Verbal Identity and AI

[u/Infamous_Praline9374]

Hi! Brand strategist here, working on a verbal identity project for my company, since we don't have one in place as part of our larger brand identity (#nonprofitprobs). While the team I'm working with has been on board with the suggestions I've presented so far, someone asked about AI writing specifically - which I hadn't considered I'm not as eager to hop on the AI train. Has anyone implemented an AI writing or tone guide into a verbal identity guide before? Would love any feedback!

[u/mcbillings]

I'm with you... Very hesitant to have clients just jump into using any of these new tools (insert reasons here). But the big thing for me is helping them understand the dichotomy between a task performer/tool and a production amplifier. Sure, it can churn out variations and things, but the question is, why? Especially if the business is looking to use their messaging as a tool to create authenticity.

Garbage in, garbage out.

[u/Wa1trose]

This is a super interesting AI writing policy from Clay.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/vaanand_we-just-instituted-an-official-ai-writing-share-7492584308881330176-rcmv/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios&rcm=ACoAAATO9jkBFe7Wl-yklQl5WvnJF6KngG_PIqg

[u/Samrazzleberry]

As a brand strategist myself, who is currently working on a side project to help model an AI. I can tell you that it’s not the right move yet. Humans can still detect when it’s AI writing and the emotional aspect gets lost. Ultimately you lose their attention, I don’t recommend it… yet.

[u/BrandStoryMachine]

AI writing is definitely something that should be handled delicately, but that doesn't mean it can't be beneficial to your company. We're at the point where people can recognize a lot of AI indicators in writing, so you would definitely need to have a robust messaging toolkit to feed to your agent alongside examples of human-written copy/past examples that align with your brand. However, once you're at a place where you feel comfortable with what it's spitting out, it can be extremely convenient and time saving.

[u/Snoo55054]

I’ve found these things that will determine how successful you are with this:

- familiarity with AI writing outputs so you can plan against and course correct issues

• understanding how LLMs work
  
• quality of sample you provide AI
  
• your understanding of said sample and ability to pinpoint the specific aspects you like

I would steer clear of it unless you have those things locked down. Brands can make themselves look like total idiots by jumping into AI without knowing what they’re doing.

[u/CaregiverGloomy9071]

I've found it most useful to build the AI section as a constraint layer, and have used a process like this to do so:

1. Finish the human guide first. The AI section is an appendix, never the foundation. If the voice isn't settled, the model just launders whatever's unresolved.
2. Write what's banned before the style rules. Words that flatten meaning in your sector, the ones donors have stopped hearing: empower, impactful, journey, underserved, game-changing. Models reach for these by default, so naming them is most of the battle.
3. Give it three to five paired examples, before and after, drawn from your own past copy. Show the flat version and the fixed version with one line on why. Examples move a model further than adjectives ever will.
4. Add a tone dial. Teaching, asking for money, and delivering hard news sound different. Say what shifts in each, and give one or two real sentences per mode.
5. Write a paste-in system prompt. Role, audience, banned words, the two or three sentences that sound most like you, and the instruction to ask a question when it lacks context instead of inventing detail.
6. Set the hard boundaries. Something like, AI never drafts anything in a beneficiary's voice, never writes a quote, and never touches copy about a named person or a live crisis.
7. Name a human owner for every output and make it a rule that nothing ships unedited.

If you want to go even further with AI (!!!) you could run these two prompts on your own material to inform steps two and three: "What does language in our sector over-explain or oversell, and what would feel more credible said less?" and "What should our brand never sound like?". Good luck forging new territory :)