Editorial style and approach

These guidelines help us make sure all our web content is editorially clear, consistent and high-quality, and that it aligns with and demonstrates our values.

We follow Guardian style for spelling and usage.

For specific advice on how to talk about anti-racism, sexual exploitation, trans people and other sensitive things, as well as how to align with photography and video guidelines, visit the Brand and Content Hub.

Appeal to intrinsic values

Research suggests that appealing to people’s belief in intrinsic values like equality, justice and freedom can activate generous attitudes, but appealing to self-interested ends like value for money may activate selfish thinking. Try framing appeals for actions, from donations to campaign sign-ups, within a larger story about shared values.

❌

What’s in it for you? Fundraise for us and you’ll receive a T-shirt.

✅

Passionate about gender equality? Let’s make it happen, together.

Where cost effectiveness is an essential part of a product’s value proposition, open with shared values before mentioning cost effectiveness.

❌

Sponsor a girl for just 65p a day.

✅

Freedom for girls, everywhere? You can help make it happen, for as little as 65p a day.

Be concise

Can you make your point in fewer words?

✅

Remove any words that aren’t ~~strictly necessary to convey your meaning~~ essential.

Be issue-first, not Plan-first

Think like a magazine, not a brochure.

We also call this ‘we-ing’ all over the website. Content that uses ‘we’ repeatedly in a short section is usually too focused on Plan International UK and not focused enough on the issues that our supporters care about.

❌

Here’s what we are campaigning on and how you can help, we need you to add your signature etc. to our petition, we want you to take this action.

✅

Here are the issues, here’s what people are doing about them, if you want to be part of it, here’s how you can get involved.

❌

We need as many people as possible to join the call to show MPs we must make public sexual harassment a crime. Add your name to join the campaign and stand in solidarity with our call to make our streets safer for everyone.

✅

Let’s make public sexual harassment history. Add your name to our campaign and join the movement.

Be personal

The issues we work on affect real people. Name them (unless they have asked to be anonymous). Make sure they tell their stories, in their own words, from their own perspective. People care about people, so put humans at the heart of your story, rather than facts or statistics.

Be specific

Focus on one point at a time. Give each sentence and paragraph a clear focus, so it’s easy to follow the flow of information.

“Show them the forest; introduce them to a tree.” – William Blundell

Make complex stories digestible with specific details. Introduce one character, one aspect of a big issue or one place at a time.

Create tailored user journeys

Users with specific needs, interests and goals will follow different pathways through content. It’s important to create clear user journeys set up around defined goals, like learning more about girls’ and young people’s rights around the world, or finding out how to take action on justice issues like violence against women and girls (VAWG).

✅

Offer clear journeys for users to achieve their goals. For example, Greenpeace’s ”What type of activist are you?” quiz gives users a choice of next steps.

Cut out jargon

Jargon confuses and excludes people. We use simple, everyday language wherever possible.

❌

As an international development charity, we believe there is huge value in translating our tried and tested programmes and approaches from around the world to a UK context, and recognising the universality of the issues affecting girls.

✅

All over the world, girls experience discrimination. What works to empower girls everywhere?

Earn the ask

Always look for an opportunity to take our users further. Craft calls to action that let people deepen their connection with Plan International UK, our causes and our community. Don’t ask users to take action unless you earn the right to ask for it, for example, by telling an immersive and compelling story about real people experiencing the issue.

❌

A brief blog post which provides limited value, then asks the reader to donate. This Coronavirus emergency appeal gives brief information about Coronavirus in India before asking for a large donation.

✅

Friends of the Earth leads with informative content, like why trees matter, before inviting users to take action, like signing a petition to double tree cover in the UK, taking a quiz or donating.

Include immersive storytelling

“We create space for people to tell their own stories. We don’t speak for or over the people and communities we work with. Neither do we treat people in these communities as props, to evidence a specific story or campaign. Instead, we provide a platform and ‘pass the mic’ so that people can tell their own stories and we amplify the stories that people want to tell.” – Plan International UK anti-racism principles

Anti-racist, youth-centred storytelling is at the heart of our work. That means giving people the time and space to tell their own stories, in their own words.

❌

A single sentence quote from an unnamed child in China.

✅

Gemma’s story gives Gemma a platform to tell her own story at length.

Stories should be deep, complex and layered. It may not always be possible to gather full stories from people, for example, shortly after a disaster where it’s not safe or appropriate to gather in-depth case studies. In these cases, we should not rely on a single short quote from somebody. We should assemble several quotes from a range of people, to give more depth.

❌

Just one brief quote.

✅

A couple of brief quotes from girls about girls’ rights in the UK.

Show change-makers

Highlight girls, young people and communities designing, delivering and maintaining their own solutions to complex problems. Show communities working with each other as well as with Plan International UK and other partners.

❌

We brought composting toilets to Jinka.

✅

In Jinka, young people, their parents and teachers are learning to build and maintain composting toilets.

Simplify language

Simple language helps everybody. It’s especially important for people with low levels of literacy, intellectual disabilities, conditions like dyslexia, people who speak English as an additional language and people who are tired or distracted.

Swap long, formal or technical words for simple, short, everyday ones. You may find this list of suggestions useful.

❌

Counterproductive solution that reinforces a sense of voicelessness.

✅

Backfires.

Start strong

Lead with the most surprising, interesting or exciting information. A powerful quote or surprising opening setting can pique readers’ interest. When you’ve finished the piece, go back to the beginning and edit the opening. You’ll have a clearer sense of your overall argument and a better idea of where dramatic interest lies.

Structure for skimming

Frequent subheadings, short sentences and paragraphs are easier to skim read.

Use block quotes to pull out key details.

Tell global stories

Issues like violence, public sexual harassment and climate change affect girls all over the world.

When Plan International UK has a campaign with a geographic focus (like tackling trafficking in Nigeria), it makes sense to talk about that issue in one place. But most of the time, we should make links between issues happening around the world.

❌

Sexual violence is the norm in [country name].

✅

Wherever in the world a girl is born or lives, she should be safe, free from abuse and have equal rights – and this includes in the UK.

Use the active voice

The active voice makes it clear who is doing what.

❌

More needs to be done by policymakers to end FGM/C.

✅

Policymakers must do more to end FGM/C.

Active voice I read the report. I drove the car. I changed the law.

💡

Tip: If you’re not sure whether you’re using the active voice, try adding ‘by me’ to the end of the phrase. If you can add ‘by me’ to the end, it’s the passive voice. Swap it out.

Don’t use the UK as a baseline

Using the UK as a baseline measure reinforces colonialist attitudes. Avoid any words or phrases that suggest the global north is neutral or central, and the global south is measured against it.

❌

Despite being one of the most developed countries on earth, too many girls are telling us they don’t feel safe at school, on our streets and online.

✅

All over the world, girls tell us they don’t feel safe at school, on our streets and online.

Choose the strongest content

When a website houses many pages with similar content, this spreads out useful material, dilutes the potential user value and makes it hard for visitors to find what they need. Instead, we must combine the strongest elements of our content into each page.

❌

Many pages on the same or similar topics, like fundraising stories that go into shallow detail about different aspects of fundraising for Plan International UK.

✅

One page or content hub housing the strongest stories, with the most valuable, relevant material made easy to find.

Got a question? Contact the Editorial and Content Team at content@plan-uk.org