Tone and Voice Playbook

How To Use this Guide

Use the information provided throughout this document to transform your writing into the style of the University. These tips and tricks will guide you in your day-to-day writing, whether it be for marketing materials, website copy, or digital ads, just to name a few.

This guide is designed to help you identify and break down the key components of written communication. You’ll learn how to spot stylistic choices in sentence structure and vocabulary, how tone reflects a writer’s attitude, and how personality gives writing its distinctive voice. Through examples and practical tips, you’ll develop the tools to read between the lines and uncover what makes a piece of writing truly unique.

This document is just one resource in the toolbox alongside a universal Style Guide and Storytelling Playbook.

Understanding how to write like WVU is just as important as understanding what to write about. Whether you’re analyzing an author’s work, developing a brand voice, or improving your own writing, being able to recognize style, tone, and personality is essential. These elements shape how a message is received and interpreted, influencing clarity, emotion, and connection with the audience.

Personality

WVU is the ‘Everyman Hero’

Part of what makes us feel distinct among other universities is our personality, a key component of our brand strategy.

Archetypes can be helpful tools for thinking about personality. They can help communicators make decisions when moving from strategy to creative to crafting specific messages.

Our personality coming to life

“We’re WVU. Hi! It’s great to meet you. A little about us? OK!

We’re loyal and warmhearted. People tell us we’re also clever, resourceful, rooted, spirited, and welcoming, and that’s cool with us. We thrive when you doubt us. Seriously, tell us we can’t do something. You’ll be surprised.

We adventure beyond what we already know, whether it be in the classroom, abroad, or in our own backyard. We’re curious about the future, the world, and what could be. Our ambitions are built by every single Mountaineer, and we work hard(-er than everyone else) to turn dreams into realities. We don’t see shortcomings … we see opportunities to overcome.

We’re fun! We help build friendships that last. We prepare our own to have strong careers. And we know how to make lifelong memories, whether it’s among 60,000 others in Milan Puskar Stadium, in our state-of-the-art crime-scene complex, or on a raft on the Cheat River.

We live in the most beautiful place on earth (there’s a reason they call it “Almost Heaven”). We make an impact not just on our community of students, faculty, and staff but among all West Virginians, too. We do that through our research, unique ingenuity, and an unspoken ambition to do the right thing for our own.”

Our Brand Essence

Pride in our people

WVU will forever be a University and brand built by its people. As the land-grant, we have been about West Virginians from day one. Today, we continue to have a strong sense of pride in those people who make us who we are today. We’re not just proud to be associated with WVU, but we’re especially proud of the individuals and group efforts that are uniquely filled with Mountaineer spirit. When it comes down to it, we cheer for other Mountaineers, and we want that spread around the world.

When we write as the University, we need to flip the switch to truly become the personality of WVU. Think about “pride in our people” and adapt your writing appropriately with constant positivity and excitement for individuals or groups and their achievements.

Using ‘Let’s Go!’ for Headlines

Headlines work best when they’re succinct and make a powerful impression on a wide audience. With that in mind, here are 5 different ways to use ‘Let’s Go!’ in a headline.

As a rallying cry

To keep this compelling, use it as the answer to a rhetorical question. This can convey a sense of excitement about the work being done on and around campus. With this type of headline, think of ‘Let’s Go!’ as a rallying cry rather than a verb. Only use 1 “o” and 1 exclamation point.

Examples

• Studying lakes to better understand life on Mars? Let’s Go!
• Developing high-tech headsets that prevent fatal accidents? Let’s Go!
• Creating a startup that powers the state? Let’s Go!

’Let’s Go!’ as a verb

In this construction, we use ‘Let’s Go!’ as a verb, showcasing the same excitement as the examples above but in a slightly different way. See how starting the sentence with a verb or adjective shifts the meaning of the phrase? You can use ‘Let’s Go.” with a period, too.

Examples

• Want to study lakes to better understand life on Mars? Let’s Go!
• Ready to develop high-tech headsets that prevent fatal accidents? Let’s Go.
• Excited to launch your startup that powers the state? Let’s Go!

Let’s Go + Invite

Exploration is a key part of our messaging strategy. This headline pattern speaks directly to the desire to push boundaries and discover new things.

Examples

• Let’s go further
• Let’s go forward
• Let’s go together
• Let’s go to places we’ve never been

Let’s + Action

By focusing on the word “let’s,” we can dial up the boldness and urgency in our tone.

Examples

• Let’s make it happen
• Let’s make real change in aerospace technology
• Let’s push forensic science even further
• Let’s move beyond expectation

Go + Motion

Movement is a huge part of the Mountaineer spirit, and by focusing specifically on the word “Go,” we can lean into that idea.

Examples

• Go forth
• Go faster
• Go forever
• Go together
• Go further

A Few Reminders

Think of our brand tone, voice, and personality on a spectrum. A staple recruitment booklet should be 10/10 brand voice. A simple internal newsletter announcement about HR policies might feel a bit different, and could be more like a 2/10.

Remember your audience, and adapt your writing style to them. Our audiences are varied, and so are their interests. With every message you send, put yourself in the audience’s shoes and ask, “Does this sound like something that would resonate with them?”

Any good writing starts with a star piece of information or an individual or group hero. Search for that hero, and use it to carry your writing in a WVU-specific way.

If you have questions or want more information about our writing tone, voice, and personality, reach out to our Strategic Communications and Marketing team contacts.

• Tony Dobies Anthony.Dobies@mail.wvu.edu
• Jake Stump Jake.Stump@mail.wvu.edu