Writing digital content

The digital landscape demands a unique approach to writing — one that prioritises tone, user experience, and accessibility.
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⁠By using a digital-first approach, we aim to create content that truly resonates and drives results.

Content writer working on a document on a laptop.

Understand your audience

  • Conduct thorough research, analyse user data, and carry out user testing to gain insight into the people we're trying to reach.
  • ⁠Craft content that speaks directly to our users' needs, resonating with them on a personal level.

Follow our 5 Cs

  • Aim for a writing style that's clear and conversational, avoiding overly formal or jargon-heavy language. Reference our word and phrase glossary and content minimum standards.
  • Write content that is consistently aligned with AIA's brand personality and values.
  • Make sure content is constructive by keeping your content short and concise.

Optimise for accessibility

  • Structure content in a hierarchical manner so its easily consumed by all types of users.
  • Write with subheadings, bullet points, and strategic white space to make content scannable and easy to navigate using assistive tools.⁠

Measure with readability tools

  • Assess the readability score of a piece of content to ensure it's easy to understand.
  • Continue to measure the effectiveness of your content and make iterations where necessary.
The Flesch Reading Ease readability test rates content on a 100-point scale. The higher the score, the easier it is to understand the content. 
Flesch score
School level
Details
100 to 90
5th grade
Very easy to read. Easily understood by an average 11-year-old student.
90 to 80
6th grade
Easy to read. Conversational English for consumers.
80 to 70
7th grade
Fairly easy to read.
70 to 60
8th and 9th grade
Plain English. Easily understood by 13- to 15-year-old students.
60 to 50
10th to 11th grade
Fairly difficult to read.
50 to 30
University
Difficult to read.
30 to 0
Postgraduate to professional
Extremely difficult to read. Best understood by postgraduates or subject matter experts.

Drive search optimisation

  • Conduct thorough keyword research, craft compelling titles and meta descriptions, and structure writing in a way that aligns with search engine guidelines.
  • Measure content rankings in search results and drive more qualified traffic to your site.