---
system: mailchimp
category: content
topic: voice-and-tone
content_type: guidance
status: latest
retrieved: 2026-05-16
source_url: https://styleguide.mailchimp.com/voice-and-tone/
tags: [voice, tone, content-design, brand]
---

# MailChimp — Voice and Tone

## Voice

MailChimp's voice is the expression of its personality through words. Voice is constant — it does not change based on context or channel.

MailChimp describes itself as "the experienced and compassionate business partner" customers wish they had. The company speaks from experience walking in customers' shoes — understanding that marketing technology is confusing and that customers need a guide, not a vendor.

### The four voice characteristics

**Plainspoken**

MailChimp strips away hyperbolic language, upsells, and fluffy metaphors. "We strip all that away and value clarity above all." Jargon, marketing speak, and abstractions are avoided in favor of language that serves the reader's actual need.

**Genuine**

"We get small businesses because we were one not too long ago." MailChimp's authenticity comes from relating to customer challenges through warm, accessible, familiar language. This is not performed warmth — it is the character of a company that remembers what it was like to be a small business trying to grow.

**Translators**

MailChimp demystifies B2B complexity rather than hiding behind it. "Only experts can make what's difficult look easy." This means genuinely educating rather than patronizing — assuming the reader is smart, not assuming they already know the answer.

**Dry humor**

MailChimp's humor is "straight-faced, subtle, and a touch eccentric." They prefer "winking to shouting." The humor is inclusive, never at the expense of the reader, and is subordinated to clarity — if a joke would confuse, it is cut.

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## Tone

Tone differs from voice. Voice is constant; tone adjusts to context. "It's always more important to be clear than entertaining."

When writing any piece of content, MailChimp writers assess the reader's current emotional state and adjust accordingly:

- **Relieved or excited:** Warmer, slightly more playful
- **Confused or uncertain:** More explanatory, patient, step-by-step
- **Frustrated or experiencing failure:** Direct, calm, solution-focused — no humor

Humor should feel natural, never forced. If injecting humor requires stretching to find a joke, skip it.

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## Writing goals

Every piece of content MailChimp publishes should:

1. **Empower** — Give readers what they need to take action
2. **Respect** — Treat readers as capable adults
3. **Educate** — Share knowledge without jargon
4. **Guide** — Lead through complexity with clear steps
5. **Speak truth** — Be honest even when the truth is uncomfortable

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## Quality standards

MailChimp measures content quality on four criteria:

- **Clear** — Can a first-time reader understand it without help?
- **Useful** — Does it help the reader accomplish their goal?
- **Friendly** — Does it feel like it comes from a real person?
- **Appropriate** — Is the tone right for this moment and this reader state?

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## Core writing rules

- Write in active voice
- Avoid slang and jargon; define technical terms on first use
- Write positively ("Stand in line" not "Don't skip the line")
- Use plain English — vocabulary a 6th-grader can read
- Adjust formality to context, but do not abandon clarity for personality