A user's guide to writing promotional copy for the University of Reading
Contents
1. Who whom Use who when it is the subject of a verb Use whom to represent the object of a verb or preposition If you are in any doubt always use who as whom is falling into disuse The student who was using the computer the student is the subject of the verb use The student whom you saw using the computer the student is the object of the verb see Your you re Your is possessive You re is a contraction of you are Your students are welcome to attend this lecture You re welcome to attend this lecture 5 4 2 Spelling Use normal British spellings on University publications and websites unless this is inappropriate for your discipline Therefore use colour not color traveller not traveler 5 4 3 Punctuation Good punctuation will help your reader to understand the meaning of your text Punctuation is a large and potentially complex topic as there is variation in practice However there is much published about it both in print and online If you want to read more about its use you may find the Penguin guide to punctuation and the website www correctpunctuation co uk useful reference sources The guidance here relates to editorial conventions and our advice on which form to use where options exist As a general guide e Keep punctuation consistent throughout a publication e Use t2. The heart of university life is our Whiteknights campus This beautiful 320 acre park is the biggest of our three sites Open spaces a lake abundant wildlife and rare trees feature in the landscape Everything you need is here or nearby including most academic departments and the main library Traditional and contemporary buildings house top quality teaching and research facilities particularly in the areas of information technology life sciences and physics lt Back to contents Finding the right words 3 The principles of good promotional writing The quality and content of written material represents the difference between success and failure in getting your message across Well consid ered design and imagery are equally important Working together good copy and good design make a powerful combination They enable you to engage and then influence persuade or sell to your target audience The first contact that many of your target audiences will have with you is via the written word whether through printed materials or the Univer sity s websites Here we outline 10 key principles of writing effective promotional copy for print Further details are explained in this guide s sections on Preparing to write section 4 and Writing well section 5 There are many common factors when writing for the web but there are also additional considerations 3 1 Ten key principles Accurate Be sure of your facts Everyth
3. 4 3 lt Back to contents Finding the right words Persuasive Persuasive copy is stimulating and empathetic Keep language fresh and lively to retain the reader s interest Paint a picture through an imagina tive choice of content and words as this will fix your messages in the reader s mind Structured Structure your text so key messages are at the beginning and content runs in a logical order Would changing the order of the content improve comprehension and or the flow Would subheadings aid navigation Refer to Preparing to write Content and structure 4 3 Targeted Always keep your target audience s in mind Try to get inside the reader s head and appeal directly in a way that takes account of their specific needs desires preferences interests and tastes Refer to Preparing to write Know your audience 4 1 True to image Ensure that the relevant University s values are explicit in everything you write Refer to Communicating our values 2 1 For details of copy promoting the University refer to the University Word Bank 6 1 3 1 Eight extra principles when writing for the web All the points above are applicable to the web and there are some extra principles to bear in mind Underlining and italicising e Text should never be underlined on the web or in print Web readers expect underlined text to be a link e Italics should be used rarely as they are less legible on scree
4. and try now should always be avoided They are inaccessible to some users with disabilities and they are completely uninformative to scan readers Where possible match the link text to the title of the linked page If by clicking a link the web reader will visit another website make sure you let them know e Keep your links and headings short and direct and make sure they are honest about what they represent don t exaggerate link text to try and fool someone into reading the content They won t read it and you may have lost a visitor to your website e When quoting University website and email addresses be sure to use the full form of the address with the entire word reading e g www reading ac uk or john smith reading ac uk Write global simple language e People from across the world might read your content so keep them in mind when writing promotional content Keep it current e The web reader assumes that all online published material is up to date If you are unable to review your web content at least every six months you should reduce it to a manageable size Finding the right words 4 Preparing to write 4 1 Know your audience It isn t just what you say that The first step to getting it right is understanding your audience Consider people notice or remember e How much does your target audience already know Avoid repeating but how you say it content provided in previously supplied literature e
5. 12 lt Back to contents Finding the right words Be clear Avoid a complex verbose or laboured style of writing Find the simplest way to express your point Here are some real examples with suggested alternatives Example Alternative If you embark on the single X degree Even when studying for a single course it is still possible to pursuean honours degree at the University interest in other subjects by replacing of Reading you can take modules one or two of your X options in Years in many other subjects during your 2 3 with a module or modules from second and third years elsewhere in the University Students will expand the range depth In your second and third years you and sophistication of their knowledge will expand the range depth and of X through the structured progres sophistication of your knowledge of sion of the programme through Parts X 1 and 2 and through Part 3 5 4 Grammar spelling and punctuation Always check your text for grammar syntax punctuation and spelling As an educational institution we must lead by example Proof read a minimum of three times and get at least one other proof reader Write complete sentences unless you are presenting information in a bulleted or numbered list 5 4 1 Grammar There is much to consider in this area but here are a few key points related to the most common errors in alphabetical order Examples Grammatical term correct u
6. e If the quoted words do not forma full sentence then the full stop is placed after the second quotation mark I asked Joanna about it and she said leave it till next week so that s what I ll do In the words of Winston Churchill From now on ending a sentence with a preposition is something up with which will not put It was Samuel Johnson who advised us not to employ big words for little matters 21 Please follow these guidelines to ensure consistency throughout University materials lt Back to contents Finding the right words 6 Adopting the house style 6 1 University of Reading conventions Abbreviations and acronyms Ifyou use abbreviations and acronyms spell out the word s in full at the first occurrence usually followed with the abbreviation or acronym in brackets You can use the abbreviated version or acronym after that However if there is a large number of abbreviations or acronyms in your text it may be useful to provide a glossary of terms or footnotes This is particularly the case when addressing international audiences who may be unfamiliar with United Kingdom UK acronyms There is no need to write out in full any commonly understood acronyms e g BBC IBM It s easy to remember when to use full stops with abbreviations If the abbre viation is part of a personal name H for Henry T S for Thomas Stearns use a full stop If it consists of capital letters
7. University of Reading Finding the right words A user s guide to writing promotional copy for the University of Reading Finding the right words For more information please contact Anne Goodwyn Head of Marketing a goodwyn reading ac uk COMED ETAWART www reading ac uk branding Using this document This is an interactive and fully searchable document Click the section title in the contents list to jump to that section and the link at the foot of each page to return To search the document press Ctrl F Click on a web address to visit that page in your browser Introduction 3 1 1 Promoting a strong image for the University 3 1 2 Writing for the web 3 1 3 University Word Bank 4 Communicating our values s The principles of good promotional writing 7 3 1 Ten key principles 7 3 1 Eight extra principles when writing for the web 8 Preparing to write 10 4 1 Know your audience 10 4 2 Purpose and proposition 10 4 3 Content and structure 10 Writing well 1 5 1 Use engaging language 11 5 2 Use inclusive language 11 5 3 Friendly professional style and tone 12 5 4 Grammar spelling and punctuation 13 5 4 1 Grammar 13 5 4 2 Spelling 16 5 4 3 Punctuation 16 Adopting the house style 22 6 1 University of Reading conventions 22 6 2 University terminology 27 6 3 University titles 28 Resources 29 7 1 University Word Bank 29 7 2 Useful editorial references 29 If you would like further adv
8. C Celsius N S E W NATO UNESCO SPQR MA or a combination of capitals and lower case MPhil BSc MDes Mr Rev Ms Mrs Dr loW CSsR you don t need full stops If it consists entirely of lower case use full stops to avoid ambiguity no for number in for inch SI units for example C mm cm kW Hz and abbreviations which are rendered unambiguous by their context am and pm do not need points Your disci pline may have its own conventions in which case you should use them but please make sure you do so consistently In display work abbreviations may appear without full stops if this improves appearance without ambiguity Example Fr T C O Connor CSsR was priest in charge at St Mugo s He had obtained a PhD from North Carolina University on NATO s contribution to the SALT and his home address was 15 High St N Cowes loW His website operated at 50 Hz and was active from 11 am to 7 pm Addresses and correspondence Be consistent In letter format punc Professor John Smith tuation is no longer used within or at Department of Martial Arts the end of each address line University of Reading PO Box 217 Reading RG6 6AA Punctuation is not used in the saluta Dear Mrs French tion or close Use the appropriate was very pleased to hear close in relation to the greeting A Yours sincerely useful reminder is be faithful to Sir and sincere to Mr X In other words end your letter Yours fa
9. What are your target audience s needs Focus on the benefits e What do you want them to do as a result of reading your material Make it clear e What will have the most appeal to obtain the desired response 4 2 Purpose and proposition Define a clear brief to focus your thinking and sharpen your writing Consider e What do you want it to achieve e What are your main messages Focus on the top three or four Wherever possible present a unique selling proposition USP to set us apart from other universities 4 3 Content and structure Structure your text in a way that will appeal most to your audience The content and the route through it should relate to the customer journey Consider carefully what your reader wants to know and the most logical order for the information You will find it easier to write successful copy if you create an outline first e Compile all the raw information e Distil and select the items most relevant and important to your target audience e Order the points to connect them into a clearly reasoned pitch This is an outline structure e Include an introductory short paragraph which contains the benefit statements e Place the main messages in order of importance and relevance expressed in short paragraphs or bullet points e Close with a final call to action line or paragraph e Don t forget to add the relevant contact details If the text is unavoidably lengt
10. appropriate to your particular audience 1 2 Writing for the web We read web pages differently Web readers scan pages picking out headings links summaries and keywords They rarely read each word on the page The web reader wants to find information as quickly as possible and so scans most text instead of reading it thoroughly Think about your own behaviour on line When was the last time you read a web page from the first word to the last How long will you look for information on a web page before you press the back button or navigate to another page To suit web readers scanning behaviour content must be well structured and make effective use of headings subheadings and summaries paragraphs and pages need to be short and to the point See section 3 2 lt Back to contents Finding the right words 1 3 University Word Bank A major component of our new image is the Word Bank It contains items of text about the University written to reflect the University s values and these copywriting guidelines If you want to include information about the University in your materials you should find what you are looking for in the Word Bank It will save you having to write it yourself and by using it you will help us to communicate a consistent image for the University The Word Bank will be updated regularly and also extended For items see section 7 2 By following this guide you will be playing your part in strengthening
11. e Exceptionally for academic years 2003 04 and not 2003 4 this use an oblique and 2 digits means the calendar years 2003 and 2004 e In display work always set date Halford John Mackinder 1861 1947 ranges in full Degree titles See Abbreviations and Acronyms lt Back to contents 24 Finding the right words email e Always represent as email no hyphen and all lower case e When quoting University email john smith reading ac uk addresses be sure to use the full form of the address with the entire word reading Foreign words and phrases Modern dictionaries no longer give definitive guidance on the italicization of foreign words and phrases commonly used so it is better not to italicise such words circa viva voce vice versa Follow any discipline specific conven tions e g Latin binomials the scientific naming of species such as Juglans regia the English walnut Italicise an isolated word in another language to emphasise its separation from the surrounding English text Example Carruthers wearing jodhpurs felt a certain schadenfreude when sitting in the bistro he realised that the spell checker had translated perestroika as my dad s three horse carriage Headings and subheadings Use headings and subheadings to structure content and to navigate the reader Consider whether it is appropriate for headings to be factual or more promo tional Money Use the rele
12. is very common Less fewer Less means not as much Fewer means not as many Use less salt in your food Fewer than eight applications have arrived None None should be treated as singular Oxymora e Avoid using an oxymoron where two words used together create a contradictory term e Don t confuse oxymora with figures of speech made acceptable by being in common use e Some oxymorons are accepted as being deliberate and perhaps literary combinations e g sweet sorrow exquisite pain None of the printers is working Incorrect almost exactly definite maybe Accepted use deafening silence nearly finished 14 lt Back to contents Finding the right words Prepositions Try to avoid beginning or ending sentences with a preposition If this rule leads to awkwardness you may ignore it There are more than 150 prepositions Useful reference sites include www englishclub com and www usingenglish com Incorrect Is there a book which I can find the information in Correct Is there a book in which I can find the information Theoretically correct but awkward This is behaviour up with which will not put Theoretically incorrect but preferable This is behaviour which will not put up with Split infinitives Avoid splitting infinitives i e placing a word between to and the ver
13. active single minded Creative forward thinking ideas imaginative innovative inspirational original productive stimulating talented vision visionary Ambitious aspire accomplish challenging confident competitive determined driven enterprising forward thinking goal objective passionate performance purpose strive success win Caring appreciate approachable concern cultivate develop foster look after take care of support understanding responsible Established build experienced heritage history permanent renowned reputation track record tradition trust well known well placed This is a short extract from one of the Word Bank items included here to illustrate how text can reflect our values This extract is from Campus for Staff and is intended to reflect excellent established caring Working at Reading Working at the University of Reading offers an exceptional opportunity to apply your skills and experience With several centres of excellence and proven quality of provision we enjoy a world class reputation for teaching research and enterprise We also offer a stimulating and peaceful working environment in one of the UK s most attractive campuses Yet the centre of Reading with its vibrant city culture and fast transport links to Oxford London and Heathrow is just a short walk or ride away If you prefer country pursuits the Chiltern Hills and the River Thames are close by
14. al Sciences e Faculty of Life Sciences e Faculty of Science e Institute of Education e School of Agriculture Policy amp Development e School of Arts and Communication Design lt Back to contents Finding the right words e School of Biological Science e School of Chemistry e School of Construction Management and Engi neering e School of Continuing Education e School of English and American Literature e School of Food Biosciences e School of Health and Social Care e School of Humanities e School of Languages and European Studies e School of Law e School of Mathematics Meteorology and Physics e School of Pharmacy e School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences e School of Sociology Politics and International Relations e School of Systems Engineering Capitalise initial letters of words naming formal committees Examples e Catering Management Committee e University Board for Enterprise e Sub Committee on Research Infrastructure Degree titles eBA Bachelor of Arts e BSc Bachelor of Science eMA Master of Arts eMSc_ Master of Science ePhD Doctor of Philosophy e MPhil Master of Philosophy e PGCE Postgraduate Certificate of Education For all departments and units of the Univer sity please refer to the University Calendar for correct spelling and format 28 f Resources 7 1 University Word Bank The Word Bank will be made available to all users online via the Staff web Topi
15. b following Incorrect to boldly go to carefully consider Correct to go boldly to consider carefully Subject verb agreement Averb should always agree with its subject Singular collective nouns such as committee take singular verbs when thinking of a group as a whole but take plural verbs when thinking of the individuals forming the group Incorrect The University are Reading United have Correct The University is Reading United has A committee of eight members is meeting today The committee were talking quietly among themselves Their there they re Their is possessive There is an adverb noun and inter jection They re is a contraction of they are The students have their own rooms Adverb The students have their own rooms over there Noun There are more students going there every day Interjection There We knew you would pass your exams They re going to play football this afternoon 15 Finding the right words Verbs used mistakenly as nouns Avoid the incorrect use of verbs as nouns Incorrect The invite to the seminar is in today s post Correct The invitation to the seminar is in today s post Incorrect The quote sums up the mood of the country Correct The quotation sums up the mood of the country
16. blications e Use words that are accurate not open to misinterpretation and best suited to the tone of the document Remember that some readers may not have English as their first language e Use up to date language The English language is dynamic New words and phrases continually come into use Other words fall into disuse Avoid e Antiquated vocabulary such as herein hitherto whomsoever insofar and forthwith e Engaging with your audience in a dumbed down way e Slang vernacular or pompous language e Foreign language terms e g en masse raison d tre aide memoire e Jargon especially corporate terminology e g think outside the box square the circle Try to eliminate all forms of business speak from your writing by downloading free Bullfighter software www fightthebull com e Over use of contractions e g you ll weve you d unless you want to adopt a very informal tone e Clich s and metaphors You can find examples at www phrases org uk Be succinct e Avoid over long sentences The average sentence is between 15 20 words Anything beyond that becomes harder to read and comprehend e Keep to the point If your reader doesn t need to know it or it doesn t aid their comprehension of your copy leave it out e Use bullet points if appropriate Pr cis your text at least once It will help you to be succinct
17. boss on the other hand does not agree may however be able to convince him eventually Therefore we may be placing an order soon The Students Union which is open 24 hours a day is centrally located He called A lager please to the waiting barman Dashes Use a dash e to indicate a pause whether a hesitation in speech or to introduce an explanation or expansion of what comes before it e as an alternative to brackets e in print make sure you use the en dash not the hyphen character dashes are longer I never thought would pass but was wrong Everyone and that includes you must study hard lt Back to contents 19 Finding the right words Exclamation marks You can use this mark after an exclamatory word phrase or sentence to express emotion or emphasise a sentiment e g absurdity a command contempt enthusiasm wish surprise admiration Excessive use of the exclamation mark can dilute specific emphasis and may become irritating to the reader What an ideal Be carefull I d love to pass If only could remember that quotation Hyphens Use hyphens e to link words or elements of words into longer words and compounds e to indicate a common second element in all but the last of a list e to avoid ambiguity e When preceding an adjective with J non e when identical vowels
18. cs covered include History e A summary of the University s History e Timeline e History of the University s estates Campus e The campus for students e Campus life for staff e Campus research and enterprise facilities e Campus for the community e Campus flora and fauna e Reading social life on and off campus e Arts on campus e Sport for all e Architecture e University museums e The University and the environment e Halls of residence Teaching e Teaching at Reading e Undergraduate teaching e Postgraduate teaching e Research students e Teaching facilities e Pastoral care e International students welfare e Visiting the University e Adult Education e Widening Participation e Careers e Schools and colleges relationships Research e Overview of research at Reading e Current research projects e Research centres lt Back to contents Finding the right words Enterprise e Enterprise at Reading e The Enterprise team e Major Enterprise activities e Enterprise networks e Enterprise partnerships Alumni e Our alumni e Honorary graduates e Alumni involvement in University life Governance e How the University operates e The Corporate Plan e The University as an employer e The University s coat of arms 7 2 Useful editorial references The following printed publications and websites provide further useful information and guidance e Concise Oxford dictionary e Copy editin
19. e writer of the surrounding text They visited Zimbabwe formerly Rhodesia A discussion of genetically modified crops see p 38 Points that need clarification are 2 9 and 14 There are many apparent solutions The book s author Charles Dickens was one of the most renowned literary figures of the period 17 Finding the right words Colons e separate main clauses when there is a step forward from the first to the second especially from introduc tion to main point from general statement to example from cause to effect and from premise to conclu sion e introduce a list of items e introduce speech or quoted material It was not easy to begin with had to learn the language In summary we have achieved much this year and look forward to the chal lenges that lie ahead Remember to enclose the following with your application two references a copy of your transcript and an addi tional statement detailing why you wish to follow the programme As Shakespeare said A rose by any other name would smell as sweet Semicolons Semicolons represent a pause longer than a comma and shorter than a full stop It is possible to write perfect English without any semicolons However they can be useful to e unite short sentences and phrases that are closely associated or that complement or parallel each other in some way e separate pa
20. g Judith Butcher e The Oxford dictionary for writers and editors e The Oxford guide to style and plain English Robert Ritter e The Penguin guide to punctuation www bcodp org uk www correctpunctuation co uk www cre gov uk www englishclub com www fightthebull com www phrases org uk www the writestuff co uk www usingenglish com 29
21. g the right words Calls to action e All useful task based web content drives an action and should end with a call to action such as a link a phone number a form email address etc Use of images Images are a great way of bringing life and colour to a webpage When publishing images be sure to remember the following e Only use images which are relevant to the content of the page e Make sure the on screen size of the image is not too big Remember people may have smaller monitors than you e Keep the file size down The larger the file size the longer your page will take to download and the less likely your visitor will wait Average photo type images should not be more than a maximum of 15KB e Don t publish poor quality images Take care with scanned images If it s not good enough for printed matter it s not good enough for the web e A university image bank is currently in production Headings links and keywords e When writing headings use keywords that are strongly associated with the content Try repeating these keywords through headings links page titles and wherever appropriate Not only will they improve your ranking in search results they will also help to catch the attention of readers Use headings and subheadings liberally through your page to help break up long blocks of texts e Link text should be a self contained statement which makes sense when read in isolation Links such as click here
22. he minimum amount of punctuation that is needed to achieve clarity and flow in the particular context e Always retain the original punctuation used in quotations and extracts from other sources lt Back to contents 16 lt Back to contents Punctuation device Finding the right words Examples correct unless stated otherwise Ampersands Spell out and normally but amp may be used in names of official organisations such as Marks amp Spencer University department names sometimes take an ampersand e g School of Agriculture Policy amp Development Apostrophes Use an apostrophe to indicate e the omission of a letter or letters e singular possession or ownership e plural possession or ownership The plural apostrophe is often omitted by accident A common error is Students Union rather than the correct form Students Union It s important that you don t forget your textbook the programme s content the student s bicycle one year s time the programmes content the students bicycles two years time Brackets parentheses Use round brackets to enclose explanations additional information or comment to give references and citations to enclose reference letters or words and to enclose optional words Use square brackets to enclose extra information attributable to someone other than th
23. hree quarters SI Units International System of Units When defining units of measurement use the International System of Units SI Remember e do not use an initial capital letter when writing measurements in full e g J hertz metre newton kilogram e symbols abbreviations for SI units take an initial capital letter when the name of the unit is derived from a person e g N Hz e always represent symbols in Roman type URLs University web addresses When quoting University web addresses be sure to use the full form of the address with the entire word reading e g www reading ac uk Underlining text Never underline text in print or on the web lt Back to contents 26 lt Back to contents 6 2 University terminology Academic disciplines e Use initial capital letters when referring to a specific department or school e Do not use initial capitals when referring to the subject in general e Use initial capital letters for a specific job and or personal title when the post holder accompanies the title e Do not use initial capitals when referring to the job personal title in general Finding the right words The School of Chemistry think chemistry is an exciting subject Professor John Smith heads the Sub Committee for Research Council Grants This research committee will be chaired by the professor of mar
24. hy e Provide a summary of the key messages at the start of the document e Within this summary put the most important points first e Use short subheadings to highlight subject changes and help the reader navigate his or her way through the text lt Back to contents 10 Finding the right words 5 Writing well 5 1 Use engaging language Be direct Talk to your reader in a friendly way by addressing them directly Use the active rather than the passive voice which is less appealing Passive No one likes exams rather than exams are liked by no one Active Please telephone us if you have any queries rather than any enquiries should be addressed by telephoning the department J 5 2 Use inclusive language Use inclusive language in verbal and written communications Some guidance points to remember Gender Avoid words ending in man or womar e g postman chairman and also gender references e g use terms such as staffing rather than manning Where the gender is unknown use they them their instead Race For detailed advice please see the Commission for Racial Equality website www cre gov uk Terms such as black Asian and mixed race are acceptable Where it is relevant to refer to a person s cultural background use the term preferred by the individual e g Afro Caribbean Asian Irish south east Asian etc Whe
25. ice about writing effective copy please contact Anne Goodwyn Head of Marketing University of Reading Extn 7134 or email a goodwyn reading ac uk lt Back to contents 1 Introduction These guidelines will help you when you write or commission copy to promote the University of Reading for printed publications or the web They e provide guidance on how to reflect the University s values in your material e highlight the key principles of good promotional writing e provide information on the University s House Style e direct you to useful resources including the University Word Bank see below e list a number of useful editorial resources 1 1 Promoting a strong image for the University Good image management is all about discipline Naturally each and every one of us has a different way of working but if we all focus on these guidelines when writing promotional materials we will successfully and consistently communicate the positive image of the University Whenever you write text promoting the University ask yourself e Does it actively demonstrate the core proposition of our new image Realising potential through the creation transfer and application of knowledge e Does it reflect the University values that are most relevant to your target audience s and appropriate to the content of your material s excellent focused creative ambitious caring established e Are the messages content style and tone
26. ine science University name e When writing the University s name use the University of Reading and not The University of Reading as previously adopted e After the first reference you may shorten this to the University with a capital U e Never use the name Reading University You will see that the University of Reading is located on a beautiful parkland campus When you arrive at the University you will Send your application to Mr John Smith University of Reading 27 6 3 University titles Use the following formats for University of Reading titles note capitalisation and hyphena tion e Chancellor e Dean e Director of Research of the Faculty e Director of Teaching and Learning e Director of Teaching and Learning of the Faculty e Pro Vice Chancellor e Sub Dean e Vice Chancellor Council e President of the Council e Vice President of the Council Union Officers e The President of the Students Union e The Vice President Education e The Vice President Equality and Ethics e The Vice President Welfare Staff student terms e Academic e Academic related e Administrative e Clerical e Dr e Manual e postgraduate no capital e Professor e Research e Technical e undergraduate no capital Faculties Schools and Departments e Business School e Faculty of Arts and Humanities e Faculty of Economic and Soci
27. ing you write should be accurate and true Avoid hype do not promise something we cannot deliver Always check that quotations are approved for publication Appealing Consider the positive or negative influence that your copy may have on your target audience Test its appeal ideally on a sample of your target audience before you commit to publishing Did they understand the messages as you intended Did the copy have the desired effect Benefit led Focus on the benefits rather than the functionality of features Commu nicate what a particular proposition product or service can do for the readers how it will help them what they will be able to achieve Concise Readers tend to skim read text initially only returning for a more in depth read if their interest is captured Use short sentences and state ments to engage them and make your text memorable Pr cis your text to remove superfluous words Direct Strong simple messages that say what they mean in uncluttered language are more credible and effective than clich ridden copy Avoid the extremes of colloquial or overly formal language Avoid writing in the third person as it is distant and unwelcoming Refer to Writing well Be direct 5 1 1 Purposeful Write with your objective in mind Make sure your subject matter is clear and text is both focused and easy to understand Can you state something more simply Refer to Preparing to write Content and structure
28. itals Avoid unnecessary capitalisation and be consistent Use capitals only where justified e g for proper nouns names places people titles etc and observe University of Reading conventions See section 6 2 University Titles and Termi nology Do not use capitals for emphasis 23 Finding the right words Captions When writing captions for images Figure 4 Destination of graduates illustrations tables and diagrams 2003 as at January 2004 e keep captions brief e check for accuracy e name individuals in a group shot from left to right preceded by I r e standardise on format e g use of leading capitals and punctuation e where appropriate use the word Figure or Illustration followed by a full stop at the beginning of the caption Dates times years e The preferred date format is Sunday 1 January 2006 and not Ist Jan 2006 1 Jan 2006 or Jan 1 2006 e On the web always use the 24 hour 10 00 18 00 clock in preference to am or pm e Express centuries in words rather the nineteenth century rather than than numbers Do not capitalise the the 19th century Z e When referring to a span of figures 1 6 20 9 98 101 101 6 120 9 including dates use the minimum 198 201 1688 1711 1745 75 number of digits to avoid ambiguity the teens are exceptions you always use a minimum two digits 11 16 111 16
29. ithfully when you have used the greeting Dear Sir or Dear Madam and end your letter Yours sincerely when you use the recipient s name in the greeting 22 lt Back to contents Finding the right words Advanced level qualifications When using the shortened version of Advanced level always represent as A level upper case A no hyphens lower case level Americanisation Please refer to 5 2 2 Bullet points lists and numbering Structure your text with bullet points where appropriate to aid clarity emphasis and ease of reading e Lists of single words short items or phrases do not take initial capitals and are introduced bya colon Short entries are not punctuated except for a full stop at the end of the final entry Refer to the above example Lengthy phrases can often be separated by semi colons with a full stop at the end of the final entry There are many examples within this document e Use an initial capital if the bullet is one or more complete sentence s e Use a numbered list to indicate a sequence or hierarchy table of contents index e Use Arabic numerals without 1 Text brackets or full stops 2 Text 3 Text e Fora subsidiary list you can use 1 TEXT letters with brackets before and a text after b text e Fora further level of list you can use 1 TEXT lower case roman numerals within a text single brackets i text ii text Cap
30. n Use italics only when convention demands it Examples of acceptable use of italics include titles of books magazines periodicals films works of art and foreign words and expressions Structuring your pages and paragraphs e Most web readers want general information few are looking for the specifics When writing for the web start with general information and filter down to more specific information This structure is applicable to both pages and paragraphs e It is especially important on the web to keep paragraphs short stick to one idea per paragraph Web readers scan the first sentence of each paragraph and only read on when they find something relevant To accommodate this behaviour make sure the first sentence of each paragraph indicates what is to follow e As arule of thumb web paragraphs should be no longer than 50 words Focus your pages reduce your page length e Keep each page focussed on the central elements of your message Think of the page in terms of why the web reader has come to it What tasks are they trying to achieve on this page Generally you should not have more than three tasks per page Ideally pages should be one screen full and no more than two For some items such as degree subject brochures preparation planning has already been undertaken and templates exist Keep up to date with what is available by visiting the branding web site www reading ac uk branding lt Back to contents Findin
31. nless stated otherwise Between among Between refers to two Among refers There should be a covered walkway to three or more between the two buildings The assignment is among the piles on my desk Conjunctions Try to avoid starting a sentence with a conjunction e g after although and because but for Increasingly this rule is being relaxed but stalwarts may wish to maintain it Double negatives Avoid double negatives which Incorrect don t want none actually make a positive Correct I don t want any 13 lt Back to contents Finding the right words Either neither each every any Either neither each every any take singular verbs It is it s its It s is short for it is Its is a pronoun Either this course or that course is appropriate for your chosen career Neither this course nor that course is appropriate for your chosen career Neither of the applicants is suitable Each of them is to have a new laptop Every student is to receive a password Any student is eligible to join the society It s a short walk to Reading town centre The library has its own coffee bar Kind sort type Kind sort type are all singular nouns This kind of teaching is very successfull That sort of thing
32. rever possible ask the individuals concerned what terms they prefer Disability For detailed advice see the British Council of Disabled People BCODP website www bcodp org uk e Avoid terms such as the disabled and handicapped Preferred terms are disabled people and people with disabilities e Avoid negative references to disabilities such as wheelchair bound Preferred terms are wheelchair user or person who uses a wheelchair e Avoid the term the blind Preferred terms are blind people partially sighted visually impaired people e Avoid the term the deaf Preferred terms are deaf people or people with hearing impairments e Avoid the term mental illness The preferred term is mental health problems Religion Avoid language that appears to discriminate e g do not use the term Christian name Instead use terms such as forename given name or personal name lt Back to contents 11 lt Back to contents Finding the right words 5 3 Friendly professional style and tone Always e Keep your reader in mind Communicate with them directly and write your copy as clearly and simply as you can Adopt a friendly approach able professional tone throughout for all audiences A very informal tone may be suitable for some posters advertisements to particular target audiences but should be avoided in most pu
33. rmation Ambitious We continually strive to improve what we do building on our strong achievements and seeking ever higher standards of performance By aspiring to do better ourselves we aim to encourage others to raise their own expectations and aspire to greater achievements We are determined to succeed in making a major contribution to society Caring We are passionate about achieving high standards in all that we do We strive to create a supportive community for our students and staff and actively engage with the local and regional communities We care about providing students with a fully rounded education in a supportive environment to ensure they gain life and work skills as well as academic success Established We have a long and distinguished record in higher education with an international reputation that has been built over many years Our strong educational tradition provides a solid base on which we continue to build for the future lt Back to contents Finding the right words Below is a selection of words that may help you to communicate our values Brand value Associated words Excellent authoritative beneficial confident distinctive force impressive high quality intelligent leading merit notable positive powerful successful superior value world class worth Focused centred clear thinking committed concentrated dedicated distinct enthusiastic leading edge pro
34. rts of a sentence where a comma would be insufficient e separate items in a list especially when the listed items already contain commas In the north of the campus there is a large lake further south is a wildlife heritage site Three new employees will be needed in each of Human Resources Purchasing and Sales one in Marketing two in Administration and one in Information Technology I should like to thank the Managing Director Anthony Wilson my secretary Emma Simpson and my assistant Nick James lt Back to contents 18 Finding the right words Commas Commas provide breathing spaces Use them to e separate two or more nouns e mark off two separate clauses e separate a descriptive group of words e separate a word or group of words from the main part of the sentence e mark off words like therefore however consequently unfortu nately at the beginning of or in the middle of sentences e replace brackets for supplemen tary information and or where if the information was removed a complete sentence would remain e precede recorded speech Please order some paper envelopes and ribbons did not realise it was poor quality otherwise would not have bought it Maggie the new secretary started work today The Human Resources Director Tom Anderson is away In my opinion need a computer in my job My
35. the image of the University of Reading The University has six core values which we want to reflect in the way we write about ourselves However rather than simply inserting these words into the text we want to use words and phrases which demonstrate them and are appropriate to the context of what we are writing lt Back to contents Finding the right words 2 Communicating our values The table below explains the thinking behind these values their relevance to the University s personality and how we aim to demonstrate them on a day to day basis Brand value What it means at the University of Reading Excellence We are proud of our world class reputation for excellence in teaching leading edge research and enterprise We are committed to achieving the highest quality in all our activities and have a number of areas of outstandingly successful scholarship Focused We aim to focus our activities on meeting the needs and aspirations of our stakeholders students staff partners and clients for research and enterprise the wider community We aim to align resources with our major strengths We will be responsive to the changes in the world and deliver real value to our stakeholders Creative We are committed to creating new ways of meeting the challenges of an ever changing world We seek innovation in research and scholarship to ensure we continue to stretch the boundaries of knowledge generation and transfo
36. vant monetary symbol and e the numerical figure for amounts up 25 000 5 million 15 200 billion to one million dollars 30 million Australian dollars e over one million use a combination of figures and words e the currency name do not capi talise the first letter of the currency and for non US dollars state the country e Remember that the position of the 25 000 Fr 12 000 currency unit relevant to figures varies lt Back to contents 25 Finding the right words Numbers e In narrative text spell out numbers under 10 and express numbers 10 and above as numerals e Use commas for numbers in excess of 1 000 e Always spell out million billion trillion do not use abbreviations e Use hyphenated words for compound terms with numerals e Express fractions in words e In narrative text spell out per cent in full e g 75 per cent In tables use the symbol e g 75 In mathematics science and technology texts or where a large amount of statistical material is included you can use the symbol throughout You can choose from three programmes You can choose from 10 halls of residence The University employs over 3 000 part time staff This year s research funding is in excess of 52 million first year undergraduate and two year old child one fifth two and a half and six and t
37. will otherwise collide and create readership pronunciation difficulties This happens with some uses of co and re However coexist and reiterate do not require hyphenation e Note some words that were traditionally hyphenated are now routinely used as single words If you are unsure check Microsoft Word s dictionary part time full time long term short term self funded user friendly large scale up to date fast track Note the different use in the following examples as an adjective am a part time student as an adverb am studying part time two three or four storey building twenty odd people has a different meaning to twenty odd people first class has a different meaning to first class non speaking part co operation re engineer figurehead interpersonal multidis ciplinary multinational nationwide ongoing online postgraduate teamwork website worldwide lt Back to contents 20 lt Back to contents Finding the right words Quotation marks e Use single quotation marks except when a quotation is contained within a quotation or speech In this instance you should use double quotation marks e Quotation marks used for text extracts always appear outside the text
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