ldy26098
/
BMAD-METHOD
mirror of https://github.com/bmad-code-org/BMAD-METHOD.git
1
0
Fork 0
Code Packages Projects Releases Wiki Activity
BMAD-METHOD/docs/method/tone-of-voice-guide.md

10 KiB
Raw Blame History

Tone of Voice Guide

Consistent communication personality for UI microcopy and system messages

What is Tone of Voice?

Tone of Voice (ToV) defines your product's communication personality—how your brand "speaks" to users through all UI microcopy and system messages.

It's the consistent voice users hear in:

  • Form labels and placeholders
  • Button text
  • Error and success messages
  • Empty states
  • Loading states
  • Tooltips and instructions
  • System notifications

Why Tone of Voice Matters

Creates Consistency

  • All UI microcopy feels like it comes from the same "person"
  • Users develop a relationship with your brand voice
  • Professional, cohesive experience

Builds Brand Personality

  • Differentiates you from competitors
  • Reinforces brand values and positioning
  • Creates emotional connection

Guides Decisions

  • Designers/developers know how to write microcopy
  • No need to debate every button label
  • Faster, more consistent implementation

Tone of Voice vs Strategic Content

Tone of Voice (Product-Wide Consistency)

Applies to UI Microcopy:

  • ✅ Form field labels
  • ✅ Button text (standard actions)
  • ✅ Error messages
  • ✅ Success/confirmation messages
  • ✅ Empty states
  • ✅ Loading states
  • ✅ Tooltips
  • ✅ System notifications
  • ✅ Navigation labels

Characteristics:

  • Consistent across entire product
  • Defined once in Product Brief
  • Applied systematically
  • Based on brand personality and target users

Strategic Content (Context-Specific Purpose)

Applies to Marketing/Feature Content:

  • ❌ Headlines and hero sections
  • ❌ Feature descriptions
  • ❌ Value propositions
  • ❌ Testimonials and case studies
  • ❌ Landing page content
  • ❌ Onboarding narratives

Characteristics:

  • Varies by page/context
  • Created using Content Creation Workshop
  • Purpose-driven (each piece has a job)
  • Uses strategic models (CAC, Golden Circle, Badass Users, etc.)

Defining Your Tone of Voice

Step 1: Choose 3-5 Tone Attributes

Common attributes:

  • Friendly vs Professional
  • Casual vs Formal
  • Playful vs Serious
  • Warm vs Cool
  • Technical vs Accessible
  • Empathetic vs Straightforward
  • Quirky vs Traditional
  • Authoritative vs Humble

Example combinations:

Consumer Social App:

  • Friendly
  • Casual
  • Playful
  • Warm

Enterprise B2B SaaS:

  • Professional
  • Clear
  • Supportive
  • Authoritative

Healthcare App:

  • Empathetic
  • Warm
  • Professional
  • Reassuring

Developer Tool:

  • Technical
  • Precise
  • Straightforward
  • Respectful

Step 2: Write Examples

Show don't tell. For each tone attribute, provide examples:

Format:

[Tone Attribute]: [Brief description]

Examples:
❌ Generic: [Standard industry phrasing]
✅ Our Tone: [Rewritten in your voice]

Step 3: Create Guidelines

Do's and Don'ts:

Clear rules for what fits your tone and what doesn't:

  • Do use contractions / Don't be overly formal
  • Do acknowledge user feelings / Don't be robotic
  • Do keep it concise / Don't over-explain

Tone of Voice by Context

Error Messages

Generic (no tone):

  • "Error: Invalid input"
  • "404 Not Found"
  • "Authentication failed"

Friendly & Empathetic:

  • "Hmm, that doesn't look quite right. Mind double-checking?"
  • "We couldn't find that page. Let's get you back on track."
  • "We couldn't log you in. Check your email and password?"

Professional & Clear:

  • "Please enter a valid email address"
  • "This page doesn't exist. Return to dashboard?"
  • "Login failed. Verify your credentials and try again"

Technical & Precise:

  • "Invalid email format. Expected: name@domain.com"
  • "Resource not found. Check URL and retry"
  • "Authentication error: Invalid credentials provided"

Success Messages

Generic (no tone):

  • "Success"
  • "Operation completed"
  • "Saved"

Friendly & Empathetic:

  • "You're all set! 🎉"
  • "Perfect! Your changes are saved."
  • "Nice work! Everything's updated."

Professional & Clear:

  • "Changes saved successfully"
  • "Your profile has been updated"
  • "Settings applied"

Technical & Precise:

  • "Operation completed: Profile updated"
  • "Save successful. Last modified: [timestamp]"
  • "Configuration saved to database"

Button Text

Generic (no tone):

  • Submit
  • Continue
  • Cancel
  • Delete

Friendly & Empathetic:

  • Let's go!
  • Next step
  • Never mind
  • Remove this

Professional & Clear:

  • Confirm
  • Proceed
  • Go back
  • Delete item

Technical & Precise:

  • Execute
  • Advance
  • Abort
  • Remove record

Empty States

Generic (no tone):

  • "No results"
  • "Empty"
  • "Nothing found"

Friendly & Empathetic:

  • "Nothing here yet. Ready to add your first item?"
  • "Your inbox is empty—enjoy the peace!"
  • "No matches found. Try a different search?"

Professional & Clear:

  • "No items to display. Add your first item to get started."
  • "Your inbox is empty."
  • "No results match your search criteria."

Technical & Precise:

  • "Query returned 0 results"
  • "No records in database"
  • "Search yielded no matches for specified criteria"

How to Apply Tone of Voice

During Product Brief (Phase 1)

  1. Agent analyzes product, users, positioning
  2. Agent suggests appropriate tone attributes
  3. Agent provides examples of tone in action
  4. User confirms/refines
  5. Tone of Voice documented in Product Brief

During UI Design (Phase 4)

  1. Designer creates UI elements
  2. For standard microcopy (labels, buttons, errors), apply ToV
  3. For strategic content (headlines, features), use Content Creation Workshop
  4. ToV ensures all microcopy feels consistent

During Development

  1. Developers reference ToV guidelines
  2. Write new microcopy following established tone
  3. No need to ask designer for every button label
  4. Consistency maintained automatically

Examples by Product Type

Consumer Social App: FriendCircle

Tone Attributes: Friendly, Casual, Playful, Warm

Error Messages:

  • ✅ "Oops! We couldn't upload that photo. Try again?"
  • ✅ "Hmm, we're having trouble connecting. Check your wifi?"

Button Text:

  • ✅ "Share with friends"
  • ✅ "Love it!"
  • ✅ "Maybe later"

Empty States:

  • ✅ "No posts yet. Be the first to share!"
  • ✅ "Your feed is empty. Follow some friends to get started!"

Enterprise SaaS: TaskFlow

Tone Attributes: Professional, Clear, Supportive, Efficient

Error Messages:

  • ✅ "Please enter a valid project name"
  • ✅ "We couldn't save your changes. Check your connection and try again"

Button Text:

  • ✅ "Create project"
  • ✅ "Save changes"
  • ✅ "Cancel"

Empty States:

  • ✅ "No projects yet. Create your first project to get started."
  • ✅ "All tasks complete. Well done!"

Healthcare App: WellPath

Tone Attributes: Empathetic, Warm, Professional, Reassuring

Error Messages:

  • ✅ "We couldn't record your reading. Please try again, or contact support if this continues"
  • ✅ "That date doesn't look quite right. Check and try again?"

Button Text:

  • ✅ "Log today's reading"
  • ✅ "I'm done"
  • ✅ "Skip for now"

Empty States:

  • ✅ "No readings yet. Let's record your first one."
  • ✅ "You're all caught up. Great work staying on track!"

Developer Tool: CodeStream

Tone Attributes: Technical, Precise, Straightforward, Respectful

Error Messages:

  • ✅ "Build failed: Syntax error on line 47"
  • ✅ "API request failed: Invalid authentication token"

Button Text:

  • ✅ "Run build"
  • ✅ "Deploy"
  • ✅ "Abort"

Empty States:

  • ✅ "No builds configured. Add your first build pipeline."
  • ✅ "Query returned 0 results"

Common Mistakes

❌ Inconsistent Tone

Problem: Mixing tones within the same product

Example:

  • Error: "Oops! Something went wrong 😅" (playful)
  • Success: "Operation completed successfully" (formal)

Fix: Choose one tone and apply it consistently

❌ Over-Personification

Problem: Treating software like a person with feelings

Example:

  • "I'm sorry, I couldn't do that" (who is "I"?)
  • "I'm confused by your input"

Fix: Keep focus on user and their action

  • "We couldn't complete that action"
  • "Please check your input and try again"

❌ Forced Personality

Problem: Trying too hard to be clever/funny

Example:

  • "Whoopsie-daisy! Our hamsters fell off their wheels!"
  • "Houston, we have a problem..."

Fix: Be helpful first, personality second

  • "We're experiencing technical difficulties. Please try again"

❌ Tone-Deaf to Context

Problem: Same tone regardless of severity

Example:

  • Critical error: "Uh oh, looks like we lost your data! 🙈"
  • (Playful tone inappropriate for serious situation)

Fix: Adjust tone for serious/critical situations

  • "We encountered an error saving your data. Please contact support immediately"

Testing Your Tone of Voice

Consistency Check

Write 10 different UI messages (errors, success, buttons, empty states). Do they all sound like they're from the same "person"?

User Testing

Show microcopy examples to target users. Ask:

  • "How does this make you feel?"
  • "Does this match how you'd expect [brand] to communicate?"
  • "Is this helpful/clear/respectful?"

Edge Cases

Test tone in difficult situations:

  • Critical errors
  • Data loss
  • Payment failures
  • Account suspensions

Does your tone still work, or does it feel inappropriate?

Integration with WDS

Phase 1: Product Brief

  • Step 10.5: Define Tone of Voice
  • Agent suggests tone based on product context
  • User confirms/refines
  • ToV documented in brief

Phase 4: UX Design

  • UI Microcopy: Apply ToV guidelines
  • Strategic Content: Use Content Creation Workshop
  • Clear distinction prevents confusion

Development

  • Reference ToV guidelines from Product Brief
  • Apply consistently to all microcopy
  • No need for case-by-case decisions

Resources

Related WDS Guides:

External Resources:

  • Mailchimp's Voice & Tone Guide
  • GOV.UK Content Design Principles
  • Nielsen Norman Group: Tone of Voice articles

Make every microcopy decision easier. Define your tone once, apply it everywhere. 🎯