Our brand voice is what we say, and our brand tone is how we say it. The language we use and how we use it determine our tone and voice. They shape the way our audiences perceive and engage with our organization. Adhering to our voice and tone will keep our global communication channels free of clutter, confusion, and misunderstanding.
Our Voice
At Water Mission, our voice fuels our messaging and communication. For more guidance on specific guidelines to help craft messaging, please reference our comprehensive writing style guide.
We Are Christian
We honor God by serving our global neighbors with love, excellence, and integrity. Our communication encourages and inspires people to help transform lives. Relying on the Lord in all we do, we aim to meet both physical and spiritual needs by partnering with the local church to share the gospel in their communities.
We Are Builders
As engineers, we are problem-solvers who design and build customized, sustainable safe water solutions. We are experts and leaders in what we do, yet humble and approachable, inviting others to join us in our mission.
We Are Intentional
Because we are accountable to God, our partners, and those we serve, we are intentional in all we do. We continually monitor, evaluate, and learn as part of our ongoing improvement. We lead collaboration across the sector to ensure safe water flows to as many people possible, as quickly as possible.
Our Tone
At Water Mission, our tone is invitational, inspirational, and filled with hope. The global water crisis is enormous and urgent, but it is not hopeless because God is at work. We do not shy away from sharing facts about the tragedy, but we focus on hope and possibility. Our messaging highlights what God is doing through Water Mission and celebrates the lives that are being transformed.
We write about those we serve with dignity and respect. We want to inspire audiences to join us in ending the global water crisis and bring the message of salvation through Jesus Christ.
Invitational: We invite others into the mission.
Hopeful: Although the global water crisis is enormous and urgent, there is hope.
Respectful: Those we serve are our global neighbors whom we honor.
Clear: We speak in terms that all our audiences can understand.
Our Voice and Tone in Action
More Like: Together, we transform lives around the world with safe and Living Water.
Less Like: With your donation, Water Mission can build safe water systems.
Why: The first positions the reader as a partner (invitational), and the second treats them as simply a source of money. The first shows our wider impact to transform lives (inspirational), and the second focuses on the physical system we build.
More Like: 2 billion of our global neighbors lack access to safe water. This problem is enormous and urgent, but there is hope.
Less Like: 2 billion people don’t have safe water, killing children under five and the elderly at the highest rates.
Why: The first helps audiences feel inspired and motivated while still sharing the need. The second is alarmist and lacks any solution to the problem.
More Like: We build safe water solutions for men, women, and children in developing countries, refugee camps, and disaster areas around the world.
Less Like: We bring safe water to the needy in third-world countries, refugees, and disaster stricken villages.
Why: The first uses people-first language (men, women, and children), and the second reduces people to their need with the potentially demeaning terms, “needy” and “third world.” The first is technically accurate (we are builders and problem-solvers), and the second is inaccurate because we don’t simply bring water.
More Like: Our Living Water Treatment System purifies more than 10,000 gallons of water per day, meeting all daily safe water needs for up to 5,000 people.
Less Like: Our Living Water Treatment System uses a patented, four-stage treatment that removes 99.9% of particles greater than three microns, consistently produces clear water (<1 NTU of turbidity), and uses chlorine to disinfect and protect at a rate of 10 gallons per minute.
Why: Although the second is technically correct and appropriate for specialized audiences, it is not widely accessible for most readers. The first version is still accurate, but it is written in a way that all readers can understand.