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University of North Dakota
  • Employee Resources
    • Job Openings
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  • Personality, Voice & Tone
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Personality, Voice & Tone

We share our personality, defined by set of characteristics, with audiences through our voice and tone. Our voice is consistent while our tone has a range. Audience and communication goals should determine the right mix of UND personality traits to emphasize. 

Brand Personality

These six adjectives make up who we are as UND.  

Committed

We are hardworking and diligent. We persevere when faced with challenges and believe in actually doing, not just talking about doing.

Proud

We are strong-willed and passionate. We embrace our UND community and celebrate our achievements as a team.

Approachable

We are genuine, welcoming and supportive of all students and cultures. We help those with a desire to learn and make a positive impact.

Practical

We are down-to-earth and realistic in how we go about our business. We are reliable and determined to make an impact on our community, state and the world.

Innovative

We are challengers, unafraid to question how things are done. When we see a problem, we fix it with smart thinking and decisive action. 

Bold

We were founded on a bold vision and a resiliency that defied all odds, characteristics that remain in all of us to this day. We are independent and tough — able to overcome any obstacle. 

Brand Voice

Our Brand Is

  • Always proud, open and honest.  
  • Empowering to our students, faculty and staff.  
  • Intentional and direct, using an active tone and unpretentious language.  
  • Positive to communicate our impact and convey opportunity and confidence.  
  • Straightforward, using proof points and statistics to prove our commitment to hard work, positive impacts and the future.  
  • Packed with action verbs and powerful language to reflect our determined culture.  
  • Concise, featuring digestible content, particularly for online and social media posts.  

Do

  • Be descriptive yet concise.  
  • Be conversational, personal and relatable to the audience.  
  • Use personal stories about students, alumni, faculty and staff to communicate the UND experience.  
  • Demonstrate that we understand and care about each group’s different wants and needs.  

Our Brand is Never

  • Complicated, confusing or featuring overly technical language.  
  • Forced, feigned or overly excited.  
  • Trying to be something we are not. We avoid passive phrases such as “we will” or “we’re going to.”  
  • Packed with clichés or “fluffy” language.  
  • Clouded with sales-speak, long-winded passages of text or verbose content.  

Don't

  • Let our pride for UND come across as arrogance by using too many superlatives.  
  • Use UND lingo and insider references when communicating with audiences who are not deeply connected with the community.  
  • Use long words or phrases when shorter ones will work just as well.  
  • Speak down to an audience. 

Brand Tone

Our tone reflects our brand personality and voice. It is how we choose to communicate with our audiences, including the choice of words, communication style and emotional tone.  Just like an individual adjusts their tone based on the situation, our tone also has a range. The range allows our tone to vary depending on the audience, media, and overall communication goal. 

For more direction on how to use our brand tones, complete brand training. 

  Core Casual Vibrant Formal
Highlighted Personality Traits

Committed

Innovative 

Practical

Approachable

Bold

Innovative

Approachable 

Bold

Proud

Committed

Practical 

Proud

Messaging Feels

Official

Professional

Straightforward

Friendly

Relatable

Relaxed

Dynamic

Lively

Playful

Ceremonial

Refined

Traditional

Examples

Event Promotions

Templates

General Forms

Unit Communications

Event Promotions

Student & Unit Communications

 

Event Promotions

Student & Unit Communications

Ceremony Programs

Formal Invites

Executive Forms

Presidential or Timeless Communications

Brand Tone Examples

Division of Marketing & Communications
identity@UND.edu
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