Web Style Guide

Content Guidelines

Editorial Guides

The editorial guidelines are provided to ensure the credibility and quality of the written content provided on the CI Web site.

Writing for the Web

Web site content should be up-to-date and accurate. The Web site owner is responsible for timeliness and accuracy of Web site content per applicable University policy.

All pages should be spell-checked prior to publishing.

Writing on Web pages should be clear, concise, written for the primary audience for a given Web site and conversational in tone. Long narrative text should generally be avoided.

Content should be organized in a meaningful way. Web pages should be divided into content sections. Each content section must be labeled with a meaningful, written heading that accurately describes the content in the section that immediately follows, and marked using appropriate semantic markup.

Mandatory content

Each official University Web site must visibly contain all of the following information prior to launch:

  1. University logo (only variation #1 or #2 are permitted);
  2. At least one paragraph of text about the function or goals of the program/organization represented;
  3. Link to the University home page (http://www.csuci.edu); and
  4. The full name and email address for the primary Web site contact for the organization; this will typically be the Web site editor.

Spelling preferences for common Web terms

The following standard spellings are selected for common terms according to Associated Press guidelines:

all-region, all-conference, all-star
email

e-commerce
home page
ID (not I.D.)
Internet

intranet

online (not on-line)
Web-based  

Web
Web page
Web site

Placeholder pages and content

Blank or empty pages or "placeholder" content must be removed prior to the launch of a new Web site.

New pages that are subsequently launched should not have "placeholder" content, such as "Under construction" or "Coming Soon" images or text.

Search Engine Optimization

Web pages should be optimized for search engine compatibility.

To optimize a Web page for search engine compatibility, please check the following:

  1. All sections are marked using the correct semantic HTML code. For example, all section headings should be marked with the corresponding <h1> through <h6> tags.
  2. Section headings contain keywords that relate to the page content in a meaningful way.
  3. File names are named according to the File Naming Conventions as described in this document.
  4. Each page has appropriate keyword and description metadata.
  5. Link names within each page are descriptive.
  6. Each page has an appropriate page <title> element as described in this document.
  7. Ensure published pages do not contain broken links.

Hyperlinks

Hyperlinks (also known as links) connect Web pages and other Web documents together.

Link text in Web pages should

  • accurately describe the destination of the link
  • call a user to action

Link text in Web pages should not

  • point to another Web page that does not exist (i.e., cause a broken link)
  • Use only the words "click here", "here", "this", "more"
  • Contain the URLs of Web pages (this is only recommended in paper documents

Lists of links should be formatted using the appropriate list elements (<ul> and <ol> elements).

CORRECT examples:

  • Download an application
  • Learn more about our program
  • Back to CSUCI Home Page
  • Go to the IT Help Desk for more information

INCORRECT examples:

  • Click here to download an application
  • Want to apply to CSUCI? Learn More
  • Back to www.csuci.edu
  • Go to http://www.csuci.edu/it/helpdesk.htm for more information

Content Ownership and Usage

Ownership and approval

Each official University Web site must have a designated content owner. This owner is typically specified by a division executive or designee.

The content owner is responsible for the accuracy, quality, and timeliness of the visual and written content provided on their Web site.

Copyright

All materials posted and/or hosted on CSU Channel Islands Web resources should comply with federal  copyright regulations, including the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and the Technology,  Education, and Copyright Harmonization Act (TEACH). More information on copyright and fair use can be found on the CSUCI Web site.

Last updated: 2009-12-01