 Have you ever shown up in a suit or dress when everybody else is wearing a T-shirt and shorts? That's embarrassing. How about the other way around—you step into a formal meeting looking like you're going to a hotdog stand? Some social situations are formal, and some are informal.
Writing situations are similar. Serious, important messages call for formal writing, and casual, friendly messages call for informal voice.
You shouldn't write informally when denying a vacation request:
A week off during our crunch? Not in the cards, Jeff.
Nor should you use a formal voice to congratulate a close colleague for a promotion:
It has come to light that Mr. Sheridan has offered you the position of Midwest Sales Manager. Congratulations are in order.
You need to dress your words to match each writing situation.
What is formal voice?
A formal voice is serious, dignified, deliberate, and objective. It avoids contractions and uses few if any personal pronouns.
This five-year plan focuses on short-term, mid-term, and long-term objectives that align with Rankin Technology's mission statement.
Use formal voice for official business carried out in memos, letters, emails, reports, proposals, instructions, and other major documents. Legal issues, serious situations, and bad news all call for formal voice.
Caveat: Formal voice should not be puffed up and pretentious, using unnatural expressions in order to sound important. It should be serious and deliberate but still use plain English.
What is semiformal voice?
Semiformal voice is the writing equivalent of business-casual clothing. It is friendly, natural, personable, and conversational—but also professional. It uses occasional contractions and some personal pronouns.
Please have a look at the fourth quarter sales numbers. I'm seeing a pretty sweet trend, but I want to make sure you see it, too.
Use semiformal voice for everyday business communication carried out in emails, blog posts, sales letters, podcasts, and tweets.
Caveat: Semiformal voice is still professional. It treats people with respect, uses standard English, and avoids getting too personal. A semiformal message should not be an embarrassment if it gets leaked to unintended readers.
What is informal voice?
An informal voice uses frequent contractions and personal pronouns and may contain humor or slang; avoid it in official business writing.
Nailed the presentation. Let's gooo!!
You can use informal voice in text messages with close colleagues as well as in private notes, lists, sketches, and other unofficial documents.
Caveat: If unofficial documents could be subpoenaed (for example, if you work in government), avoid informal voice even in them. Do not use language that would be embarrassing or even actionable if documents could get out of your control.
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