When to use blogs

Blogs can make it easy to talk to people. A service can use a blog to:

• highlight its work
• share information
• connect with people who have a common concern or interest

Blogs help make information accessible and are easy for people to engage with. They’re also a great way to connect with people because:

• they're open to everyone
• they can be shared on social media
• they help you start a conversation with your audience
• they can be found by people you may not think of as your primary audience
• they can reduce showcase events or information published elsewhere

Blogs are not always the solution when you have something to say. It may be better to use:

• an information page for where users need to complete a task
• a campaign page to publicise an event
• a banner for short-term announcements

Every blog must have a named owner who is responsible for the content.

The blog owner needs to:

• post regularly, at least once a month
• co-ordinate, schedule and check content quality of blog posts before they’re published
• evaluate the blog’s performance using page view figures and feedback comments
• promote it, for example on social media

A blog should attract interest by talking about what your service team is working on or offering.

Blogs can talk about successes but also what went wrong with a project. This information can be both interesting and helpful to colleagues working in similar areas.

Like all our web content, blogs must be clear and accessible to all. This is a legal requirement.

Teams will be responsible for writing their own blogs and need to follow these standards. There is guidance to help with this:

• Writing for the web
• Understanding accessibility

The web team will monitor blog content to ensure that it is appropriate and accessible.

Titles should clearly tell readers what the post is about and entice them to read it. It's best not to use word plays. The title should be concise and make sense on its own.

A blog post title should be 65 characters or fewer. This is so that Google and Twitter can display the full title and the user knows what to expect.

Some examples of effective titles are:

• "Why I keep an allotment"
• "Carer's week - my personal perspective"
• "Look up - the night sky in August"

To make posts easier to read on a screen, break up the text with paragraphs or relevant images.

This creates more white space on the page. Paragraphs no more than about 5 lines long are easiest to read.

Use headings to break up the post, but make sure they describe the section beneath them. People use headings to scan a page, so make them meaningful.

You can also use subheadings to break up larger sections that already have a heading.

Choosing the right images for blog posts can make them more effective and engaging.

Do not use images from Google which will usually be copyrighted.

Ensure you have the correct permission or licence to use images you find anywhere online.

The use of stock images will usually require a licence fee and companies may send a notice of copyright infringement if they find you're using their images without consent.

You can get royalty-free images from websites like Unsplash and Pexels.

You should use links within the text to point readers towards an action or further information. You might want customers to sign up for notifications or visit an event.

If your team would like a blog, send a request via Service Now. Any request for a new blog needs to be approved by your service director.

All blogs will be monitored. If blogs are not written clearly, or are not appropriate, the digital team will contact the author to give advice and support.

Contact the webteam via ServiceNow if you need to:

• ask a question
• setup a new blog
• request access to an existing blog
• make a suggestion for something we need to include in this guidance

You can find more guidance on writing content in the content design resources in the GOV.UK Service Manual.