We have a model style guide that we can tailor for your organisation. Versions of our guide are already being used at AMP Limited, National Australia Bank and several national law firms.
The guide:
- works as an inspiring and practical tool to help your writers learn about writing;
- sets out how the "voice of your brand" is crucial to your brand and to your strategy; and
- reflects and supports our training courses.
We recommend that your guide includes examples of "before and after" rewrites of real-life samples of the documents in your organisation. These examples need to:
- be marked-up to show the ways in which the original is insufficiently clear for your branding and your objectives;
- be rewritten to show your preferred style; and
- demonstrate just how clearly your organisation expects its people to write.
Your style guide can also refer your people to other model documents that are available on the organisation's intranet. We can help you prepare those other documents.
Tailoring the guide to suit your organisation
Reworking our style guide to suit your needs is faster and simpler ― and almost certainly cheaper ― than creating a document from scratch.
We would rework our existing document by:
- removing irrelevant material;
- blending in relevant material from any existing style guide or manual your organisation uses or is governed by;
- replacing examples with examples relevant to your organization; and
- creating a new document for your organisation.
We would:
- deliver that draft for your review; and
- produce a second draft based on your review of the first draft.
The politics of a style guide (believe it or not)
Some people are precious about style guides. They can be passionate about their particular linguistic, grammar or punctuation preferences. These firmly held positions can make finalising and introducing a style guide a tricky process.
Introducing the Words and Beyond style guide is not a tricky process. We help you deal with those people and their entrenched positions. And we recognise that the document is your document, so you have control over its contents.
Induction training on the new guide
We can deliver induction training about the style guide and its importance to the voice of your brand.