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Eva Legovic
- Estimated reading time: 4 min
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Eva Legovic
- Estimated reading time: 4 min
If you’ve ever had to rewrite a translation because it “just didn’t sound like us,” you need a style guide.
It’s one of the most common problems in localization — the translators do their job just fine, but the end result feels off. Maybe the tone is too formal or the phrasing is not natural…
That’s not their fault. It’s what happens when your brand voice isn’t clearly defined for each market.
A translation style guide (or localization style guide) aims to solve this. It gives translators, reviewers, and even AI (mainly LLM) tools clear rules for tone, formality, and style — so your brand sounds consistent and natural in every language.
You’ll save hours of review time, avoid awkward tone mismatches, and make sure your brand always sounds like your brand — no matter who translates it.
Download your free translation style guide
What exactly does a translation style guide do?
A translation style guide is a short document that tells translators and editors how your brand should sound — in every language.
It defines things like tone of voice, level of formality, punctuation, and formatting. Basically, all the small choices that decide whether your content sounds friendly, professional, or robotic.
If your glossary covers what key terms mean, and your translation memory stores how you’ve translated them before, your style guide explains how to use them. It’s what ties accuracy and tone together.
A localization style guide goes even further. (Learn about the difference between translation and localization here.) It includes cultural and regional preferences — how polite or direct to be, whether humor fits, and how to handle dates, currencies, or measurements.
So why do you need one? Because even the best translators can’t read your mind.
Without clear direction, every linguist, reviewer, or AI tool will make their own judgment calls — and your tone will start shifting across markets, pages, or even paragraphs.
A good style guide prevents that by:
- Keeping your tone consistent – no more switching between friendly and formal mid-sentence.
- Reducing rework – translators know your preferences from the start, so you don’t waste time rewriting.
- Improving LLM output – when your LLM of choice (ChatGPT, Claude) follows your guide, it’s more likely to stay true to your voice.
- Speeding up onboarding – new linguists can align with your brand tone in minutes.
In short: it’s the easiest way to make sure every piece of localized content — human or AI-translated — still sounds like you want it to sound.
And yes — it makes sense to use a style guide for translation even if you’re already working with experienced linguists or advanced tools. It keeps tone, terminology, and formatting consistent from day one instead of relying on everyone’s interpretation of “what sounds better.”
What should a good translation style guide include?
A good style guide doesn’t need to be long or complicated. It just needs to answer one question:
“How should our brand sound in other languages?”
Here’s what every effective translation or localization style guide should include:
- Company and brand overview
- Tone of voice and style
- Audience and cultural considerations
- Grammar and style rules
- Terminology and vocabulary
- Formatting and punctuation
- Politeness and address
- Examples and non-examples
- Multilingual strategy
Skip the setup — get your free translation style guide template
Creating a style guide from scratch takes time — and honestly, you don’t need to reinvent it.
We’ve already built the framework for you.
Our Translation & Localization Style Guide Template includes everything you’ve just read about — tone, terminology, formatting, cultural notes, and even sample examples. It’s the same structure our own linguists use when onboarding new clients.
👉 Download the free Google Doc version, make a copy, and start filling it out.
You’ll have a ready-to-use guide in under an hour — and your translators will thank you later.
Eva Legovic
Frequently asked questions
What is a translation style guide?
A translation style guide is a reference document that defines how your brand communicates across languages. It outlines your tone of voice, level of formality, grammar preferences, and formatting rules so that every piece of translated content sounds like it came from the same brand.
Think of it as a bridge between translation and marketing. Without it, translators make subjective choices that can distort your message. With it, you lock in consistency — across websites, product UI, support articles, and campaigns.
What’s the difference between a translation style guide and a localization style guide?
The two overlap, but they serve slightly different purposes:
- A translation style guide covers linguistic preferences — tone, grammar, punctuation, spelling, and style conventions.
- A localization style guide adds cultural adaptation — how tone, humor, imagery, and formality should change depending on the target market.
For example, a German localization might require formal Sie in product copy, while your Brazilian Portuguese version might sound warmer and more personal.
Taia’s free template combines both approaches, so you can decide what belongs in a global guide and what needs to be language-specific.
Why do I need a style guide if I already have a glossary or translation memory?
Because those tools focus on accuracy, not style.
- A glossary ensures key terms are translated consistently.
- A translation memory stores and reuses approved sentences.
- A style guide ensures all that content sounds right — in tone, personality, and voice.
Without it, your translations might be correct but still feel inconsistent or off-brand.
When used together in Taia, the three form a complete localization system: the glossary defines your words, the TM ensures consistency, and the style guide controls tone.
How long does it take to create a translation or localization style guide?
Usually less than an hour with a good template.
Taia’s free Google Doc template includes guided questions for brand tone, grammar, terminology, and cultural notes. You can complete it in 30–60 minutes, then refine it over time as you expand to new markets.
If you’re working with multiple languages, create one main (global) style guide and smaller add-ons for language-specific rules — a structure our template already supports.
How often should a style guide be updated?
At least once or twice a year, or whenever your brand voice, design system, or product changes.
For example:
- You’ve rebranded or changed tone (more conversational, less corporate).
- You’ve entered new markets that require different formality levels.
- Your terminology or product naming has evolved.
When your style guide lives inside Taia, updates automatically apply across future translations — so your new rules are followed immediately by both linguists and AI.
Translate your first document with Taia.
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