This section should introduce the purpose and scope of your content guidelines, as well as the target audience and goals of your content.
Example:
Welcome to the content guidelines for Bill’s Mattress and Furniture, your home furniture blog website in the United States. This document provides you with the standards and best practices for creating and publishing content on our website. Whether you are a staff writer, a guest contributor, or a freelancer, you should follow these guidelines to ensure that your content is consistent, engaging, and valuable for our readers.
Our content covers various topics related to home furniture, such as product reviews, tips, trends, and inspiration. Our target audience is homeowners and enthusiasts who are looking for reliable and helpful information on how to furnish and decorate their homes. Our content goals are to:
- Educate our readers about the best products and brands in the market
- Inspire our readers with creative and practical ideas for their home projects
- Entertain our readers with fun and interesting stories and insights
- Build trust and loyalty with our readers by providing honest and unbiased opinions
- Drive traffic and conversions to our website and products
Tone and Voice
This section should define the tone and voice of your content, as well as provide some examples and tips on how to achieve them.
Example:
The tone and voice of our content should reflect our brand personality, which is friendly, professional, and passionate. We want our content to sound like a conversation with a knowledgeable and enthusiastic friend who shares our love for home furniture. Here are some examples and tips on how to achieve this tone and voice:
- Use a casual and conversational tone, but avoid slang, jargon, or abbreviations that may confuse or alienate our readers
- Use active and positive language, but avoid exaggeration, hype, or false claims that may damage our credibility
- Use humor and personality, but avoid sarcasm, irony, or jokes that may offend or mislead our readers
- Use personal pronouns, such as “you”, “we”, and “our”, to create a connection and rapport with our readers
- Use questions, anecdotes, and stories to engage and captivate our readers
Style and Format
This section should specify the style and format of your content, such as the length, structure, headings, paragraphs, bullets, images, and links.
Example:
The style and format of our content should follow these guidelines:
- The length of our content should vary depending on the type and purpose of the content, but generally, it should be between 500 and 1500 words
- The structure of our content should have a clear and logical flow, with an introduction, a body, and a conclusion
- The introduction should hook the reader’s attention, provide some background information, and state the main idea or thesis of the content
- The body should support the main idea or thesis with relevant and credible evidence, such as facts, statistics, quotes, examples, and testimonials
- The conclusion should summarize the main points, restate the main idea or thesis, and provide a call to action or a takeaway for the reader
- The headings should be descriptive, informative, and catchy, and use title case
- The paragraphs should be short, concise, and coherent, and use transition words and sentences to connect them
- The bullets should be used to list or highlight important or related points, and use parallel structure and punctuation
- The images should be relevant, high-quality, and properly sourced and credited, and use alt text and captions
- The links should be relevant, trustworthy, and properly formatted and labeled, and use anchor text and target attributes
Grammar and Spelling
This section should state the grammar and spelling rules and conventions that your content should follow, as well as the tools and resources that you use to check and correct them.
Example:
The grammar and spelling of our content should follow the American English rules and conventions, as well as the AP Stylebook guidelines. We use Grammarly and Hemingway as our tools to check and correct our grammar and spelling errors, as well as to improve our readability and clarity. We also use Merriam-Webster as our dictionary and thesaurus to look up the definitions and synonyms of words.
Quality and Accuracy
This section should emphasize the importance of quality and accuracy in your content, as well as the steps and processes that you use to ensure and verify them.
Example:
The quality and accuracy of our content are essential for our reputation and credibility, as well as for our readers’ satisfaction and trust. We strive to provide our readers with the most accurate, reliable, and up-to-date information on our topics. To ensure and verify the quality and accuracy of our content, we:
- Research our topics thoroughly and use reputable and authoritative sources, such as industry experts, publications, and organizations
- Cite and reference our sources properly and consistently, using the APA citation style
- Fact-check and cross-check our information and data, using multiple and independent sources
- Review and edit our content carefully and thoroughly, using our tools and resources, as well as peer feedback and proofreading
- Update and revise our content regularly and promptly, whenever new or relevant information becomes available
Feedback and Improvement
This section should encourage and invite feedback and improvement on your content, as well as provide the channels and methods for giving and receiving feedback.
Example:
We welcome and appreciate feedback and improvement on our content, as we believe that they are vital for our growth and development. We value and respect the opinions and suggestions of our readers, as well as our colleagues and partners. To give and receive feedback on our content, we:
- Ask for and listen to feedback from our readers, using surveys, comments, reviews, and social media
- Ask for and listen to feedback from our colleagues and partners, using email, chat, and meetings
- Give and receive feedback in a constructive, respectful, and timely manner, using the sandwich method and the SMART criteria
- Implement and measure the feedback and improvement, using analytics, metrics, and goals
Conclusion
This section should summarize and restate the main points and purpose of your content guidelines, as well as thank and motivate your content creators.
Example:
These are the content guidelines for Bill’s Mattress and Furniture, your home furniture blog website in the United States. They are designed to help you create and publish content that is consistent, engaging, and valuable for our readers. By following these guidelines, you will contribute to our brand identity, voice, and reputation, as well as to our content goals and objectives.
We thank you for your hard work and dedication, and we look forward to seeing your amazing content. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about these guidelines, please contact us using the contact details below. Happy writing!
