Even if you’re not totally sure what your voice is yet
Let’s be honest.
Using ChatGPT can feel like a gift and a headache all at once. One minute it’s helping you brainstorm ideas or write a product listing. The next, you’re reading what it gave you and thinking… “Why does this sound like a robot that took a marketing class in 2007?”
If you’ve ever read something it gave you and thought, “This doesn’t sound like me at all,” you’re not wrong.
That’s because ChatGPT doesn’t automatically know your voice. It doesn’t know your tone, your style, your phrasing, or the way you naturally talk to people. Not unless you tell it.
And the good news is you can. You can train it to sound more like you. More natural. More aligned with the way you actually write and speak.
And once you do, you’ll stop wasting time fixing awkward sentences and start creating content that actually feels like you. Your product listings will sound like your shop. Your emails more personal. Your social posts will come together faster because they actually sound like you.
In this guide, I’ll walk you through exactly how to do that. Step by step. No tech background needed. No degree required.
Just a simple, real approach that works.
Understand What Brand Voice Really Means
Let’s clear something up right away.
Your brand voice isn’t some fancy marketing thing reserved for big companies with style guides and mission statements. If you’ve ever answered a customer message, written a listing, or posted something on social media, you already have a voice.
It’s the way you communicate.
Some shop owners sound casual and funny. Others are more calming and thoughtful. Some keep things super simple and direct. Others add a little warmth and storytelling to everything they write.
There’s no right or wrong voice. What matters is that it feels like you, and that it’s consistent across everything you put out there.
That’s what builds trust. That’s what makes people recognize your shop and feel connected to it.
So before you train ChatGPT to sound like you, it helps to know what that voice actually is.
Define Your Voice in Plain Language
You don’t need to write a formal brand document. Just answer a few simple questions like you’re explaining it to a friend.
Here are some good ones to start with:
- If my brand were a person, how would they talk?
- What kind of tone do I want to set with my customers?
- What do I never want to sound like?
- Are there any words or phrases I use often?
- Are there any I always avoid?
You might end up with something like this:
- I want to sound friendly, clear, and helpful.
- I avoid formal or salesy language.
- I use contractions and everyday words.
- I like to sound like I’m talking directly to one person, not a crowd.
- I want people to feel relaxed, not pressured.
That’s more than enough to give ChatGPT some solid direction.
Create a Voice Prompt You Can Reuse
This part is where most people go wrong. They open ChatGPT and just start typing the task.
But if you don’t tell it how to write, it will guess. And its guesses usually lean toward stiff, formal, or overly enthusiastic.
That’s why we start every prompt with a short description of the voice we want. You can call it your voice prompt, and it stays the same no matter what you’re asking it to write.
Here’s a template you can copy and tweak:
Voice Prompt Template:
Write this in my brand voice.
Tone: Friendly, conversational, and supportive.
Style: Clear and easy to read. Use contractions. Keep it real.
Avoid: Salesy phrases, formal language, or anything that sounds robotic.
Goal: Make the reader feel understood and encouraged.
Then underneath that, you write what you want it to do.
For example:
Write this in my brand voice.
Tone: Friendly, conversational, and supportive.
Style: Clear and easy to read. Use contractions. Keep it real.
Avoid: Salesy phrases, formal language, or anything that sounds robotic.
Goal: Make the reader feel understood and encouraged.
Task: Write an Etsy product description for a printable planner designed for busy moms. Make it feel encouraging and helpful.
That simple structure makes a huge difference.
Show ChatGPT a Sample of Your Voice
If you’ve written something in the past that really felt like you… Maybe a listing, email, or social caption, you can give that to ChatGPT and ask it to match the tone.
Here’s how to do it:
- Copy a paragraph you like.
- Paste it into ChatGPT.
- Say something like:
This is an example of my writing voice. I like how it sounds here. Please match this tone in the next thing you write.
Then add your task underneath.
You’re giving it a sample to learn from, kind of like handing over a writing sample to a new assistant.
Edit What Comes Back
Even with a perfect voice prompt, the first version you get might be a little off. That’s normal.
Don’t toss it out. Just tell ChatGPT how to fix it.
Here are a few quick edits that work well:
- Make it sound more relaxed and natural
- Remove the salesy phrases
- Shorten the sentences
- Use simpler words
- Add a warmer, more encouraging tone
You’re not rewriting it yourself. You’re teaching ChatGPT how to improve. And the more specific you are, the better it gets.
Sometimes it only takes one or two tweaks to get exactly what you need.
Save Your Best Prompts for Later
Once you’ve written something that really works, like a great product listing, a clear email, or a caption that got lots of likes, don’t let it disappear.
Save it.
Even better, save the prompt that created it. That way you can reuse it next time and get the same tone with zero guesswork.
This becomes your personal prompt vault. You can organize it by task:
- Listings
- Emails
- Customer replies
- Social posts
- Shop updates
Each one can include the voice prompt at the top and the task below.
Having these ready to go saves you time and keeps your brand voice consistent without having to start from scratch every time.
Test It Across Different Platforms
Once you’ve trained ChatGPT on your voice, try using it in more than just one place. The goal is to build consistency, not just in how things read, but in how they feel to the customer no matter where they interact with you.
Here are a few ways to test it out:
- Write a few Etsy product listings in your new voice
- Create some Instagram captions using the same tone
- Rewrite your About page to match the brand style
- Draft a welcome email for new customers or subscribers
- Respond to a common customer question using your brand’s voice
As you work through these, you’ll start noticing what works and what needs adjusting. Maybe your listing descriptions sound good but your email feels a little stiff. Or maybe your social captions are too playful compared to your shop tone.
That’s all part of the process.
You can always go back and tweak your voice prompt or revise a sample until it feels right. The more you test your voice across different places, the more natural and familiar your brand becomes to the people buying from you.
Consistency builds trust. And trust builds sales.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Training ChatGPT
Before you go all-in on creating prompts and teaching your tone, here are a few common traps to avoid. These can save you some frustration and help you get better results from the start.
1. Giving Vague Instructions
Saying “write a product description” without any voice or tone guidance is like handing someone a paintbrush and telling them to just “make something.” It might turn out okay, but there’s a good chance it won’t match what you were picturing.
Instead, always include voice details like:
- Who it’s for
- What tone you want
- What to avoid
Even just a sentence or two of direction can make a huge difference.
2. Asking for Too Much at Once
Trying to get one prompt to do ten things is a recipe for generic writing. If you’re asking for a listing, a title, keywords, and five social captions all in one message, you’ll usually get a mix of results that don’t feel cohesive.
Break it up into steps. One thing at a time. Keep the voice consistent across each.
3. Ignoring Your Gut
If something feels off, trust that feeling. You know your brand better than any tool. Don’t be afraid to say, “This doesn’t sound like me,” and rework it or ask for a different approach.
ChatGPT is a helper, not a boss. You’re still in charge of what gets published.
A Quick Voice Checklist You Can Use Every Time
Here’s a simple checklist to keep nearby as you’re building your own brand voice system with ChatGPT. You can copy, print, or turn it into a little sticky note by your desk.
Before you hit “Send” on a prompt:
✅ Did I describe my tone or style?
✅ Did I include who the audience is?
✅ Did I ask ChatGPT to avoid anything specific?
✅ Did I break my request into one clear task?
✅ Did I provide a sample, if I had one?
After ChatGPT replies:
✅ Does this sound like something I’d say?
✅ Are the sentences clean, not too long or awkward?
✅ Is the tone consistent with the rest of my shop or brand?
✅ Would I feel good putting this in front of a customer?
You don’t need to be perfect. Just thoughtful. And consistent.
What Happens When You Get This Right
Once you’ve trained ChatGPT to match your voice, a few really helpful things start to happen.
1. You Save a Lot of Time
No more staring at a blank screen trying to write from scratch. You’ll have a set of working prompts that get you 80 percent of the way there, fast. From there, it’s just light editing and personal touches.
2. Your Brand Starts to Feel More “You”
Whether someone’s reading your listings, your emails, or your about page, it all starts to sound like it came from the same place. That creates trust. And trust creates sales.
3. You Build Confidence in Your Content
You stop second-guessing how something sounds or wondering if you’re “doing it right.” Instead, you know you’re showing up in a way that feels true to your business.
This is what separates stores people shop at once from the brands they keep coming back to.
Final Thoughts (Just You and Me, Creator to Creator)
If you’ve ever felt like your writing isn’t good enough, or like you don’t know how to “sound like a brand,” I want to remind you of something.
You don’t need to sound polished. You need to sound like you.
That’s what makes your work feel real. That’s what makes people pay attention.
ChatGPT is just a tool. It learns from what you give it. And the more honest and consistent you are with your tone, the more useful that tool becomes.
This isn’t about trying to sound bigger or more professional than you are. It’s about using your own voice more efficiently, more often, and with more confidence.
You already know how to talk to your customers. Now you’re just teaching your assistant to help.
Want to Make This Even Easier?
If you’d like to skip the trial and error and get a head start, I put together a free resource for you.
The Etsy Prompt Vault (Free Edition)
It’s a simple PDF that gives you 215 ready-to-use prompts for your Etsy listings, emails, social posts, and more.
They’re written for people like you. Real creators, not marketers. And they’re designed to save you time while keeping your shop sounding like you.
It’s totally free. And it pairs perfectly with the tips from this post.