Active & Passive Voice

A Comprehensive Guide
What are the Active & Passive Voices?

Active Voice describes a sentence where the subject performs the

action stated by the verb.

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What are the Active & Passive Voices?

In Passive Voice sentences, the subject is acted upon by the verb.

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What are the Active & Passive Voices?

Example

Active: “John sent the email”

Passive: “the email was sent BY JOHN”

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The Active Voice

The Active Voice is clearer, more decisive and confident.

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The Active Voice

IN PROPOSALS, Active Voice should always be used

to assert actions.

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The Passive Voice

Passive Voice may weaken your message.

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The Passive Voice

Active Voice tends to result in direct, shorter sentences - very useful

for proposals.

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Top Tips for using the Active &
Passive Voice

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Top Tips for using the Active & Passive Voice

Use active sentences as much as possible.

Strengthens your message – MAKES IT clearer, more confident and direct.
This is a sentence where a person acts and seems more persuasive, convincing
and viable.

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Top Tips for using the Active & Passive Voice

Use a passive sentence when you do not know/want to

mention the actor.
When admitting a mistake, the passive voice accepts responsibility but doesn’t
‘name and shame’ an individual or overly accept the mistake.

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Top Tips for using the Active & Passive Voice

Use a passive sentence when THE received is more important

than THE actor.
This tool can really help clarify the sentence and focus on the customer benefit,
rather than the specific processes giving you that benefit.

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Top Tips for using the Active & Passive Voice

Use passive construction to link sentences.

When you want to focus on two services offered or two sections of your proposal,
it is better to link them using the passive voice.
This keeps a complicated question simpler for the customer, and conveys your
message in a more effective way.

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Top Tips for using the Active & Passive Voice

Use personal pronouns and active voice to convey clarity.

When you use the active voice and personal pronouns like ‘I’ or ‘we’, your
proposal becomes more personable and human to your customer and is more
likely to establish connection.

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Top Tips for using the Active & Passive Voice

Convert passive sentences to active by simple re-thinking.

It may seem hard to convert a pre-existing sentence to the active voice. Give it
some time and some thought, all sentences can be re-arranged.

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Conclusion

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Conclusion

Almost every sentence in your proposal should use the active voice.

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Conclusion

The only exceptions are when

The active voice obscures meaning or you are talking about something negative &
accepting responsibility.
You want to emphasize customer benefit.

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Conclusion

A simple redraft of existing materials can help remove unnecessary

uses of the passive voice & make your proposal stronger,
clearer & more confident.

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