During our Information Architecture process, we help clients organize their content and create a content creation plan for the different types of content to use on their new website. Our clients have experienced authors who are experts in their field, but writing for the web has its own challenges. Ginny Redish explains it well in Letting Go of the Words, “People come for information that answers their question or helps them complete their task. They want that information to be easy to find, easy to understand, accurate, up to date, and credible.” Since our clients do most of the writing for their sites, we created a Writing for the Web Toolkit to help them own their content.
Before we hand off the toolkit, we set up custom content types equipped with fields for each type of information needed. We also set up a menu system for clients to add static pages to their website. Our toolkit assists the organization’s authors in filling out these pages with organization-specific content. The document is intended to share tips, examples, and research around ways to communicate effectively with users looking for answers and information on the web. The toolkit includes four sections: Voice & Tone, Content Style Guide, Writing Tips, and Resources.
Contents of Our Toolkit
Voice & Tone
We start with a section that explains the importance of speaking with a consistent voice across all publications to reinforce your identity both online and in print. It notes that your tone can change based on the situation and platform you’re using.
To get our clients thinking about tone and voice we included a series of exercises that walks them through drafting the following:
- Mission Statement
- Brand Traits
- Audience Preference
- Engagement Styles
- Platforms to Post On
Content Style Guide
This section provides guidance on creating or adding to an organization’s style guide.
- Examples of well-organized guides
- Tips for writing style guides
- How-to create a glossary of preferred terms
Writing Tips
Although the first two sections are specific to an organization, the third is general guidelines everyone should use when writing for the web. It’s a full list of tips to keep in mind when writing content. For instance, here’s one of our tips:
Format Content to be Scanned
- Write one idea per paragraph
- Use lists when you can
- Make use of headings
- Avoid excessive commas that slow down reading
Resources
Finally, the resources section consists mostly of blog posts and documents used to create the toolkit or that bring in new or interesting aspects of writing for the web.
Clients & the Toolkit
When we send the toolkit to a client, we customize it for the individual organization. If a style guide already exists for an organization, we recommend ways they can improve it. We also include exercises throughout the toolkit to get the client thinking about voice and tone for their own writing.
These toolkits are living documents. We encourage our clients to complete the exercises, as well as add tips and resources they find to the document. Anything that pertains to content creation and maintenance gets added to the toolkit from both sides. This results in a fresh document full of case studies, blog posts, and analyses.
Not only does this provide concrete suggestions for our clients to improve their writing, it also enriches communication and grounds discussion around best practices.
How do you help your clients write content for their new website? If you use a writing toolkit, what does yours consist of?