Tone & Style Checker

What it is

A tone and style checker is a systematic review that ensures your communication reflects your brand voice accurately and matches the tone appropriate for your audience and context. Rather than vague feedback like “this doesn’t sound like us,” this tool provides specific criteria and examples so you can identify and fix tone misalignment before publication.

It catches problems like unintended formality, inconsistent voice across co-authored content, inappropriate casualness for sensitive topics, or messages that don’t reflect your brand personality. It’s especially useful for teams where multiple people write content, or when brand voice is subtle and difficult to describe.

When to use it

Use this template when:

Multiple people contribute to content (consistency risk)
Communications need to reflect specific brand personality
Tone matters significantly (customer care, crisis, sensitive topics)
You want to check content before stakeholder approval
Content is crossing channels (email, social, web, print)
You need documented evidence of consistency checking
New writers need to match established voice

Don’t use this template if:

Your brand voice is extremely simple or underdifferentiated
Content is purely transactional with minimal personality
You only have one consistent writer
Tone flexibility is intentional across different contexts

Inputs needed

Before starting, gather:

The draft communication to review
Your brand voice guidelines (personality traits, values, examples)
Target audience profile (who are they, what’s their expectation?)
Context (crisis? routine? celebration? sensitive?)
Any previous high-quality examples of brand voice
Specific tone issues to check (if known)

The template

Brand voice reference

Brand voice characteristics: [e.g., professional yet approachable, direct but warm, authoritative but not stuffy]

Our tone traits:

Trait 1: [Description with example]
Trait 2: [Description with example]
Trait 3: [Description with example]
Trait 4: [Description with example]

Our style principles:

Sentence length: [e.g., Mix short and medium, avoid very long]
Vocabulary: [e.g., Accessible, avoid jargon unless defining it]
Active vs passive: [e.g., Prefer active voice except when passive is clearer]
Formality level: [e.g., Professional, occasional friendly language acceptable]

What we DO: [Examples of good brand voice]

What we DON’T: [Examples of tone misalignment to avoid]

Tone and style review checklist

Content being reviewed: [Title and type]

Reviewed by: [Name and date]

Audience: [Who is this for?]

Context: [Why are we communicating this now?]

Review questions:

Aspect	Criteria	Assessment	Evidence	Score
Brand voice alignment	Does this sound like our brand?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Quote or example]	[ ]
Tone appropriateness	Is the tone right for this audience and context?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Specific sentences]	[ ]
Sentence structure	Are sentences varied and readable?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Examples]	[ ]
Formality level	Is formality matched to context?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Sections that feel off]	[ ]
Active voice	Are we using active voice where appropriate?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Passive examples to change]	[ ]
Jargon and terminology	Is terminology appropriate and defined?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Jargon to explain]	[ ]
Personality	Does the brand personality come through?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Personality evidence]	[ ]
Consistency	Is this consistent with our other communications?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Inconsistencies noted]	[ ]
Audience appropriateness	Will the target audience respond well to this tone?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Concerns or risks]	[ ]
Context sensitivity	Is tone appropriate to what we’re communicating?	Yes / Mostly / Partially / No	[Tone risks]	[ ]

Specific feedback

What works well:

[Specific examples where voice/tone is strong]
[Elements that feel authentic and on-brand]

Areas for revision:

[Specific sections that need tone adjustment]
[Sentences that feel off-brand or misaligned]
[Tone shifts that create inconsistency]

Specific suggestions:

Original: [Quote]
Suggested revision: [Reworded version]
Why: [Explanation of change]

Sign-off

Content passes tone and style review
Changes recommended and addressed
Ready for next approval stage
Flagged for copyeditor review (if needed)

AI prompt

Base prompt

I need to review this communication for brand voice consistency and tone appropriateness. Please analyse it against my brand guidelines and provide specific feedback.

My brand voice:
[Describe your brand voice—personality traits, tone, style principles]

My audience for this communication:
[Who are they? What's their context?]

The context:
[Why are we sending this? What's the situation?]

Here's the communication to review:
[Paste the content]

Create a tone and style review that:
1. Assesses whether this sounds like our brand voice
2. Evaluates whether the tone is appropriate for the audience and context
3. Identifies specific sentences or sections that feel off-brand
4. Provides specific revision suggestions with examples
5. Rates how well this meets our tone/style standards
6. Flags any consistency issues (if you know our other communications)

Be specific—reference actual sentences and explain why changes would improve alignment. Focus on whether someone reading this would recognise our brand voice.

Prompt variations

Variation 1 - Multi-author consistency check:

This communication was written by [NUMBER] different people. I'm concerned about tone consistency across sections. Here's the content:

[Paste content with clear section breaks showing who wrote what]

Our brand voice: [Description]

Create a tone review that:
- Identifies which sections feel inconsistent with each other
- Highlights which author(s) captured our voice best
- Shows specific examples where tone shifts between authors
- Provides guidance to each author on how to align their writing
- Suggests unified revisions that maintain everyone's key points but consistent voice

Variation 2 - Sensitive topic tone check:

We're communicating about [SENSITIVE TOPIC: e.g., price increase, product recall, layoffs]. The tone is critical—too cold and we seem uncaring, too casual and we seem to not take this seriously.

Our brand voice: [Description]

Content to review:
[Paste]

Create a tone review focused on:
- Is the tone appropriately serious/empathetic for this topic?
- Do we sound caring and responsible, not defensive?
- Are we being transparent without over-explaining?
- Is there any language that could be perceived as tone-deaf?
- Does the tone match what we need people to feel/do?
- Specific revisions that keep authenticity but improve tone appropriateness

Variation 3 - Tone shift across channels:

We're publishing the same core message across channels: email, social media, and web. The tone needs to shift slightly for each channel while staying consistent with our brand voice.

Brand voice: [Description]

Email version: [Content]
Social version: [Content]
Web version: [Content]

Create separate tone reviews for each channel that:
- Assess if each version is appropriately toned for that channel
- Identify if they still sound like one brand across channels
- Show how tone shifts are appropriate vs when they miss the mark
- Ensure each version maintains our brand voice while adapted for format

Variation 4 - Brand voice enforcement (quality gate):

We're implementing a tone/style review as a quality gate before approval. I need a specific checklist that a busy reviewer can use in [X MINUTES] to catch tone issues without deep literary analysis.

Our brand voice: [Description]

Create a quick tone and style checker that:
- Has 8-10 specific yes/no or multiple-choice questions
- Requires specific evidence (actual quotes), not subjective judgment
- Takes fewer than [X] minutes to complete
- Flags when something needs copyeditor review vs when it passes
- Works for reviewers who aren't copy editors themselves

Variation 5 - Coaching feedback on tone:

A team member has submitted this communication and the tone isn't quite right. Rather than just rejecting it, I want to help them understand our brand voice better.

Their draft: [Paste]

Our brand voice: [Description]

Create a tone review formatted as coaching feedback that:
- Explains what tone we're looking for and why
- Shows where their draft missed the mark (with examples)
- Provides specific revision examples they can learn from
- Explains the pattern so they can apply it to future writing
- Is encouraging while being clear about changes needed

Human review checklist

Example output

Content being reviewed: Welcome email for new customer

Audience: First-time customers, likely new to our market

Context: Post-purchase email establishing relationship

Assessment Summary:

Aspect	Criteria	Assessment	Evidence
Brand voice alignment	Does this sound like our brand?	Mostly	Mix of conversational language (good) and formal jargon (not our style)
Tone appropriateness	Is the tone right for this audience and context?	Partially	Too formal for “welcoming” a new customer; feels corporate, not warm
Sentence structure	Are sentences varied and readable?	Mostly	Good mix of short and medium sentences; one very long technical sentence stands out

What works well:

Opening line (“We’re thrilled to have you”) captures our warm, personal tone
Use of “we” and “you” (not “the customer”) feels appropriately direct
Conversational phrases like “If you have questions, we’re here to help” sound authentically us

Areas for revision:

1. Paragraph 3 is too formal:

Original: “Your account has been established in our platform and access credentials have been transmitted via separate correspondence.”
Suggested: “Your account is all set! You’ll receive login details in a separate email.”
Why: Our brand doesn’t use “platform” or “transmitted correspondence”—it’s too formal for a welcoming email. The revised version is warmer and clearer.

2. Opening explanation is jargon-heavy:

Original: “This email serves to confirm order completion and outline next steps in your onboarding process.”
Suggested: “Here’s what happens next with your order.”
Why: “Serves to confirm” and “onboarding process” sound corporate. Our voice is simpler and more direct.

3. Tone shift in middle section:

Original: Shifts from warm (“We’re thrilled”) to instructional/formal (“Customers should ensure they retain their credentials securely”)
Suggestion: Maintain warmth: “We recommend keeping your password safe (and not sharing it with anyone—we’d never ask)”
Why: More aligned with our supportive, not stuffy tone

Sign-off:

Changes recommended and addressed
Ready for next approval stage (after revisions suggested)

Approval Workflow Mapper – Integrate tone checking into approval process
Content Approval Tracker – Track tone review status
Accessibility Review Checklist – Tone affects accessibility and inclusivity
Claims Substantiation Checklist – Tone impacts how claims are perceived

Tips for success

Define voice with examples, not adjectives. “Professional but warm” is vague. Show examples: “Professional but warm = ‘Let’s fix this for you’ not ‘We shall remediate the issue.’” Examples are far more useful than abstract personality traits.

Check sentence variation. If every sentence is medium-length, it reads monotonously. If you have too many short sentences, it feels choppy. Variety in sentence length improves both readability and voice.

Catch tone shifts within the same piece. A single document might shift from warm to corporate to casual. These shifts feel disjointed and confuse the reader about who you actually are. Read specifically for consistency throughout.

Use specific examples, not vague feedback. Instead of “This doesn’t sound like us,” say: “This phrase uses jargon (platform, onboarding) we don’t typically use. It should be…” Specificity helps writers improve, not just guess.

Tie tone assessment to context. What’s appropriate tone for a crisis statement isn’t appropriate for a celebration announcement. Always evaluate tone against the specific context and audience, not in a vacuum.

Common pitfalls

Confusing grammar correctness with tone. A sentence can be grammatically correct but still off-brand. Tone and grammar are different things. A comma splice might actually be more on-brand than technically correct grammar. Don’t conflate the two.

Imposing personal writing preferences as brand voice. “I prefer shorter sentences” isn’t the same as “Our brand uses shorter sentences.” Be honest about what’s actually brand voice vs what’s personal preference. Brand voice is objective (definable, replicable), preference is subjective.

Giving feedback without examples. If you say “This sentence is too formal,” the writer might not know how to fix it. Show the revision: “Too formal: ‘ensure appropriate credential security.’ Better: ‘keep your password safe.’” Examples teach.

Ignoring context when evaluating tone. The tone that works for a celebratory announcement fails for a serious issue. Evaluate tone in context, not universally. Same content, different context, might require different tone.

Not acknowledging what’s working. Reviews that only point out problems are demoralising. Acknowledge phrases, sections, or approaches that successfully reflect brand voice. This helps writers understand what to replicate.