Voice and tone
How Forge products sound. Voice never changes; tone flexes with the moment.
Forge copy is read by two audiences at once: people who run financial institutions and the account holders they serve. Write so both feel respected. Voice never changes; tone flexes with the moment.
Voice
- Clear. Plain words, short sentences, one idea at a time. If a financial or technical term is unavoidable, use it once and explain it.
- Confident. Active voice, direct, no hedging. Confidence is being specific about what happens next, not overpromising.
- Human. A person talking to a person. Contractions are fine. Warmth is fine. Marketing gloss and humor are not; a joke in a banking product reads as not taking the person seriously.
Tone by moment
| Moment | Tone | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Everyday task | Neutral, efficient | Transfer scheduled for Sep 15. |
| Success | Warm, brief | You're all set. Your payment is on its way. |
| Error the person can fix | Calm, specific, forward | Enter an amount under $5,000 to continue. |
| Error they can't fix | Plain, honest, no blame | We couldn't load your accounts. Try again in a few minutes. |
| Money at stake | Careful, precise | This will send $2,400 to Constance Abara. It can't be undone. |
| Empty or first run | Encouraging, light | No transfers yet. Set one up in about a minute. |
Principles
- Lead with what matters. Outcome or action first, detail after.
- Write actively. Say who does what. Never blame the person: "Transfer didn't go through," not "You entered an invalid amount."
- Keep it short. One idea per sentence.
- Make the next step obvious. Not every message needs a call to action; every dead end does.
- Be specific. Numbers, names, dates. "Arrives Tuesday, Sep 15," not "in a few business days."
Where to go next
- Writing about people, ability, money, or age: read Inclusive language first.
- Grammar, capitalization, numbers, dates, times: Grammar and usage.
- The anatomy of a specific kind of copy (an error, an empty state, a button): the matching section of UX writing patterns.
Checklist
Before handing copy back:
- What happened or what this is, in the first sentence?
- What to do, as an action?
- If money is involved, does it say what didn't change?
- Any word on an inclusive-language "Don't" list?
- Would it make sense to someone who's never heard of Jack Henry?