Know your audience
Before you start writing, it is important to understand your target audience. Who are they? What are their interests and needs? What do they want to learn or accomplish by visiting your website?
Tailor your content to their needs and interests to ensure that they find your content valuable and engaging.
It's important to know that your public-facing website isn't the appropriate place to put information only relevant to current students and staff.
Internal systems like SharePoint, UL Connect and Brightspace should be used to host information that only applies to those audiences.
Using a public-facing website to host information that isn't of value to external audiences can create a confusing user experience and make the site cluttered.
Know your audience and what you want them to know
Keep it concise
Web content should be concise and to the point.
People tend to scan web pages rather than reading them thoroughly, so break up your content into short paragraphs, use headings and subheadings to guide the reader, and use bullet points or numbered lists to highlight essential information.
Get to the point: Why you should keep content concise
Use plain language
Avoid using jargon or technical terms that may not be familiar to your audience. Use plain language that is easy to understand and conveys your message clearly.
Avoiding overly-academic and technical speak isn't "dumbing down', it's opening up.
Writing in plain English: Just say what you mean
UL Accessibility Hub: Writing in plain English
Use engaging headings
Headings are a critical part of web content as they guide readers and entice them to read further.
Use headings that are descriptive, clear and engaging to capture the reader's attention and encourage them to read on.
Use heading formats (H1, H2, H3 and so on) in appropriate, descending order.
Headings are also vital to ensure people using assistive technologies can navigate webpages.
Learn more about writing content accessibly.
Make it scannable
As mentioned earlier, people tend to scan web pages rather than reading them thoroughly.
Use visual aids like images, videos and infographics to break up text and make it more engaging and scannable.
Use descriptive links instead of 'click here' to help the user work out where links will take them more quickly.
Use the active voice
Active voice is more engaging than passive voice. Use active voice to keep your content lively and engaging.
Example:
Active voice: The President welcomed the delegates.
Passive voice: The delegates were welcomed by the President.
More information on our tone of voice.
Optimise for search engines
To ensure your content is discoverable on search engines, use keywords relevant to your content throughout your text.
Use descriptive meta descriptions and tags to help search engines better understand your content.
A quick guide to Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
Edit and proofread
Always edit and proofread your content before publishing it.
This will ensure that your content is free of spelling and grammatical errors and that it conveys your message clearly.