Write Captions That Sound Like Your Business
Build a one-page voice guide from your own past posts, then use it to write (or check) every caption. Includes a fill-in template and before/after rewrites.
A voice guide is one page that says how your business sounds, so anyone who writes a caption (you, a teammate, a freelancer or an AI tool) can match it. You do not have to invent a voice. You already have one, and it is sitting in your last 30 posts.
This guide shows how to find it, write it down in a template, adjust the tone for different situations, and test a caption in 60 seconds. It uses the voice guides published by Mailchimp and the UK National Health Service (NHS) as models, because both are public and both are clear.
The short answer
Read your last 30 posts, circle the five that sound most like you, and write down why. Turn those reasons into three voice traits, each with a 'but not'. Add the words you always use, the words you never use, and the facts that must be right. That is the guide.
Voice is how you always sound. Tone is how that voice adjusts to the moment: a new product, a closure, an apology. Mailchimp's content style guide draws this same line, describing voice as constant and tone as something that adapts to the reader's situation and mood.
What a voice guide holds
Public guides agree on a short list. This version is our own synthesis of them, scaled down for a small business.
- Three or four traits, each with a 'but not'. Mailchimp's guide uses pairs such as 'weird but not inappropriate, smart but not snobbish'. The second half keeps the first from going too far.
- Tone by situation. The NHS service manual, for example, asks for a serious but reassuring tone on diagnoses and medication, and an encouraging, conversational one for exercise and diet.
- Words you use and words you never use. Including any words you must avoid for legal reasons.
- Facts that must always be right: hours, address, prices, credentials, booking link.
- Emoji and hashtag policy.
- Examples: three captions that sound right and one that does not, with reasons.
- Who approves.
Read your last 30 posts
Open your last 30 captions in one place
Copy them into a document, oldest to newest. Include Facebook if the wording differs.
Circle the five that sound most like you
Pick by gut. Which would you be happy to see a customer read aloud?
Circle the five that sound least like you
Often they are stiff, salesy or borrowed from a template.
List what the good five share
Sentence length, how you address the reader, how you open, what you leave out, how much you joke.
List what the weak five share
These become your 'never' list.
A pattern usually appears in ten minutes. If your posts have been written by several people, you may find two voices. Decide which one is yours.
A tool can do the first read for you. KeepsPosted reads your past Instagram and Facebook posts and builds an editable playbook from them: how you sound, what you post about and rules you set. You check and correct it. Without a tool, a document and a highlighter do the same job.
Fill in the template
One-page voice template
Use short answers. If a line takes more than a sentence, you probably do not know the answer yet.
- Trait 1, but not
- [Warm] but not [chatty]. Example: we greet people by name, we do not write three paragraphs about our day.
- Trait 2, but not
- [Direct] but not [blunt]. Example: we give the price in the first line, we do not use pressure words.
- Trait 3, but not
- [Funny] but not [flippant]. Example: dry one-liners, never jokes about customers.
- Words we use
- [e.g. 'pop in', 'fresh today', 'our regulars', 'book a slot']
- Words we never use
- [e.g. 'delighted to announce', 'guru', 'game changer', 'best in town', 'cure']
- How we address people
- [you / we / first names / sir and madam]
- Facts that must be right
- Hours: [ ]. Address: [ ]. Prices: [where to check]. Credentials: [ ]. Booking link: [ ].
- Emoji
- [None / one at the end / only these: ...]
- Hashtags
- [How many, which, where. Instagram currently limits captions to five hashtags, per trade press from December 2025.]
- 3 good examples
- [Paste three captions that sound right. Write one line each on why.]
- 1 bad example
- [Paste one that sounds wrong. Write why.]
- Who approves
- [Name, and the deadline]
Tone changes by situation
Your traits stay the same. The dial moves.
| Situation | Tone dial | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| New product or menu item | Bright, specific | A little more energy. Still facts first |
| Price rise or reduced hours | Plain, calm, no jokes | Say it once, say why if you can, say what stays the same |
| Closure or emergency | Serious, short | No emoji. Exact dates. Where to find updates |
| Apology or error | Direct, accountable | Own it in the first line. Say what you are doing about it |
| Thank you or milestone | Warm | Only claim numbers you can show |
| Health-related content | Reassuring, factual | No promises of results. Follow your regulator's rules |
Mailchimp's guide adds a useful warning: forced humor can be worse than none at all. If you are not sure a joke fits the moment, leave it out.
Rewrite examples
These are made-up examples, for a café called Corner Kettle, showing the guide at work.
| Before (generic) | After (voice guide: warm but not chatty, direct but not blunt) | What changed |
|---|---|---|
| We are delighted to announce the launch of our exciting new autumn menu. Come and experience the flavours of the season. | Autumn menu is on from Thursday. New: spiced pear loaf, $5. The pumpkin soup is back until the squash runs out. | Price and date up front. No hype. A real limit instead of fake urgency |
| Unfortunately we will be closed for a short period due to unforeseen circumstances. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. | We are closed Monday and Tuesday this week. Back on Wednesday at 8. Sorry for the short notice. | Exact days, plain words, one apology |
| Best coffee in town. Do not miss out. Tag a coffee lover. | Single-origin filter is on the bar this week. Try it before 11 if you like it light. | A claim you cannot prove removed. A real detail added |
Test a caption in 60 seconds
Before you post
- Cover the business name. Would a regular still know it is you?
- Read it aloud. Do you stumble over any sentence?
- Does it use any word on your 'never' list?
- Are the facts (hours, price, dates) checked against the sheet?
- Is the tone right for what is happening this week?
- If an AI tool drafted it, did a person check every claim?
For the accuracy and disclosure points when a tool helps with drafting, see AI Captions and Disclosure: What a Local Business Must Do.
Keep it alive
- Review the guide every quarter and after any big change (new owner, new menu, new location).
- Add one good caption and retire one weak example each quarter.
- Share it with everyone who writes for the account, including freelancers.
- Keep it to one page. If it grows to five, nobody will read it.
If your past posts hold stale prices, old offers or wrong facts, clean those out first so they do not get copied into new captions.
Common questions
What is the difference between voice and tone?
Voice is how your business always sounds. Tone is how that voice adjusts to the situation, such as a launch or a closure. Mailchimp's content style guide describes the same split.
Can I use AI to write in my voice?
You can give an AI tool your voice guide and examples. A person should still check every fact and approve the caption. See the disclosure guide for the accuracy checklist.
How long should a voice guide be?
One page. Three or four traits, a words list, key facts and a few examples are enough.
Sources
- Mailchimp Content Style Guide: Voice and tone (checked 10 Nov 2026)
- NHS digital service manual: Voice and tone (checked 10 Nov 2026)
- Business Today: Instagram limits hashtags to five (Dec 2025, secondary) (checked Listed from research notes; not re-read on 10 Nov 2026)
Written by the KeepsPosted editorial team, with AI assistance for drafting and a person reviewing every claim. The template and rewrite examples are our own, and the example business is fictional.
Keep reading
AI Captions and Disclosure: What a Local Business Must Do
Do you have to label AI-written captions or images on Instagram and Facebook? What Meta, the EU AI Act and the FTC require, and a check to run before you post.
What to Post When You Have No Time to Plan Content
Twelve post types you can make from what already happens in your business, a 15-minute weekly routine, and what to skip when the week falls apart.
Turn Your Own Photos Into Instagram and Facebook Posts
How to pick, crop, caption and sequence photos you already have into posts that look consistent: sizes, carousels, alt text and what to leave out.