Plain language policy

Before you even start creating a page, ask yourself, “Do I really need a web page for this?”. People visit websites for content they think (or hope) is there. They want information that:

• Answers a question or helps them complete a task.
• Is easy to find and understand.
• Is accurate, up-to-date and credible.

Put the important information first

Describe what the page is about, if not fully clear from the title. Most people won't read the whole page, so the most important information should be in the first sentences. Use mostly short, one- or two-sentence paragraphs. For example, the Pet Ownership & Licensing page explains in the first paragraph that licenses are for cats and dogs, so if the user has a pet bunny, they'll see that and know they don't need to keep reading.

Break up your content

Only address one topic per page. Break up large, long content pages into smaller ones.

While short page lengths help users understand content and find what they need more quickly, you don't want to force them to click through multiple pages to get all the content they need if it would make more sense on one page.

Aim for 600 words or less on a single page. If your page needs to be longer, make sure to use headings to split up the content into easy-to-digest chunks. Most people don’t read online, they scan. Users scan for headings, hyperlinks, short descriptions, lists and keywords or phrases that match their task at hand. You need to make sure these things are present and properly organized so that people can find what they need on a page.

Mobile visitors may be viewing your website from a small screen, so that makes it even more important to have these navigational aids so that users can get to the content they're looking for.

Tone and voice

The City of Calgary’s writing style is conversational. It helps to remember that we’re communicating in a friendly manner with citizens, not at them. So, we write in a similar fashion to the way people speak. Write as if speaking directly to one person only: One person logged onto the website, one pair of eyes reading that newspaper or watching that television message.

Some tips for speaking in a conversational tone:

• Review for windy, outdated or repetitive language: Omit words like: “a total of”, “absolutely”, “extremely”, “in due course”, etc. 
• Use contractions: Use to the degree that it is appropriate to the audience and circumstance. Use "we’re" ... rather than "we are," "we’ll" ... rather than "we shall" or "we will", "that’s" ... rather than "that is."
• Use informal language: Words such as "of the" often can be replaced by a more informal simple plural, or an apostrophe followed by an "s" to indicate ownership. "The road's surface" ... rather than "surface of the road," "community leaders ..." rather than "leaders of the community."
• Always use plain language, to make sure that you'll be understood. 
• Avoid using City acronyms: Few Calgarians know City-generated acronyms. If you can't avoid using one, spell the term out in full on the first use followed by the acronym in parentheses — the information instructed citizens to apply to the Assessment Review Board (ARB) to appeal an assessment.

Accessibility

A few web-specific style tips to increase accessibility for users with disabilities:

• When writing hashtags, capitalize the first letter of each word. For vision impaired users using a screenreader, this allows the screenreader to read it properly.
  • Wrong: #canadaday
  • Correct: #CanadaDay
• Never use generic text like "read more" or "click here" on links, as screenreader users will not necessarily know the context of surrounding text. Link text should describe what's behind the link.

Do I need multiple pages?

There should only be one topic or sub topic per page. If splitting content into multiple pages, you should have a main page that introduces the content, and secondary pages for background and related information.

Quick tips

• Follow the Canadian Press Stylebook standards for all writing and editing. The City Style Guide is used for specific standards on communicating City services and activities.
• You must use “The City” instead of the specific business unit whenever possible. A citizen looking for a service or product may not necessarily care or even know about which business unit provides it.
• Don't use emojis on web pages. Not everyone understands what a particular emoji may mean, so your message can get lost or misunderstood.

Headings group related content and help users find the information they are looking for on a page. Headings help users scan the page and find the information they need. It's easier to understand the content if it's broken up into chunks. For vision impaired users who are using a screen reader, titles and headings help them easily get to the part of the content they want without having to listen to the entire page. Search engines also benefit from headings, as they tell the search engines what is on a page and what is important. 

The title of a page tells a user what content is on the page, and that they have found the information they are seeking (ex. Recreation facilities). Titles should be concise, powerful, and descriptive of what your page is about. The title should be unique to the page, and  clearly distinguished from pages with similar or related content.

Writing titles and headings

Your page title and headings are a key part of your content. Put thought into writing good headings, and don't leave them as an afterthought.

• Use three to five descriptive keywords – words people are likely to search for
• Start the heading with the most important words
• Write headings and titles in sentences case. Only the first word and proper nouns are capitalized.
• Each heading should accurately describe the content in the section. People may only be scanning subheadings to find what they need.
• If your heading doesn't seem to cover only one topic, you may need to break up the section and use subheadings.

Heading levels

• Heading 1 <h1> is for the title at the top of the page. This is the only time this heading is used.
• Heading 2 <h2> is for subheadings within the page to break the content into chunks that can be easily scanned and consumed. Most pages will only use the <h2> level.
• Heading 3 <h3> subheadings can go within those sections, then Heading 4 <h4> if needed. Only use lower levels for content within and related to a higher level.

Examples

Title

• Aquatic & Fitness Centres – Swimming Pools

Headings

• Swimming pool locations
• What’s happening at our pools
• Find swimming programs

The identity matrix is a City of Calgary tool to help communication planners decide on the tone of a particular message and how closely communication materials should adhere to certain corporate standards.

The Creative Services team works with business unit clients to determine where a project fits on the identity matrix, which shapes style and content. These audience guidelines are flexible enough to accommodate communications ranging from the formality of legal public notices to the informality of skateboard park posters.

Whenever appropriate, strategic corporate messaging should be integrated into tactical communication pieces. This involves key messages, phrases and reinforcing Council priority items and/or corporate goals. All strategic messages should be communicated in terms of their relevance to the target audience, and should never be self-serving.

Using the identity matrix as a guide will create  crossover benefits of coordinated messaging both internally and externally.

Common to all quadrants

The copy must:

• Be friendly, jargon-free and audience-appropriate.
• Be concise with a maximum of three short sentences per paragraph.
• Be inclusive rather than exclusive, using personal pronouns like “we” and "you".
• Use connecting words and phrases to draw readers through the copy..

Informational-Wide audience

Should be institutional and formal, a straightforward, explanatory and neutral presentation of information. Words and images used should be concrete, direct, factual and jargon-free.

Pronouns should be first-person plural (we) speaking directly to (you) second-person singular or plural. Contractions may be used and some continuity techniques (so, but, and) are permissible.

In print, headlines should express a complete thought, with subheads to break up copy blocks and aid comprehension and retention. Wherever appropriate, contact information should be included.

Informational-Niche audience

Should be appropriate to the target market while maintaining a strong corporate base. Words and images should be compelling and meaningful to the target audience, while respectful of the corporate persona. Corporate jargon must be avoided; all messaging must be written in street-speak. The only appropriate jargon or buzz words are used by members of the target group themselves. Such language or imagery may be an appropriate way to make a connection with the audience.

Pronouns should be first-person plural (we) speaking directly to (you) second-person singular or plural. Contractions may be used and some continuity techniques (so, but, and) would be helpful.

All messages should open with an identifier – a statement or call for attention that the target audience can immediately recognize. Contact information should be included with all messages. Copy blocks should be short and divided by subheads, encouraging the reader to move through the copy.

Motivational-Wide audience

Present the selling/convincing arguments from the top down, beginning with the most powerful point and repeating this point at the end of the message. Words should be informal and conversational. Images should be emotional and personal.

Use the pronouns we and you with your family, your community and other personal connections where appropriate. The use of contractions is encouraged and continuity techniques (so, but, and) are essential.

Copy blocks should be short and paragraphs kept to two or three sentences. Headlines may call for action supported by a reason why. Copy subheads should be crafted as at-a-glance persuaders.

Motivational-Niche audience

Present selling/convincing arguments based on what is meaningful to the specific target audience. Words and images should be informal, personal and appropriate to the target audience.

Use the pronouns we and you with other personal connections wherever appropriate. Contractions and continuity techniques (so, but, and) guide the reader through the content.

Copy blocks should be short and conversational and paragraphs kept to two or three sentences. Headlines may call for action supported by a reason why. Copy subheads tell the message even if the reader skims the heads and subheads.