The brand sounds like one person talking. These are the rules that keep it that way. Modeled directly on the writing style of 37signals/Basecamp (Rework, Have an Enemy, Signal v. Noise) — they spent 20+ years proving this voice works for software companies that refuse to act like software companies. We're following their lead.
Each rule below is an imperative. That's deliberate. The voice isn't "we believe in talking like people" — it's "talk like a person." The form is the lesson.
- Talk like a person.
Not a company. First-person works ("I" or "we"). Marketing-speak doesn't. If the sentence would fit on a Salesforce billboard, it doesn't fit here.
- Decide, then say it.
No hedging. No "we believe..." preambles. State the position; defend it later if anyone asks. "Big Software bloats. Microapp doesn't." That's the move. The reader is busy and the first sentence is the point.
- Pick fights. Name names.
Big Software is the enemy. Notion, Salesforce, Adobe, Microsoft — call them out by name when it's true. Don't dance around the comparison; the comparison is the point. Cult brands don't go soft on their enemies.
- Use real numbers.
"291 microapps. 10% of revenue to charity, audited quarterly. Members get AI at compute cost." Beats "hundreds of tools, generous giving, affordable AI." If you can't defend a number, don't write it.
- Short sentences. Real words.
Long sentences signal long thinking. Short sentences signal decisions made. Drop adjectives that aren't earning their seat. "Premium quality, for everyone." — six words, three claims, no filler. That's the target.
- Refuse the consultant words.
Banned in product copy: solutions, synergy, leverage, unlock, empower, transform, journey, ecosystem, world-class, best-in-class, scalable, robust, enterprise-grade, mission-critical, disruption, seamless, holistic, cutting-edge. These are the words Big Software uses. We don't.
- Free is a fact, not a slogan.
Some microapps are free. Many include AI compute or agents that aren't. Members will notice the pricing on each page; the brand doesn't have to shout it.
Never
- "100% free forever! No credit card required!"
- "Sign up now — it's free!"
- "Free AI tools, no signup!"
Instead
- "Open to anyone. Members get clean pages and AI at cost."
- "Use it. It's there for you."
- "There's no signup. There's also no third path."
- Be a little playful.
Not goofy. Not cringe. But the brand has a sense of humor — Caveat-rotated stickers, the founder's coconut-water story, "magical box," "the card in your wallet." A line that earns a smile is doing brand work. Earnest beats safe.
- One mouth speaking.
Every page should sound like the same person wrote it. If the homepage sounds like Daniel and the pricing page sounds like a marketing department, the brand fragmented. Read both aloud. Do they match? If not, fix the one that drifted.
- Sound like American Express, never like an airline.
Rules 1–9 are the brand voice — direct, confident, opinionated. This rule is the service voice — what the brand sounds like when a member needs help. Same person, different context. Warm. Patient. Welcoming. "We're going to figure this out together."
The service voice — anti-models and models
Model: American Express customer service. You hang up feeling cared for, secure, sent back to your day in a better mood.
Anti-model: airline customer service. You hang up feeling processed.
Never sounds like
- "For more information, please consult our knowledge base."
- "Your request has been received."
- "Please be advised that..."
- "We apologize for any inconvenience."
- "Unfortunately..." (anything starting with this word)
Does sound like
- "That's frustrating. Here's what we'll try first."
- "Welcome back."
- "You've got this. Here's the answer."
- "Sorry — that broke. Try this. If it still doesn't work, write me."
- "Of course you can cancel. Here's the link. We'll miss you. The microapps are still free if you ever come back."
Empathy is the brand under stress. When members hurt, the voice softens — not because the brand is timid, but because the brand cares. AmEx members stay 30+ years. Microapp wants the same.
The test
The voice you're trying to write is the voice you'd use explaining Microapp to a friend in a coffee shop. Not the voice of a press release. Not the voice of a marketing email. The voice of one person, talking, with opinions and a little humor.
If you're writing a sentence and you wouldn't say it out loud to a friend, the sentence is wrong. Rewrite it.