# Voice Attribute Framework — Reference Guide

## What Makes a Good Voice Attribute

Voice attributes are the 3-4 adjectives that define how a brand sounds. They're the personality traits of the brand's written and spoken communication. Good attributes share these qualities:

**Differentiating** — "Professional" describes 90% of brands. "Blunt" or "nerdy" or "irreverent" tells a writer something actionable. The attribute should help a writer choose between two valid sentences.

**Testable** — You should be able to read a sentence and score it against the attribute. "We value quality" is untestable. "Direct: average sentence length under 15 words, lead with the answer" is testable.

**In tension** — The best attribute sets include pairs that pull in different directions. "Warm + Direct" creates useful tension — the writer has to find the intersection. "Warm + Friendly + Caring + Kind" doesn't — they all point the same way.

**Authentic** — Attributes should describe how the brand already sounds at its best, not how it wishes it sounded. Start from the audit, not from aspiration.

## The Spectrum Scale

Each attribute should be placed on a 1-10 scale to indicate intensity:

| Score | Meaning | Example for "Playful" |
|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Light touch — present but subtle | Occasional wordplay in headers, otherwise straightforward |
| 4-6 | Moderate — noticeable personality | Regular humor in social and email, lighter product copy |
| 7-8 | Strong — core to the brand feel | Humor throughout, memes and pop culture references, puns in product names |
| 9-10 | Defining — everything filters through this | Comedy-brand territory, never fully serious, entertainment-first |

The scale makes attributes actionable. "Playful at 4/10" gives very different direction than "Playful at 9/10."

## Common Attribute Pairs

These combinations create productive tension:

| Pair | Tension Created | Good For |
|---|---|---|
| Confident + Humble | Assertive without arrogance | B2B SaaS, professional services |
| Warm + Direct | Friendly but efficient | DTC brands, customer support |
| Smart + Accessible | Expert without gatekeeping | Education, health, finance |
| Playful + Trustworthy | Fun without seeming unserious | Consumer apps, lifestyle brands |
| Bold + Empathetic | Challenging without alienating | Fitness, social impact, activism |
| Minimal + Warm | Concise without feeling cold | Luxury, design-forward brands |

## Attribute Documentation Template

For each attribute, document:

### [Attribute Name] — [X/10]

**This means:**
[2-3 sentences explaining what this attribute looks like in practice. Be specific about behaviors, not abstract about feelings.]

**This doesn't mean:**
[2-3 sentences clarifying the boundary. Where does this attribute stop? What would be "too much" of this attribute?]

**Sounds like:**
- [Example sentence that embodies this attribute]
- [Example sentence that embodies this attribute]
- [Example sentence that embodies this attribute]

**Doesn't sound like:**
- [Example sentence that violates this attribute]
- [Example sentence that violates this attribute]
- [Example sentence that violates this attribute]

**How to dial it up (when appropriate):**
[Guidance for contexts where this attribute should be stronger, like social media or celebration moments]

**How to dial it down (when appropriate):**
[Guidance for contexts where this attribute should be softer, like crisis communication or legal]

## Anti-Patterns

**The synonym trap:** Choosing attributes that are too similar. "Friendly, Approachable, Welcoming, Kind" — these are four ways of saying one thing. Pick one and use the remaining slots for attributes that create contrast.

**The aspiration trap:** Defining attributes the brand aspires to but hasn't earned. If the current copy is formal and technical, defining the voice as "casual and playful" creates a gap that confuses writers. Start from strengths.

**The everything trap:** Trying to be "bold AND cautious AND playful AND serious AND simple AND detailed." Contradictions aren't tension — they're confusion. 3-4 attributes with clear priority is the maximum.

**The adjective-only trap:** Listing attributes without spectrum scores, examples, or boundaries. "Confident" means different things to different writers. The examples and scale are what make it usable.

## Validating Attributes

Test your attribute set with this exercise:

1. Take 10 pieces of existing brand copy (5 strong, 5 weak)
2. Score each piece against each attribute on the 1-5 scale
3. Strong copy should score high; weak copy should score low
4. If strong and weak copy score similarly on an attribute, that attribute isn't differentiating — replace it
5. If two attributes always score the same (both high or both low together), they're redundant — merge them