The 8 dictation tones explained — when to use Casual vs Professional vs Formal vs Concise

AI dictation cleanup isn't one operation — it's a set of rules the model applies based on the tone you've picked. The same raw transcript will look very different on the page depending on which tone is selected. It's easy to keep the default Casual from day one and stop there, but that leaves the best part of the cleanup on the table.

Here's what each of the 8 tones actually does, when to use them, and before/after examples that show the difference.

The raw transcript we'll keep coming back to

For every tone below, we'll start from the same dictated audio:

"Um so basically I wanted to follow up on the proposal you sent over yesterday. I think uh the budget section looks good but I had a couple of questions about the headcount estimates. Specifically you have like twelve engineers in year two and I'm wondering you know if that's realistic given the hiring market right now."

This is honest dictation — filler words, restarts, casual phrasing, everything. Let's see what each tone does with it.

1. Casual — the default

Use when: friend chats, personal notes, anything where your normal voice is the right voice.

Casual cleanup strips filler words, applies basic punctuation, and keeps your phrasing intact. Doesn't add structure. Doesn't formalize.

"Wanted to follow up on the proposal you sent yesterday. The budget section looks good but I had a couple questions about the headcount estimates. Specifically — you have twelve engineers in year two, and I'm wondering if that's realistic given the hiring market right now."

2. Professional

Use when: business memos, formal correspondence, longer-form documents where you want measured language.

Professional removes contractions ("I'm" → "I am"), structures paragraphs more deliberately, and uses fuller phrasing.

"I wanted to follow up regarding the proposal you sent yesterday. The budget section looks reasonable, but I have a few questions about the headcount estimates. Specifically, your projection of twelve engineers in year two: is that realistic given current hiring conditions?"

3. Formal

Use when: legal and HR messages, anything going on the record, people you have never met.

Formal removes contractions, writes complete sentences and keeps a neutral register. No slang, no dash doing the work of a sentence, no warmth added that you did not speak.

"I would like to follow up on the proposal you sent yesterday. The budget section appears sound; however, I have two questions regarding the headcount estimates. The plan lists twelve engineers in year two, and I am not certain that is realistic given the current hiring market."

4. Very Casual

Use when: friends, group chats, anything you would normally text.

Very Casual keeps the slang and the short forms, drops the filler, and does not tidy the grammar into something you would never say out loud. It reads like a text message because that is what it is for.

"following up on that proposal from yesterday — budget looks good, but 12 engineers in year 2? not sure that's realistic with the hiring market rn"

5. Excited

Use when: announcements, launch notes, good news, messages where the energy is the point.

Excited keeps the words yours but lets the enthusiasm through: an exclamation where you meant one, no hedging, a forward-looking close. Use it on purpose — it is the one tone that reads wrong on bad news.

"Just went through the proposal you sent yesterday — the budget section looks great! Two questions on the headcount estimates: twelve engineers in year two is ambitious given the hiring market right now. Can't wait to dig into this together."

6. Empathetic

Use when: difficult news, pushback, anything the reader may take personally.

Empathetic acknowledges the other side before making the point and softens the hard parts without removing them. The facts you spoke stay in; the framing around them gets kinder.

"Thank you for sending the proposal over yesterday — I can tell a lot of work went into it. The budget section looks good. I do want to raise one thing on the headcount estimates: twelve engineers in year two may be hard to reach in the current hiring market, and I'd rather flag it now than later."

7. Concise

Use when: ticket descriptions, jira issues, anything where the next reader needs the gist fast.

Concise is the most aggressive at compression. Strips qualifiers, drops connective phrasing, keeps only the load-bearing facts. Often half the length of Casual.

"Question on the proposal's headcount: 12 engineers in year 2 may be unrealistic given the hiring market."

8. Friendly

Use when: customer messages, support replies, anything where warmth matters.

Friendly adds light warmth: opens with acknowledgement, uses softer phrasing, ends with an offer to help. Doesn't go overboard — it's warmth, not sycophancy.

"Thanks for sending the proposal! The budget section looks great. I do have a couple of questions about the headcount estimates — specifically, twelve engineers in year two seems ambitious given the current hiring market. Happy to discuss when you have a few minutes."

The 6 intent modes (the second dimension)

Each tone above pairs with an intent mode. The default is Refine — light cleanup, your voice preserved. Other modes change the model's job entirely:

• Refine — clean up. The default.
• Build — preserve code identifiers and technical terms verbatim. Use when dictating with code in your sentences.
• Summarize — condense the input to 3-6 bullet points of the key ideas. Useful for long brainstorms.
• Personalize — adapt the message to the person you are writing to: direct address, warmer phrasing.
• Collaborate — switch "I" to "we" and surface the action items. Built for team updates.
• Speak — natural spoken rhythm for voice memos, scripts and anything that will be read aloud.

8 tones × 6 modes = 48 distinct cleanup behaviors. That's overkill for most users — but you only need the handful you reach for daily.

How to actually choose

Most users only need three tones in active rotation:

• One default for routine work (Casual or Professional).
• One for chat and tickets (Concise) — it is also the one to reach for in Slack.
• One for anything on the record (Formal).

Tone lives in the Style tab and applies to every dictation until you change it, so pick the one that matches the next hour of work rather than the next message. After a week switching becomes a habit — and your output reads right for each context without you editing tone afterwards.

Dictate the same sentence under each of the 8 tones once. The differences surprise people.