How to format an article on the Students' Union website

Article Heading (Heading 2, Bold)

One line of additional information with call to action, for example an email address or social media account or a link to somewhere else on the site. Alternatively state what kind of content it is such as 'Interview', 'How To Guide' or 'Update'.

Header information: All articles should start with a photo (including GIFs) or embedded video, a Heading and one line of additional information. The font/styling for the Heading must be Heading 2 (in bold). The sentence below must be Normal.

Keep everything on an article aligned to the left and if you use photos or videos, make sure that their width is 100% and their height box is empty.

Don't forget to upload an image to the article itself. This pulls through to other sections of the website and when we share it on social media - think of it like a video thumbnail/preview. If you really want to impress us, make sure the image dimensions that you upload are 570 pixels width by 350 pixels height. You can use this tool to resize your image quickly.

! IMPORTANT ! : Make sure that any images you upload are accessible by naming the file accurately before uploading and providing a description of what is pictured in the alternative text box. You should avoide uploading images that you don't have the rights to use and include a caption underneath any image in Heading 6 (see example).

When uploading an image inside the Header section on the article, make sure it is a high quality image.

This means that:

• It's not blurry, too light or too dark
• It illustrates the point you're trying to get across in your article (for example, the photo I've chosen for this article is a high quality image)
• It's copyright free (use unsplash to find free stock photos or ask Marketing for images, graphics of videos for your article)
• It's appropriate and in line with the Union's values
• It doesn't use text to give key information that isn't included in the article itself as paragraph text
• It's not huge resolution which would slow down the page's loading speed. To resize your images, use this tool

Beneath your Heading you'll need to add a line/break. To add this, click Source and locate your title in the HTML editor. Click enter after the full title add a new line and add <hr />, then click Source to return to this editor.

From there, the content underneath is up to you.

However, there are some tips we would recommend you follow when writing any content on the site:

Top Tips in Secondary Header (Heading 3, bold)

• If you're trying to promote something, write about the benefits of engaging in your offer and how what you're offering will fulfil the reader's needs or solve their problems:

Instead of "We run training in article writing" you could say "You can create fun, engaging and accessible articles that students will love to read by following this easy guide"

• If you're trying to explain something, don't write about the process behind the scenes, think about the questions people would be asking and answer them:

Instead of "Search engine algorithms categorise and filter popular content by short tail and long tail keywords to answer user queries" you could say "When you write an article which explains something in a straight forward way, it's more likely to appear when someone Google's it, which means more people will see it"

• If you've got a lot to say, don't worry!

Separate each paragraph into 40 - 50 word chunks. Add some photos, videos, subheadings or bullet points to break the content up.

Try not to add Tables to articles if you can avoid it because they don't appear to be mobile friendly on our site.

Pictured above: A friendly GIF to break up the content in this article (via Facebook). If you clicked on 'see example' to get here, click here to go back.

What should I write about?

You won't need an article for everything. Every article should have a goal and and audience in mind, for example this article aims to:

• Educate website users how to create an article with the correct formatting in order to have some consistency and standards across our online content

• Provide some top tips on what to write about and how to write about it

"When I wrote this, I imagined how I would explain what content you would include in an article to a Union staff member trying to raise awareness of their service or a Student Group committee member looking for opportunities to promote their group" - Ela, Marketing Coordinator (Quotations should be in italics and if there's an external source it should go in brackets after as "via Source")

Always try and think from your audience's point of view. Would this be interesting or useful for a student to read? How are you helping your reader?

Start with your end goal and your content should lead your reader there.

If you're still not sure what approach to take or need some support, you can contact the Students' Union Marketing Team at unionmarketing@staffs.ac.uk.

How will people find my article?

Using Tags on your article can help people find your content on our website, without a Tag no one will see it.

Think about how you read the news online, are there any topics you find yourself more drawn to? News sites group these topics to make it easier for people to find content they're looking for with the aim of keeping people on their site for longer.

Our website is the same.

Different parts of the website pull through different news Tags in order to display the most relevant content. For example, on the #NoExcuse Game Changer page it hosts articles for all topics around equality and discrimination, from our Black Lives Matter campaign to FemPowerment and content about the LGBT+ Allies scheme.

Once you've written your article and saved a draft, have a look around the site to see if there's anywhere else you could have it appear and add some relevant Tags.

You should also speak to Marketing about getting your article included in an Email or Newsletter or shared on Social Media. This will help to bring more readers to your content and help raise awareness of the topic or services you're writing about.

Remember: When you click save, make sure that "This article is approved" is not checked unless it is urgent. Get final approval from the Marketing Team and they will approve and publish your piece!

Pictured above: The article approval section. Make sure that it looks like this and doesn't have a blue tick box.

Your final checklist before you click save. You should be able to agree that your article:

• Adds value to students lives

• Is written in plain English

• Is factually accurate (at time of publish)

• Has been checked over by a "non-expert"

• Has a friendly but professional tone of voice

• Adheres to brand guidelines

• Works on mobile and desktop

• Credits sources where applicable

• Has a clear call to action

• Invites readers to feedback and/or share

Now, give it a go!

Have something to say about writing an article on the Students' Union wesbite? Get in touch at unionmarketing@staffs.ac.uk or have your say:

• By logging in and using the comments section below
• Tag or direct message us on social media (@staffsunion)