Our recent internet safety campaign, “Think twice. Click once.” is an excellent example of why using “plain language” is often crucial.
To educate its community about internet scams, online fraud, and identity theft, a client asked us to create a digital campaign highlighting the most common crime schemes and providing easy-to-use preventative measures.
Any time we create work for a client, understanding the nuances of our audience’s lives and perspectives informs all our messaging. In this case, the audience’s familiarity with technology varied greatly, and many spoke English as a second language. This meant that all campaign assets needed a straightforward visual structure, and Plain Language to help readers easily access the information of the website, digital ads, and social media content. In addition, it meant offering copy in multiple languages.
Plain Language, also known as plain writing or plain English, is a form of communication that allows the audience to comprehend a message clearly and quickly. It is also a requirement for government communication under the Plain Writing Act of 2010. In Minnesota, the Plain Language Principles for the State of Minnesota (Executive Order 14-07) command that all state agencies communicate with the public by using easily understood content. Plain Language Certification is a priority at Russell Herder for all of our writers, as it is a fantastic tool of the trade when creating content for many of our clients.
After some diligent work by our highly skilled team of writers, the final outcome of the campaign is easy to understand and truly helps to encourage safe online behavior. Most importantly, it is accessible to all.
If you’re new to Plain Language, these 10 Principles for Plain Language1 are a great place to start:
- Write for your reader, not yourself. Use pronouns when you can.
- State your central point(s) first before going into details.
- Limit each paragraph to one idea and keep it short.
- Write in active voice.
- Use short sentences as much as possible.
- Use everyday words. If you must use technical terms, explain them in the first reference.
- Omit unneeded words.
- Keep the subject and verb close together.
- Use headings, lists, and tables to make reading easier.
- Proofread your work, and have a colleague proof it as well.
Do you use Plain Language to make your content easily accessible to your audience? If you haven’t tried it yet, browse the internet for guidelines and apply them the next time you want to share an important message. It’s an easy way to get to the point.
P.S. Find a Plain Language version of this blog post HERE.
1National Archives, Top 10 Principles for Plain Language
https://www.archives.gov/open/plain-writing/10-principles.html
