Voice and tone

Who is this for?

The style guide’s Voice and tone section applies to anyone writing for or about Rewst in any official capacity. While you are encouraged to follow these guidelines across all forms of communication, we do not enforce this on personal accounts (like your personal LinkedIn, for example).

What is voice and tone?

Rewst’s voice reflects how we as an organization see the world around us, and how we relate to our users. Voice is always consistent: it communicates our personality.

Our tone changes based on who we are speaking to, and the circumstances of the communication. Are we speaking to brand new prospects? Established customers? Are we addressing a pain point that we created, or announcing a new feature?

Every message is an opportunity to reinforce our brand through voice and tone. Communicating what the reader needs at the right time, as succinctly as possible, fortifies our brand more than anything.

Our voice

We convey, through content and design, that we are…

Approachable

We approach the world with a conversational tone over a corporate one. We toss an occasional, Rewst-appropriate pun into casual communications; but we show restraint, prioritizing clarity over a chuckle.

Clear and succinct

We want readers to see us as technical senseis who simplify the complex without being condescending. We respect the time our readers spend on us, and make our point with confidence and clarity.

Self-aware

Rewst is the most robust, customizable automation tool designed for MSPs, but we realize that no product meets all of everyone’s needs. We provide clear and honest communication and support about what Rewst can do and what it takes to get the most out of it.

Grammar and style

At Rewst, we:

Keep things casual, writing with contractions and in a way that people talk (even if it goes against grammar rules — but never at the expense of clarity).

Use sentence case for titles and headlines. Only include punctuation if applicable, like for a question.

Include the Oxford comma in every applicable instance.

Avoid over-using exclamation points, emojis, or anything that doesn’t portray a relaxed demeanor.

Prioritize active voice.

Limit the use of industry jargon.

Write in American English (not British or Australian English).

Include punctuation at the end of bulleted lists that include complete or nearly complete sentences (you don’t need it for basic lists).

Speak in first person when referring to Rewst, and second person when speaking to readers.

Get to the value statement quickly, prioritizing clarity over fluff.

Keep ampersands (&) to a minimum, only to be used when space is limited.

Avoid creating unnecessary product names, favoring everyday language to describe what the product does.

Tips

Use active voice

Active voice lends strength, clarity, and confidence.

“Onboard new clients automatically.”

“Clients may be onboarded automatically.”

Be specific

Choose quantifiable, concrete terms over vague language.

“How did RapidTech save over 500 man-hours a week? CEO Brad Dockers shares his experience and tips.”

“Save time and money with Rewst.”

Steer clear of trendy terms and jargon

They evolve every decade: synergy, optimize, transformative, empower, journey… They’re easy to fall back on, and sometimes they’re relevant – just overused. Over time, readers (particularly our decision maker persona) may tune out when they encounter them.

“Add 100+ prebuilt automations to your arsenal within two weeks.”

“Rewst empowers your MSP with 100+ prebuilt automations to begin your automation journey.”

Keep it real

Overhype is UNBEARABLE! (See what we did there?) Keep overpromising language and hype off the page, in word choice and in formatting (ALL CAPS, boldface). Use exclamation points sparingly.

“Check out how Fake MSP used our top prebuilt automations to save X hours every month.”

“Go check out our awesome case study NOW!”

Terminology

Have questions about common Rewst and industry terminology? Check out this Notion page from Customer Success, outlining how we should properly spell specific words: Notion. If there’s ever a discrepancy between this guide and the Customer Success guide, defer to this one.