t: “We’re thrilled to announce…”

Do: Write like you’re texting a smart friend.

Don’t: Write like a press release.

This isn’t just a guide. It’s your voice playbook.

Use it. Share it. Build everything from it. And, test if it’s working by having multiple different people write copy that applies it. If everyone’s copy is completely following different rules – you’ve not made yourself clear enough. 

Step 5️⃣: Pressure Test It in the Real World

Brand voice doesn’t live in a Google Doc.

It lives in captions, emails, comment sections, podcast intros, landing pages… all the places real people interact with your brand.

So, now it’s time to pressure test it.

Put it into play. Watch how it performs.

• Post content.
• Send emails.
• Drop your new welcome message.
• Run ads with the new voice.
• Answer support tickets your way.

Then ask yourself:

• Are people replying in your tone?
• Are they quoting your lines back to you?
• Are you getting DMs that react to what you’re writing? 
• Are people sticking around longer, sharing more, trusting faster?

If not, adjust.

• Maybe you’re too stiff.
• Maybe you’re trying too hard.
• Maybe you’re writing for the brand you WANT to be, not the 1 people are actually connecting with.

That’s normal. Voice evolves.

But, you only find the right edges by SHIPPING and LEARNING.

This is how you go from having a “nice voice” to having 1 people remember.

1 that builds trust. Converts better. Gets shared. Gets screenshotted. Gets results. MAKES MONEY.