People Don’t Connect With Products—They Connect With Personality

Brand personality is the emotional foundation of your identity.
It’s not just about how you look or sound—it’s how you show up. Whether your brand feels bold, trustworthy, playful, or visionary, defining your personality helps ensure your voice, design, and customer experience all reflect the same core character.

Why it's Important

Creates emotional resonance that drives brand preference
Makes your brand more relatable, memorable, and human
Aligns tone of voice and visual design around shared traits
Differentiates you in categories where products feel interchangeable
Helps internal teams make faster, more aligned creative decisions

How to Implement

Start with your audience—what do they need emotionally, not just functionally?
Choose 3 to 5 core traits that reflect your brand’s tone and values
Examples: Confident, nurturing, witty, curious, pragmatic, rebellious
For each trait, describe what it means in your context
What does it sound like? How does it behave? What would it never do?
Use example phrases, visuals, or behaviors that show each trait in action
Pressure-test traits against your industry and competitors
You want to stand out, not blend in
Validate with internal teams—do the traits reflect how you want to be perceived and how you are perceived?
Document the personality in your brand guidelines
Apply it to product copy, marketing, design, support, and culture initiatives

How You Know You Got It Right

Customers describe your brand using similar words to your defined traits
Your tone and design feel consistent across all channels
Internal teams make aligned creative decisions without micromanagement
People feel something about your brand—not just “understand” it
Support and product interactions reflect your personality
New hires and partners onboard faster because they “get the vibe”
Your brand personality helps filter decisions and avoid off-brand moves

Real-World Examples

Mailchimp

Personality: Quirky, clever, approachable

Outcome: A brand that feels human in an otherwise stiff marketing tech space

Stripe

Personality: Technical, elegant, precise

Outcome: Earned developer trust and enterprise credibility through tone and polish

Duolingo

Personality: Playful, bold, a little chaotic

Outcome: Built a beloved consumer brand by leaning into a distinct and consistent tone

Make It Better

Align your traits with your values and your product’s role in users’ lives
Use them in internal reviews to evaluate copy, visuals, and campaigns
Include voice examples in your brand guidelines (what to say, what not to say)
Treat personality as a design tool—not just a marketing checklist
Reassess periodically to reflect product or market evolution

Don't Make These Mistakes

Choosing traits that are too vague (e.g. “professional,” “friendly”)
Defining traits that contradict each other (e.g. “playful” and “authoritative”)
Letting traits drift over time without documentation
Focusing only on copy—your personality should show up in design, UX, and behavior
Trying to sound like a competitor instead of owning your own tone