Voice and Tone
Learn how to apply Dialpad's voice and choose the right tone, no matter the product, feature, or experience you're building.
This guide is the comprehensive writing resource for product teams. Reference this guide to ensure accuracy, coherence, and consistency throughout the product. Applying the outlined principles in this guide consistently will maintain high writing quality standards across product teams and throughout the product experience.
Voice vs. Tone
Voice and tone are what make our writing personable. Word choice, phrasing, and even punctuation can all impact how we sound to users. Sometimes people use the words “voice” and “tone interchangeably, but there are key differences.
Voice
Dialpad’s voice is a reflection of who we are and it doesn’t change much day to day. It’s consistent across channels. Just like our individual personalities, it shows up in everything we do and influences how people perceive Dialpad.
As Dialpad’s voice, we should always:
Be Helpful, but Don’t Handhold
Make it easy for users to learn the information they want and need; don’t talk down to them. Be specific when explaining benefits without making things sound better than they are. Write with simplicity, clarity, and purpose so everyone can follow along.
Be Real, but Not Too Tough
Use business casual language—be plain-spoken, avoid being pretentious or overlay playful. Be honest and direct with users, even if we make a mistake. Communicate with clarity and empathy—be direct, not insensitive.
Be Welcoming, but Not Overly Familiar
We welcome everyone everywhere to use Dialpad—and we show this with our words. We want our language to be warm and approachable, resonating with each user. Avoid using academic or industry jargon unless it’s necessary—explaining those terms when they are industry. Don’t be sarcastic.
Be Bold, but Not Arrogant
We aim to always do the right thing. We aren’t afraid to stand for what’s right. We take pride in our work and feel confident we can help our customers succeed. Teach people the “why” and “how” behind actions—don’t just tell them to do something. We aren’t hesitant or pushy.
Tone
On the other hand, Dialpad’s tone adapts contextually. We use certain voice attributes more or less based on the situation. We have to be careful with tone however. We can overestimate our ability to identify a person’s emotional state. Even when things seem positive, we can’t be sure. While it’s helpful to consider how our audience might feel, don’t assume or tell them how they should feel. Instead, focus on the specifics of the situation and less on the emotions.
Here are a few examples of how tone changes:
Everyday Tasks and Activities
When everything is working as it should, our goal is to give people what they need to get work done, without getting in the way or drawing attention to ourselves. We want the audience to know what something is or that something has happened as expected.
Do
- Look for the simplest way to communicate information—words aren’t always necessary.
- Be consistent for identical actions or destinations when possible.
Don’t
- Use overly complicated or intimidating language
- Add extra text to fill space
Learning and Education
Sometimes users need help to determine how to best move forward. In these situations, content should help users feel confident in their actions and in our capabilities. Some users will prefer step-by-step instructions, especially if it’s an irregular task. Others though may want to try it out and learn on their own. Look for ways to accommodate both users.
Remember that while users may have sought a specific feature or we may have recommended it to them, don’t assume that they want or need to use it.
Do
- Help users understand why they should do something, not just hot.
- Break down complicated tasks into steps that help people focus on one thing at a time.
Don’t
- Oversell or overpromise.
- Be overly prescriptive about how someone should use a feature or product.
Motivate or Encourage Action
Sometimes we want to keep people moving along a desired path. In these situations, we do this with direct information and clear steps to encourage action. Don’t be too overzealous or action-driven here—our goal is to help people understand the next step and give them the required context to move forward.
Do
- Help people understand what the next steps are and why they should take them.
- Provide guidance to help people understand if the decision is right for them.
Don’t
- Assume the next step or outcome is guaranteed.
Simple Errors
Despite our best efforts, errors still happen. These are often simple mistakes or roadblocks to action that can be fixed. Although they aren’t necessarily errors or problems, they might feel that way to users. In that situation, our job is to help people understand what happened and how they can address it so they can get back to their task as quickly as possible.
Read the error message guidelines for more detailed guidance.
Do
- Clearly explain the situation and how it can be resolved.
- Look for ways to help people resolve problems
Don’t
- Use overly dramatic or scary words for simple errors.
- Use error numbers or code unless they’re easily recognizable by people, help them solve the problem, or are needed for customer support.
Serious Problems or Errors
At times we will need to share bad news. This might be due to an outage, an error, or a product we’re no longer supporting. These are hopefully rare situations, but they will happen.
In these situations, there’s a serious risk of damaging trust and hurting our relationship with our customers, so we need to be careful how we communicate.
Read the error message guidelines for more detailed guidance.
Do
- Explain the impact on their business clearly, without using confusing or scary language.
- Apologize and empathize when we’re at fault, but within reason.
- Provide clear steps to resolve issues. If there’s a solution, be direct about what that means and what we’re doing about it.
Don’t
- Ask customers to trust us without providing data or context.
Acknowledging Effort, Progress, or Completion
There are situations where we want to acknowledge that a user has completed a complex activity or difficult task, such as porting a number or registering an A2P (application to person) messaging campaign. While we don’t need to celebrate these accomplishments, we can recognize the time and effort they put into it.
Depending on the effort level, we might provide simple confirmations or more active recognition for completing difficult tasks.
Do
- If it’s a regular task, make it clear that the task was completed in a simple, non-intrusive way, like using the toast component. Consider ways to confirm completion without words or messaging.
- If the task was something we initiated or required, thank them for their time.
Don’t
- Assume people are excited or want to celebrate completing a task. They might be annoyed if they thought it was longer or if the immediate benefits aren't clear.
- Refer to simple actions or completed steps as “successes.”
Celebrations and Congratulations
Occasionally it’s appropriate to celebrate an event or milestone, or to congratulate someone for an important achievement. These moments should happen rarely, but we should let users know that we understand it’s an important moment and are excited for them.
In these moments be careful not to take credit for it. Even if we played a role in their success, this isn’t about us—it’s about celebrating them.
Do
- Only celebrate truly important or monumental situations when the user would likely feel proud, excited, or satisfied.
- Express genuine happiness. Recognize their accomplishment and congratulate them on a job well done.
Don’t
- Assume people are excited or want to celebrate completing a task. They might be annoyed if they thought it was longer or if the immediate benefits aren't clear.
- Refer to simple actions or completed steps as “successes.”
Announcing New Features and Updates
It’s exciting to launch a new feature or update, but always consider the audience’s perspective first. While we may be excited about the benefits and additional capabilities, change can be frustrating, intimidating, and annoying to our users.
When announcing something new, focus on educating and explaining what it is, what it’s used for, and what the user can expect.
Be sure to use inclusive language in your writing.
Do
- Pitch features by explaining specific benefits.
- If possible, let users dismiss announcements or postpone changes until they’re ready.
Don’t
- Celebrate completing tasks or processes that people don’t actually want to celebrate. If they finished something difficult, acknowledge their effort instead.
- Take credit for their successes or presume to know what they need.
Accessibility
Good content is accessible to everyone. To make sure including everyone, keep these writing principles in mind.
Write Clearly
- Aim for an eighth-grade or below reading. This means you should use plain language, be straightforward, and avoid being overly complicated with your words.
- Avoid jargon whenever possible.
- Use words consistently across Dialpad.
- Make sure calls-to-action clearly hint at what will happen next.
Don’t Rely on Visual Communication
- Avoid directional language (e.g. “fill out the form to the left” or “click the button below”).
- Avoid communicating only with color.
- Make sure all HTML elements are semantic and use aria labels if needed.
- Make sure all visual elements have alt-text appropriately applied.
- Label things clearly. Don’t rely on icons to convey meaning.
Organize for Scannability
- Put the most important information first
- Use headings that clearly describe their content
- Break up content into digestible chunks instead of long blocks of copy
Translation
- Keep copy short, clear, and straightforward so we communicate the same message across our supported language.
- Be mindful of character limits. English uses less characters than several languages, so try to design for additional room. Concise writing creates flexibility for more character-dense languages.
- Avoid culture-specific metaphors or expressions.