Tone of voice

Tone of voice is not just what we say – it’s how we say it. Our tone of voice reflects who we are and what we stand for. It is an expression of our brand in written and spoken form and should remain consistent across all our communications.

What is the NICE tone of voice?

At NICE, we need to be easily understood by a wide range of audiences. We must communicate clearly and simply – even when talking about complex, challenging or emotive subjects.

When we speak to these audiences, we should be:

A leader: inspiring and confident - not boastful.
Welcoming and inclusive - not jovial.
Authoritative: decisive, speaking with authority - not authoritarian.
Expert: factually accurate and knowledgeable.
Accessible: concise, using plain English and avoiding jargon.

Tone of voice in action – guiding principles

These guiding principles are to help you put the NICE tone of voice into action across our corporate communications. They do not apply to our guidance which follows the NICE style guide to convey important information to health and care staff.

1. Be short and snappy

Get straight to the point. Think short sentences, snappy headlines – less ‘we’d like to tell you a bit about the kind of partners we’ve worked with lately’, and more ‘our latest projects’.

Instead of: We improve health and wellbeing for a huge range of disparate audiences by using science, evidence and analytical thinking to improve decision making across the health and care sector.

Use: At NICE, we help improve health and wellbeing by putting science and evidence at the heart of our decision making.

2. Check we can be easily understood

Our content must be clear and easy to understand – use plain English and simple sentences. Do not use negative contractions such as ‘can't’ and ‘don't’. Research shows that many people misread them as the opposite of what they say.

Instead of: We have developed a severe disease modifier which will be included in our health economic methodology for technology appraisals going forwards.

Use: We’ll give treatments for the most severe diseases extra weight in our decision making.

3. Remain professional

Because of the nature of our work, our tone of voice must remain professional and avoid becoming too informal or over familiar. Although, for internal communications a more informal approach may sometimes be appropriate.

Instead of: Fancy staying up to date with everything we’re doing here at NICE? You could even help us develop our guidance. Register as a NICE stakeholder now!

Use: Your knowledge and expertise strengthen our work. Register as a stakeholder and help shape our guidance.

4. Always stay people and patient focused

Our work helps to improve lives. Ensure this informs everything you write.

Instead of: Our methods and processes have stood the test of time. They are the most rigorous of any guidance development organisation in the world.