Download Web writing, email and social media guide

Web writing, email and social media guide
1. Writing and editing for the web
People read websites very differently from print. They scan for information and often
stay no longer than a few seconds, so it is vital to:
 Write informative titles
 Write less (approximately 50% less than print)
 Use short sentences and paragraphs.
 Use bullets and subheadings to break up content
 Use descriptive link text
Write for your audience
Keep your audience in mind when writing for the web. What do they want to know?
Where do they want to go next? Make sure important information is easy to find.
Use simple language and keywords
Using simple keywords is important on the web. You do not search for “competitively
priced flights” but may search for “cheap flights”. Think about how you would search
for something, and these are the words you should be using.
Use descriptive titles
Page titles should clearly describe the subject. Clever pun headlines found in
newspapers don’t work online. Web readers want to know from the title what the
page is about. A descriptive title will also help the page rank higher in search
engines.
Put the important stuff first
Give the reader what they want as quickly as possible. Put the important facts first
and the more detailed information at the end. This is called the inverted pyramid.
You will notice how online news sites summarise stories in the first two lines.
Break up content
Use subheadings, bullet lists, and short paragraphs to break up content and make a
page easier for a reader to scan. Paragraphs should be much shorter than in print usually just one or two sentences.
Linking
The clickable link text should describe what you are linking to, not just a message
such as “click here”. Put links at the end of sentences (not in the middle) or on their
own at the bottom of the article or on a separate line. This makes them easy to find
for a reader scanning the page.
 Good - The School has more information about the book Good Health.
 Bad - For more about the book Good Health, click here
If using the web address as a link, do not include the http:// Eg www.bbc.co.uk
Linking to documents
Let the reader know the type and size of document they are opening.
Eg Download the Annual report (PDF, 76KB)
Avoid underlining, changing fonts, and different colours
Underlining text that isn’t a link confuses users and should be avoided.
Different colours and fonts are distracting and actually make the page less readable.
Consider using subheadings, bullet points and bold, to make content stand out.
Image size
Images should be reduced to the right size before uploading to a webpage, to ensure
fast loading. Images can be resized using software such as Photoshop and GIMP.
Alt text for images
All images should have Alt text. This appears when the image can’t be displayed (eg
those using screen readers). Alt text should describe what the image is.
Metadata
Every web page you create should have metadata. Where the CMS allows, please
complete the following:
 Title: The title of the page
 Description: A concise description (1 or 2 sentences) of what the page is about.
This can appear in search results.
 Keywords: Keywords are less important for external search engines than they
once were, but it is important to include them for the School’s internal search.
Useful resources
Please also refer to the School’s Web Code of Practice.
BBC – writing for web
2.
Email style and etiquette
This section briefly covers good email etiquette. For more details and School
policies, please refer to IT Services help and documentation web pages
All staff and student emails
Please avoid the use of mass emails to all staff and students wherever possible.
Consider whether there is a more targeted way of getting your message out. For
example, you could put your information on a web or intranet page, or send an email
to a list of selected staff and students.
You can promote events by emailing the events team [email protected], who will
upload them on our website, and to be featured in Chariot, the School’s weekly
newsletter for all staff and students.
Attachments
Before sending an attachment, ask yourself whether it is necessary. Whenever
possible you should put all the information you are sending in the body of the email
or link to a shared folder or relevant page on the web or intranet.
When you send attachments, make sure to keep your file sizes as small as is
practical. For example, you can reduce the file size of a PDF when saving out of MS
Word.
CC and BC
To reduce inbox clutter, please only carbon copy (CC) people who need to see the
message. Use the blind carbon copy field (BC) if you are sending a message to a
large group of recipients so they don’t see a long list of email addresses.
The use of BC also stops everyone on the list seeing replies from people who have
chosen the reply all option.
Formatting
It is best to use plain, readable fonts and colours. Also avoid the use of ALL CAPS,
which can give your message an unintended aggressive tone.
Legal and security issues
Remember that all work emails are School records and may be disclosed in
response to Freedom of Information or Data Protection requests.
Never write anything in an email that would defame an individual, make you or the
School liable to litigation or embarrassment.
Do not send personal or sensitive information by email as it is not a secure means of
communication.
Out of office messages
Use your own discretion as to when to activate this. Keep the message short and
polite, for example:
Thank you for your message. I am currently away from the office / on leave / with limited access to the
internet. I look forward to responding to you when I return on eg 1 September. If you have an urgent
enquiry about XXX, please contact my colleague [email protected]
Regards
ZZZ
Salutations
Emails tend to be less formal than letters, and there are various acceptable
salutations (Dear, Hi, etc...), depending on your relationship with the recipient and
the content of the email. It is good practice with colleagues you know well to use
their name alone, although may can appear abrupt to those you know less well.
Signatures
Please use plain text signatures, avoiding use of unusual fonts, formatting, colours,
logos and graphics. For example:
Yours sincerely
Andrew Young
Chief Operating Officer
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7927 2558
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.lshtm.ac.uk
In email correspondence among colleagues or people you know well, it is
unnecessary and can be distracting to include long signatures. It is good practice to
keep a short version of your signature for default use among close colleagues, eg:
Best wishes
Imran
Subject field
Use clear, short descriptions, and if possible restrict the email to one subject, for
easy filing.
Useful resources
For help with using the School’s email system:

Visit the IT Services help and documentation web pages

Check the help guide which can be found in the top GroupWise menu bar

Contact the IT Services Helpdesk on x5000
12 tips for better e-mail etiquette (Microsoft)
3.
Social media
We encourage staff and students to use social media such as Twitter, Facebook and
LinkedIn to promote or discuss School activities. Here are some tips and guidelines
to keep in mind.
Understand your audience and purpose
Think about your general goals and who you are trying to reach. Is it a general
audience or other academics? Is it a certain age bracket? What will they be
interested in? Knowing these answers will help you decide which services to use.
Know whom you represent
It is important to be transparent about who you are and what you are doing. Attempts
at deception or misuse can damage reputations and may have legal consequences.
If you wish to create an account that expresses the official views of the School or a
part of the School such as a faculty or department, please contact the External
Relations team before you start.
If you wish to express your own views, you should add a disclaimer to your profile
that the views expressed are your own, and do not represent not those of the
School.
Which social media channel is best for you?
You don’t need to be on all of them. Twitter and Facebook have the biggest reach,
but depending on your audience, Linkedin may be a better choice.
Consider the types of content you can create. Will you be able to produce a steady
stream of photos, videos and text? This will help you decide which platform works
best for you. Photoblogging sites such as Tumblr are becoming increasingly popular.
For video sharing, YouTube is the biggest, but there are others, often with more
specialist audiences.
For practical help getting started, try the help sections on the social media sites
themselves. Need some advice? Contact the External Relations team.
Engage with people
Don’t just broadcast your message. It is important to listen and interact with other
users to boost your appeal and spread your message.
Online discussion can become heated at times, so try to keep your messages
measured and appropriate to avoid conflict.
Remember:
 Laws governing defamation apply to what you do online
 You must respect publication embargo agreements
 You must abide by the terms of service for the social platform you are using
Copyright and privacy
You must hold the copyright for a work or have the expressed permission of the
copyright holder to publish it online. Crediting content creators is always good
practice, and it is sometimes required as part of a licensing agreement.
If you want to draw your audience’s attention to a piece of content that is already
online, it is often a better approach to link to that content rather than duplicate it. In
the course of your work at the School you may be privy to sensitive information.
Before sharing what you know online, stop to think about whether it is appropriate to
do so.
The School’s library website has copyright guidance. Please also see the Information
Management and Compliance section on the Intranet.
5.1 Social media at the School
Have a look at the School’s social media before you start and think about how you
can fit in with what is already happening.
 School News Facebook page
 Archives Twitter feed
 School LinkedIn page
 Library Twitter feed
 Alumni Facebook page
 IT Services Twitter feed
 Alumni Association on Flickr
 Careers Twitter feed
 Alumni Association on LinkedIn
 Alumni Twitter feed
 Student Facebook page
 Malaria Centre Twitter feed
 Press Twitter feed
 Centre for Evaluation Twitter feed
Useful Resources
Social media (Mashable) http://mashable.com/social-media/
LinkedIn guidance from Mun Keat Looi, Wellcome Trust http://wellc.me/linkedincrib