WEB WRITING WITH POWER IN 1 HOUR. presented by Uyen Mai, Public Affairs, Cal Poly Pomona

Transcription

1 WEB WRITING WITH POWER IN 1 HOUR presented by Uyen Mai, Public Affairs, Cal Poly Pomona

2 This training will cover Why good web writing matters What good web writing looks like How to reach more audiences Image courtesy of jscreationzs via freedigitalphotos.net

3 WHY BOTHER?

4 Welcome to our site? Universities can be hard to navigate. By thoughtfully organizing a web presence, we can help students and the community find the information they need. Image courtesy of FurUndBeidl via Flickr

5 A quarter of prospective students decide not to apply to a college because of a bad experience on the college s web site. The Chronicle of Higher Education

6 Why now? Website redesign project = new opportunities New sites start rolling out spring 2013! New system offers simple way to update content from anywhere Easily customize how much access each team member has New system has tablet and smart phone friendly design Image courtesy of Antoine Lefeurve via Wikimedia

7 WHAT DOES GOOD CONTENT LOOK LIKE?

8 Good web site content is 1. Well organized Clearly identifies the site Clearly shows its relationship to the university Organizes information in a logical, intuitive way 2. Well written Easy to understand Concise Accurate Ethical 3. Well presented Accessible Visually appealing Plenty of white space Image courtesy of patpichaya via

9 1 - Organizing your information Put yourself in your audiences shoes Figure out important content What services do you offer? About us? Contacts? Do you need audience specific pages? Ex. Student Services versus Faculty/Staff Services Organize by the user s needs Image courtesy of manostphoto via freedigitalphotos.net

10 Best practice Stanford University

11 Have a clear identity First and foremost, we are Cal Poly Pomona Follow our logo guidelines for the web (graphic standards) Include a link to the Cal Poly Pomona home page Use our university colors Make it easy for people to understand: Who you are What you do Whom you serve How to get more information

12 Best practice Armstrong Atlantic State University

13 2 Good web sites are well written

14 Which is easier to read? There are many ways to make your web site easier to read. Highlighting keywords by bolding, highlighting or making them a link help make the key ideas pop. Lists of ideas should be organized in easy to scan bullets. When writing the text, just put one key idea per paragraph. It s important to keep your text short and concise. Also, don t assume people will read through the page, so make your important points at the top of the page. Things that make web pages easier to read: Highlighted keywords Organized lists 1. Bulleted lists 2. Numbered lists One key idea per paragraph Important points at the top Short and concise wording

15 Write for the web Start by identifying the main idea of the page. Identify the target audience Identify the takeaway messages Organize key information at the top Offer one key idea per paragraph Short and concise wording Make the text easy to skim Use bullets and lists Highlight keywords and phrases

16 Write for the audience Recognize your key audiences Consider separating information based on their needs. Write from your audiences point of view Don t assume they understand our organizational chart Clearly identify for them who you are, what you do Clarify other partners or departments who can help them Add links to help them navigate the campus web and find their needs

17 Use active voice (usually) ACTIVE The subject is doing something with an object PASSIVE The subject is not the active player in the sentence The subject is being acted upon Write this The speaker provided examples Not that Examples were provided by the speaker Facilities staff will test alarms Alarms will be tested by facilities staff Professors encourage hands-on learning Hands-on learning is encouraged by professors

18 Cut the fluff Stick to the purpose of the web page Avoid weak phrases with little meaning Write this If Because Can Will (blank) Not that In the event of Upon these circumstances Due to the fact that For the following reasons Have the ability to In the position to Could possibly Will have the opportunity to Will help to You may want to consider It may appear Needless to say

19 Be accurate Confirm your facts Always double check dates, times, locations, numbers and figures Use the right sources to base your information Help people contextualize the information is the data old or new? Is it current and relevant to them? Follow approval process Each department usually has an approval process Make sure you know and follow your department s process Consider outside issues Check your text from the readers viewpoints Are there any legal issues? Privacy issues? Any partners to reference or acknowledge? Image courtesy of renjith krishnan via freedigitalphotos.net

20 3 Good web sites are well presented Accessible to the visually impaired Visually appealing Carefully incorporate Multimedia Can be images, graphics, audio, video To help tell the story, not clutter

21 Content is structured and labeled Title your page Search engines utilize these Use original titles Include keywords people search with Use headlines and subheadings Include keywords people search with Aim for functional, not clever Highlight keywords Use bulleted or numbered lists

22 Content is descriptive Reach more viewers by keeping your site accessible Hyperlinks - choose descriptive phrases WRITE THIS: More information is available in the Social Media Whitepaper. NOT THIS: More information is available by clicking here. Alt Tag - for visually impaired it describes the image WRITE THIS: The United States flag NOT THIS: Rectangular fabric with 13 alternating stripes of red and white as well as a blue box in the upper left containing 50 white stars. Transcrips/Captions Transcribe audio for people who cannot or do not wish to view/hear the content. Videos should be captioned.

23 Content respects copyrighted material Faculty and staff are free to use Public Affairs photos for Cal Poly Pomona business Contact Tom Zasadzinski, (909) , Get guilt-free images on creative commons and photo sites. (See additional resources) Check for licensing terms. Make sure to attribute if it is required. You can avoid attribution of the image by purchasing usage rights, ranging from about $1 to $20.

24 Example 1: Campus Photo Database Canto Cumulus Sites a.edu/sites/ Faculty/staff login with your Bronco username/password Keyword searches Sort results by date from older to newer, newer to older

25 Example 2 Wikimedia Commons Wikimedia Creative Commons Just attribute the owner Ex. Image courtesy of Antoine Lefeurve via Wikimedia Commons Author Name Licensing Info

26 HOW TO REACH MORE AUDIENCES

27 Write to be found in a web search Use common keywords people would use when they search for you on the web Write useful content relevant to those keywords Update your content regularly Increase incoming links to your material so your site is considered trustworthy and relevant Place keywords in your Page Title Heading and Subheading Body Image courtesy of Danard Vincente via Flickr Creative Commons

28 Finding keywords Google Keyword Suggestions Type in a keyword See other related keywords and their popularity

29 Make the site accessible Keep high contrast between color of text and background Fill in the alternate text (or alt tags) to describe images Provide hyperlink descriptions that make sense WRITE THIS: A list of programs is available. NOT THIS: For programs, click here. Caption video Transcribe audio

30 Create a network Link back and forth to related concepts Are there related programs you can acknowledge? Do people confuse your services with another program? Acknowledge that and provide a hyperlink. Are there partner organizations you can consider? Ex. Public Affairs is the central communication office, but we provide links to other communications on campus, like the student paper. Cite your sources Acknowledges they are a resource Helps them build their brand identity Helps you build your credibility Helps the reader understand the campus better Ex. Link to Financial Aid if you are citing their statistics. Provide links for additional information You don t have to reinvent the wheel

31 Additional Resources University Library guide: Finding Content for Reuse Best Practices: Writing for the Web SEO Copyrighting Made Simple Free and low cost image options (free options in small sizes) (attribute to the owner) (attribute to the owner) (about $2 a photo) (high end, but gorgeous!) Campus photographs Tom Zasadzinski, (909) , tzasadzinski@csupomona.edu

32 THANK YOU.