Voice and tone
Five questions every design system answers about voice and tone. These are Multi-brand’s answers, and each one points back to the reasons that chose it.
View all 5 voice and tone tokens ↓The reasons this scheme answers from
- R1Business and productSells and converts, many
- R2Team and deliveryA platform team, every month
- R3BrandNeutral and adaptable, present
Question 1
Which kinds of copy does it need?
- Labels and messages
- Labels, messages and help
- Labels, messages and articles
- Labels, messages and headlines (chosen)
Why Multi-brand picks it: Each brand has headlines on top of shared UI copy.
becauseR1
Question 2
How many tones does it use?
- One
- One per moment
- One per brand (chosen)
Why Multi-brand picks it: A shared core, with a tone per brand.
becauseR1
Question 3
How is the voice defined?
- Rules and a word list
- Principles and examples
- A shared core, brand tone on top (chosen)
Why Multi-brand picks it: Errors and confirmations are shared; brand tone sits on top.
becauseR1R2
- A shared core, brand tone on top
These tokens are the decisions themselves; no primitive sits under them.
Question 4
How does it sound?
- Terse
- Plain and direct (chosen)
- Conversational
- Playful
Why Multi-brand picks it: The shared core is plain and direct.
becauseR3
- action
- commit
- Save
- cancel
- Cancel
- destroy
- Remove
- retry
- Try again
- empty-action
- Get started
Question 5
Where do the words matter most?
- Errors and empty states
- Articles and guides
- Form steps and errors
- Headlines and buttons (chosen)
Why Multi-brand picks it: Brand tone shows in headlines and buttons.
becauseR3
- button
- input
- overlay
- table
When to use
- A button labelUse: A shared verb; the brand may choose the headline verb. Not: Brand slang on account actions. Shared labels keep the account area the same in every brand.“Get started”
- The words of an errorUse: Shared across brands: plain and specific. Not: Brand tone in errors. Errors read the same in every brand, so support can help anyone.“Your card was declined. Try another card or contact your bank.”
- A success messageUse: Brand tone allowed: Aster calm, Birch friendly, Coral upbeat. Not: The same flat line in every brand. Success is a safe moment for brand tone.“Aster: Your plan is active. · Birch: You're all set! · Coral: Let's go, your plan is live.”
- An empty stateUse: Shared structure, brand words. Not: A different structure per brand. The structure is the shared core; words carry the brand.“No orders yet. Your first order will appear here.”
- A confirmation questionUse: Shared across brands: plain and specific. Not: Brand tone when something is lost. Loss is never the moment for personality.“Cancel your plan? It stays active until the end of the month.”
- A first visitUse: Brand tone in the first headline only. Not: Brand tone in every line. One headline carries the brand; the rest stays shared.“Birch: Hi! Let's set up your plan.”
All voice and tone tokens
5 tokens · each decision and the primitive it points to
- Decisions · 5
content.action.commitSavecontent.action.cancelCancelcontent.action.destroyRemovecontent.action.retryTry againcontent.action.empty-actionGet started
Decisions reference primitives, so changing one primitive updates every decision and component that uses it.
Voice and tone in Multi-brand: plain and direct. The shared core is plain and direct. Brand tone shows in headlines and buttons.