Project: Branding Guidelines
Audience: These branding guidelines are designed and written for internal use by the Avid CNC team.
Scope:
Brand Voice
What do we mean by voice?
By voice, we mean the overriding style and character of anything written for Avid CNC. This includes instructional materials, captions, product listings, youtube descriptions, google ads, and even brochures. These all contain different types of information and they all tell the Avid CNC story in different ways.
But no matter what, they should all sound like they’re being told or spoken by the same person – the same voice.
Brand Tone
Authoritative but not patronizing.
The Avid CNC Voice speaks from a place of authority. We are a team of engineers, makers, technicians, and designers who are focused on honing our craft and helping customers do the same.
Do This:
Cite reputable sources and sound sure of yourself when you are writing or speaking.
Direct the conversation to where we can offer value to the customer.
Don't Do This:
Sound cocky or condescending.
Remember:
Our time is valuable.
Take care of us and the customer.
It's okay to not know the answer to every question. Assure them you will help them get what they need.
Sometimes we won't agree with the customer, but we can agree to move forward.
Helpful but not overly familiar
We are here to help our customers succeed and seek to partner with them.
Approaching every interaction in a professional manner our goal is to help our customers create a plan and feel confident about their next steps.
Do This:
Reassure the customer that it’s okay if tasks are challenging, and take time to explain concepts.
Hold space for them - Share in their excitement when they've made a big investment for their business and be empathetic when they are struggling.
Don't Do This:
Sound overly familiar, be friendly with a professional approach.
Ignore customers' challenges or roadblocks.
Push our products or services at customers if their needs don’t align with our product’s capabilities. "
Remember:
If you're too friendly, it is easy to overcommit to a customer.
You want to help them and we will be more than fair, but there are times when we must hold our ground while taking the high road.
There is a difference between "friendly" and "familiar." Be friendly, kind, and supportive. Do not be overly familiar, this can be seen as intrusive or untrustworthy.
Descriptive but not convoluted
We are descriptive when speaking to our customers, writing instructional documentation, newsletters, and social media captions. Our goal is to inform them of the specifications, the process of the story in an accessible way without over-embellished language.
Do This:
Write in a clear, direct way.
"Bitesize" - If you write long sentences then the customer might just skim the documentation or just get stuck.
Use standardized terminology and define terminology when required.
Know your audience, make your language accessible.
Don't Do This:
Use too much jargon.
Remember:
Know your audience, make your language accessible.
Meet them where they are. If they are a beginner it's okay to use simplified terms, but be wary of your tone to avoid sounding condescending.
Examples:
Documentation is written for an individual with no experience. We provide more descriptive documentation for those who want to dig deeper.
Authentic and not hyperbolic
The Avid CNC Voice is trustworthy. We want customers to genuinely choose us because we make the tools that best fit their needs. We own our mistakes, we’re honest about our shortcomings, and we put our customer’s success first and work to resolve any issue to the best of our ability.
Do This:
Offer alternative solutions, not just our own product service - especially if their tooling needs don’t align with our product capabilities.
Don't Do This:
Oversell our product’s capabilities.
Remember: Lead with honesty
When we make a mistake, this can be an opportunity to make a good impression.
If you don't know the answer, it's okay. Assure them you will help them get what they need.
When we acknowledge our mistakes they appreciate it.
Examples:
Scenario: Customer's goal is to create high volume aluminum parts
"You're trying to make high production machined aluminum bicycle parts? While our machines are capable of this you might consider a different machine on the market that has capabilities and features more in alignment with your goals."
Scenario: Customer has a budget of < $2500
"I see, it sounds like you have a limited budget but a high interest in getting into CNC. You might consider a Shaper Origin or a Carbide3D CNC as a good entry point into the world of digital fabrication for you and your business."
Copy Guidelines
Here are a few outlined standards to streamline copy creation.
Spelling & Grammar Guidelines
Acronyms
Use acronyms if applicable, but pay attention to user experience.
For a full list of acronyms, see the glossary of terms.
Do This:
Use when universally recognized and understood by the audience, only after using the full phrase or name first. For example:
“Avid CNC announces the launch the Automatic Tool Changer.
The ATC will be available to new and current customers.”
It is okay to use an acronym without stating it’s full phrase if it is the name of a product. For example:
“NEMA 23 Motor”
Don't Do This:
Don’t include acronyms that might be unclear to the audience. Don’t use an acronym before stating the entire phrase or name in the text somewhere first.
Plural Acronyms:
When something belongs to multiple items or acronyms (plural), you add an apostrophe to the plural word of the acronym.
For example:
"There are five UFOs over there. The UFOs' lights are different colors."
"I ordered 3 VFDs last week, where are they?"
"This VFD's power supply isn't working."
Do This:
“I will add the Auto Z and Corner Finding Touch Plate, Omer Nailer, and the router bit set to your order."
Note: Comma after "Omer Nailer"
Don't Do This:
“I will add the Auto Z and Corner Finding Touchplate, Omer Nailer and the router bit set to your order."
Note: No comma after "Omer Nailer"
The Oxford Comma - Use it!
The Oxford (or serial) comma is the final comma in a list of things.
Sentence Case vs. Title Case: What’s the Difference?
Sentence case and title case are both mixed-case styles—they involve both upper- and lowercase letters. In sentence case, only the first letters of the first word and proper nouns are in uppercase. By contrast, title case has major words in uppercase and minor words in lowercase (unless they are the first or last word of a title). Major words include nouns, adjectives, and verbs, while minor words include short prepositions and articles.
While sentence case is used most commonly in prose, title case is most frequently employed for headings and titles of works such as books, movies, papers, paintings, etc. News headlines employ both sentence case and title case for headings, depending on the publication. While sentence case use remains consistent across styles, there may be a variation as to what is capitalized in title case, depending on the style guide—AP, APA, and Chicago Manual of Style all have their own rules.
Capitalization - Title Case
In title case, capitalize the following words in a title or heading:
The first word of the title or heading, even if it is a minor word such as “The” or “A”
The first word of a subtitle
The first word after a colon, em dash, or end punctuation in a heading
Major Words:
Nouns
Verbs (including linking verbs)
Adjectives,
Adverbs
Pronouns
and all words of four letters or more are considered major words.
Major words also include the second part of hyphenated major words (e.g., “Self-Report,” not “Self-report”)words of four letters or more (e.g., “With,” “Between,” “From”)
In title case, lowercase the following words in a title or heading:
Minor Words
Short (i.e., three letters or fewer) conjunctions, short prepositions, and all articles are considered minor words. (except the first word in a title or subtitle or the first word after a colon, em dash, or end punctuation in a heading):
Short conjunctions (e.g., “and,” “as,” “but,” “for,” “if,” “nor,” “or,” “so,” “yet”)
Articles (“a,” “an,” “the”)
Short prepositions (e.g., “as,” “at,” “by,” “for,” “in,” “of,” “off,” “on,” “per,” “to,” “up,” “via”)
Examples
“There is Rain in the Forecast this Week in New York City.”
“The Film Will Premiere on the Last Weekend of November.”
Do This:
Use title case for product names, for example:
“Avid CNC Rotary Axis"
In title case, major words are capitalized, and most minor words are lowercase. In sentence case, most major and minor words are lowercase (proper nouns are an exception in that they are always capitalized).
Use title case for:
Product Names
Article / Blog Headlines
Titles & Headers
To learn more about title case, read this article. See the glossary of terms for more information.