Brand personality
Verbal identity
and tone of voice
A verbal identity is the way a brand thinks and speaks, with its purpose, personality, tone of voice and language rules. At the studio of Silvia Molina and León Corkidi we define it so everything your brand says sounds authentic, coherent and easy to recognize, in English and in Spanish.
Brand voice and tone, the difference
Brand voice is the stable personality a brand expresses itself with, and it does not change from one channel to another. Tone of voice is how that personality adapts to each situation, because a brand does not talk to an upset customer the way it talks to a social media follower.
A defined verbal identity keeps the brand from sounding different depending on who writes. The social media team, the sales team and the agency of the moment follow the same rules, and people recognize the brand even without seeing the logo.
What's included
- Purpose and missionThe brand's reason to exist, written so it guides decisions and messages.
- Archetype and personalityThe brand's character described with concrete traits and with what the brand would never be.
- Tone of voice by situationHow the voice adapts in sales, customer service, social media and internal communication.
- Language styleBrand vocabulary, words to avoid, how to address the audience, and spelling and punctuation choices.
- Key messagesThe value proposition and the main messages the brand repeats across channels.
- Guidelines with examplesReference sentences that show how the brand does and does not speak.
How we work
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01
Listen
We review how the brand speaks today, how its competitors speak and how its audience speaks.
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02
Define
We set the purpose, archetype, personality and the traits of the voice.
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03
Write
We turn the voice into tones by situation, key messages and usage examples.
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04
Deliver
We document the guidelines so the team can apply them from day one.
A voice that works in English and Spanish
Brands that speak two languages need transcreation, not literal translation. Transcreation keeps the intent and character of the message and adapts words, humor and cultural references to each audience.
León Corkidi has written in English and Spanish for brands in the United States, Mexico and Colombia for more than 20 years, as a copywriter and creative director. That experience makes the brand's voice sound native in both languages.
From voice to everyday copy
A verbal identity shows in the smallest texts, such as a welcome message, a reply to a complaint or a product description. That is why the studio's guidelines include examples applied to those situations and not just adjectives about personality.
The verbal identity can also be added to the brand guidelines so image and language live in a single document.
Frequently asked questions
What is a brand's verbal identity?
A verbal identity defines how a brand thinks and speaks. It brings together its purpose, personality, tone of voice, language style and the guidelines everyone who writes on its behalf follows.
What is the difference between brand voice and tone?
Voice is the brand's stable personality. Tone is how that voice adapts to each situation and channel.
Why define a tone of voice?
Defining a tone of voice makes the brand sound the same no matter who writes, so people recognize it in any channel.
Does it work if my brand speaks two languages?
Yes. The studio develops the voice in English and Spanish through transcreation, adapting the message to each culture instead of translating word for word.
How does the team apply the verbal identity?
The guidelines include real example sentences, words to use and words to avoid, so social media, sales or customer service teams can apply them without guessing.
Does verbal identity include naming?
Naming is a separate service, but the two are connected. If the brand has no name yet, it helps to define its personality first so the name grows out of it.
Make your brand sound like your brand
If your brand changes its voice depending on who writes, tell us how it communicates today and we will propose how to define its verbal identity.