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In this List of Suggestions
Help Readers Navigate through the Newsletter
Call Attention to Specific Information
Appropriately Use Emphasis Type
Use Templates to Ensure Consistency

• Include a running header or footer which includes the name of the newsletter and the page number).
• Write clear headlines for each article, from which readers can clearly determine the subject
• Include subheads within articles (that is, headings within the text of the article); readers use these to locate specific pieces of information.
• Avoid "jumping" articles (that is, starting articles on one page and continuing them on a second page).  Readers disdain this practice. In those rare instances when you must jump articles, make sure that you only "jump" an article once (that is, continue it onto another page once, rather than twice as some newsletters do), and include jump lines at the end of the first page and beginning of the second (that is, "SHORT TITLE, continued on page X" and "SHORT TITLE, continued from page Y").

Page one: include an "inside box," which lists the articles on the inside of the newsletter and their locations

Long articles: include sidebars that summarize the key points of the article .

Last page, present calendar information on a calendar or in a list, rather than in a paragraph.

• Include atitle line that repeats the title of the article (this appears in the title bar in the blue box at the top of the browser screen)
• Write clear headlines for each article, from which readers can clearly determine the subject
• Include subheads within articles (that is, headings within the text of the article); readers use these to locate specific pieces of information.
• At the beginning of articles with at least 2 subheads:
• Include an "In this Article" box, which presents the subheadings and lets readers jump to specific sections.
• At the end of each section within the article, include a link back to the top.
• Within the body of the article, include a box summarizing the key points of the article.
• Link to related articles and websites at the end of the article, to avoid distracting readers (as soon as readers see a hyperlink, they tend to click away without finishing the article).
• At the bottom of each page, link back to the home page.  If you have a larger website, you might also include links to each major section of the newsletter. 

Home page: include an "inside box," which lists the articles on the inside of the newsletter and their locations

Calendar: present as a calendar so readers can easily scan it.

• Traditional headings.
• Headings on charts.
• Captions on illustrations and photographs.

• Titles of published works, including book titles, software titles, videotapes, audio tapes, and web sites.
• Words from other languages that have not been co-opted into the language.  For example, the French word detente is not widely used in English and should therefore be italicized.  In contrast, the Spanish word taco is widely used in English and should not be italicized. 

Although many believe that italicized type emphasizes text, some studies suggest that readers have more difficulty finding and reading italic type than other types of type.  In other words, rather than emphasizing text, italics often make it harder to read. 

Because typewriters did not have an italic font, people used the underscore wherever they would have used italics.  With the advent of desktop publishing and website software, users now have have access to italic type.

Because studies show that readers have the easiest time reading black type on a a white background, black is always the preferred color for type (true both online and in print). 

Furthermore, colored text online has come to suggest that a hyperlink, so readers tend to click on text in colors other than black.  When clicking does not link to other text, readers leave feeling dissapointed.