Brand Voice
In a Nutshell
Brand voice is the tone, word choice, and style of expression a brand uses in written and spoken communication. In theory: a consistent personality. In practice: often the "friendly but corporate" contradiction.
What It Really Means
Brand voice is how a brand talks like a person. But many brands, while wanting to talk like a person, end up sounding like a committee.
Words like "young, dynamic, reliable, friendly, premium, innovative" are not brand voice. These mostly describe how the brand wants to be seen. Not how it speaks.
Good brand voice maintains the same character across every channel. Bad brand voice is formal on LinkedIn, awkwardly witty on Instagram, and bureaucratic on the website.
Brand voice is the brand's character test. If it's inconsistent, the brand appears inconsistent too.