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Writing Tips for Marketing Publications

The college's marketing publications try to provide useful information to our audiences and to do it in a way that makes the college look good.

Organization
Since many readers will scan for information, text for brochures, advertising and webpages should be concise and organized into logical chunks of information. Choose section headings that are meaningful and concise. Put important information first.

Use short paragraphs. For the web and for printed marketing publications, be concise and use paragraphs of two to four sentences.

Vary the length of sentences to create interesting rhythms. If each sentence is the same length, the writing becomes predictable and monotonous. If some sentences need to be rather long to communicate vital information, then try to follow them with short sentences.

Use bullet points:

• Bullet points aid scanning.
• Bullet points organize information.
• Bullet points increase retention.

Content

• Be sure that what you are saying has value to your readers, and focus on benefits for them.
• Stick to the point.
• Be concise. If a word, phrase or paragraph is unnecessary, take it out. Thomas Jefferson said, "The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do."
• Keep information current.

Tone and Voice
Text should be clear and easily understood. Use straightforward language, a conversational tone, and avoid jargon and academic language. Consider your audience, and respect their intelligence and education. Speak directly to your audience, and write in a way that will communicate effectively to them.

Cultivate a voice. Be an authoritative and professional source of information and a cordial one. One current style guide advises that "...the tone of your writing should approximate the tone you would use if you were talking to an intelligent stranger." Try to use an active voice rather than a passive one: "Lane offers these programs" is more energetic than saying that "these programs are offered at Lane." To increase the conversational tone of your writing, use contractions like "it's" and "you're" rather than "it is" and "you are."

Due to the informality of the web, third person address can sound distant and not overly friendly, so first- and second-person address are becoming common. First person uses "I" phrases, second person uses "you" phrases, and third person uses impersonal pronouns like "they." This is a major shift in professional writing, and the semi-casual tone common to the web is spreading to printed publications.

Lane's marketing publications should reflect first- and second-person address. For academic and journalistic publications, use a writing style that is appropriate for that context and audience.

Consistency
It is important that college marketing materials reflect a consistent look and present information in a consistent way. Consistency helps the reader identify a publication as being from Lane, and consistency helps create a positive, high quality image of the college.

Consistency involves these components:

• Accurate and up-to-date content.
• Key messages about Lane, such as use of Lane's vision statement: Transforming lives through learning.
• Proper and consistent use of the language. For suggestions on how to format phone numbers, addresses, dates, times, computer terms, degrees, and other frequently used types of information, see the section on "Writing Style Guidelines from A to Z".
• Use of the official college fonts, Goudy and Univers (or Verdana for the web).
• Design features and ink colors that rely on the graphic standards that have been
  developed for the college. For information about Lane's graphic standards, visit 2011sitearchive.lanecc.edu/mpr/grastan.htm.

Punctuation, Spelling and Grammar
Use language correctly in all college publications in order to communicate clearly and to present a professional image for the college. If college publications contain errors in spelling, punctuation and grammar, it reflects poorly on the college and the quality of education that we offer. If you're writing for a college publication and are not a trained writer, ask a skilled writer for assistance. For tips on using the language, see sections entitled "Punctuation Tips" and "Writing Style Guidelines from A to Z" on the following pages.

Alignment/Justification and Spacing
Text in paragraph form should use left alignment: this is the convention, and it makes text easy to read. Fully justified text that is aligned on both the left and the right sides will usually cause uneven and awkward spacing between words and repel readers. Use one space between sentences.

Approval of College Marketing Publications
Before advertising and posters are published, the college requires that these items be reviewed and approved by the Marketing and Public Relations department. For assistance with creating print advertising and posters, contact the marketing coordinator in Marketing and Public Relations.

For More Information
To learn more, consult a reliable writing style manual. The college Bookstore typically carries guides such as Merriam-Webster's Manual for Writers and Editors. For more information about developing brochures and other marketing publications, visit 2011sitearchive.lanecc.edu/mpr/broch.htm.