When to create a Corporate information page
Create a Corporate information page to:
- publish short University policies, regulations and strategies that need to be reproduced word for word
- publish facts about the University, like semester dates and REF or league table results
- explain rules and regulations and how they might affect people
- publish the transcript of a speech or an oration
- publish official University correspondence that needs to be widely accessible
- share the timetable for an event or series of events, like student induction
Don't create a Corporate information page:
- when the information is long and would be better read as a document - this should be created as a Publication
- when the information is a guide to a policy, procedure, strategy, and so on - this should be created as a Guide
- to list all information about an event – this should be created as an Event page
Before you create a new piece of content, search the website to see if it already exists and talk to other people who could be responsible for it. We do not want to duplicate content on the website as this can be confusing for users.
Choosing the right subtype
Once you've selected this content type, you need to select the subtype that best describes your corporate information. You can choose from:
- Code of practice
- Factsheet
- Letter
- Policy
- Price List
- Procedure
- Regulation
- Speech
- Strategy
- Terms and Conditions
- Timetable
Refer to the University's Policy Framework when choosing a subtype.
Naming your Corporate information page
The title for your Corporate information page should:
- be clear and easy to understand - use simple English and avoid using technical terms if possible
- accurately reflect the content of the page
- be as unique as possible ('Procurement strategy', not just 'Stategy'), unless it is an official University term ('Code of ethics')
- be limited to 65 characters if possible so users can read it in entirety on search results
Your title should not:
- include the words 'Corporate information' or any of the subtypes unless they are part of the official name of the document ('Recruitment and Selection Code of Practice')
- necessarily be the name of the policy, procedure, strategy, and so on, if there is a clearer option to use
- include 'University of Bath' unless it is a part of the official name ('University of Bath Hardship Fund (UBHF)')
Writing a Corporate information summary
Use the summary to explain what your Corporate information page contains. Users should be able to tell at a glance whether it is relevant to them. Write clearly and concisely, without repeating the page title, for example:
Title: University Strategy
Summary: This strategy for 2013 to 2016 sets out how the University will deliver its vision of being an international centre of research and teaching excellence.
The summary should be no more than 160 characters.
Adding labels
We use labels to pin content items onto Topic pages. Only add a label if you know that your content item is going to be part of a Topic. Labels are not typical website 'tags'.
Don't add a label just because you think it might be relevant. You must know what labels the Topic uses. If you don't know, ask your Faculty Web Editor or contact the Digital team at web-support@bath.ac.uk.
To add a label to a content item, select from the drop-down list in the Labels section and click 'Add label'. You can add a maximum of 12 labels to a single content item.
Writing Corporate information content
When you write content that isn't reproduced precisely from the policy, procedure or strategy
Do:
- write concisely and in plain English
- break content up into sections that are easy to read
- use headings to structure the content and help users to navigate
- consider breaking long sentences or paragraphs with a lot of information into bulleted lists
Don't:
- include technical terms in headings unless unavoidable - and then only if you’ve already explained them on the page
- use generic headings ('Further information', 'What happened next')
Resources to help you write your Corporate information page
The University's style guide will help you make sure you're using the same terminology, style and tone as the rest of the website. This is important so that website users can understand us easily through the consistency of our content.
Our formatting guide will help you create appropriate headers, links, lists and other formatting for your page. This is important because it makes the information we provide clearer to website users.
Adding document control
When your Corporate information page is an official University document include the following information:
- Owner (a role at the University, not a person)
- Version number
- Approval date (following the 'Dates and times' section in the style guide)
- Approved by (a role at the University, not a person)
- Date of last review (following the 'Dates and times' section in the style guide)
All new policies created or reviewed from the 2015 to 2016 academic year onwards should already contain this information. If you are transitioning an older policy onto a Corporate information page (excluding Factsheets), provide as much information as you can.
The information should be displayed at the bottom of the 'Body' field in the publishing platform as follows:
Document control
Owner: Digital Content Manager
Version number: 3
Approval date: 12 March 2012
Approved by: Digital Steering Group
Date of last review: 4 April 2015
Use the hash symbol followed by a space before 'Document control' to create the header.
Use the double asterisk formatting markdown to create the bold text:
**Owner:** Digital Content Manager
Include two spaces and a hard return at the end of each line to create a single line break.
Adding media and images
Featured image
You can add a featured image to illustrate your corporate information page.
The image will appear centred at the top of the page. Use an image that is 16:9 ratio and high quality.
The image will also appear on any Topic or Landing pages that the page is pinned to.
Embedded media
You can embed a piece of media such as a slideshow or video at the bottom of the page.
You must give it a title so users know what the media covers.
Adding a call to action
A call to action is the next thing you want the user to do after reading your content. Typecase has special fields for entering a call to action.
Make sure your call to action:
- is active ('Find out more about...', 'Contact the...', not 'More information is available…')
- makes the destination of the link clear to the user
- does not end in a full stop
Your call to action can be a link to a web page, an email address or a phone number.
If your content doesn't have a call to action, choose 'No call to action' and enter a good reason for not having one in the 'Reason for no call to action' box below.
You should always try to think of the next step for the user.
Adding responsible Organisations and Groups
After you have added all your content - including any images, media and contact details - you will able to select an owner or associated group for your page. This allocates permissions for who in the organisation is able to maintain the content.
A guide for adding responsible Organisations and Groups is available to help you do this.