Your 2021 content design resolutions
Hi designer! Happy New Year! How’s it going so far?
I know you might have a few resolutions going already, which is awesome! You are definitely going to [lose that weight / lose that boyfriend / save way more money] this year!
Let me cut to the chase. I have a few suggestions for resolutions you might want to consider, if you want to make your friends over in content design super happy. But it’s not really about us...this is about elevating your craft. Your design needs words. Words are part of your design. It’s symbiotic or something.
So here they are! Your NEW 2021 resolutions. Don’t worry—they’re very achievable. You’re welcome.
Punctuate consistently
Your colors, fonts, and padding are always consistent, right? What about your punctuation? Check your style guide to make sure you keep all your dots (and dashes) in a row in 2021. Consistent punctuation makes your design more professional, trusted, and clear.
Be sure to check the rules for:
Headlines
Bulleted lists
Error messages, help text, and other microcopy
How your style guide feels about:
The em dash (—)
The Oxford (or serial) comma
Ellipses…
Colons (:) and semicolons (;)
Getting familiar with these basics will save you time and face in 2021.
Cozy up to your dictionary
Are you using a word you’re not quite sure of? Want to check and see if this proposed feature name has any...unintended consequences? The beautiful humans at Merriam Webster are here for you.
I use the dictionary all the time to check for secondary meanings, and to be sure the words I’m using have the right connotations. There is no shame in the thesaurus game either.
You can follow the dictionary on Twitter, too (@MerriamWebster), if you like unexpectedly epic clapbacks.
Read it out loud
Working from home getting lonely? Nobody but your dog can hear you?
Excellent.
With open offices a thing of the past, you can resolve to read your writing out loud in 2021. Does it sound weird? Stilted? Not like your brand voice oughta? That’s a sign you’ve got to rewrite.
Reading your writing out loud can help you find grammar issues, dropped words, and complex language. If it’s hard to say, it’s probably hard to read.
Ask your content designer to [virtual] coffee
Your friendly, local content designer might seem tough to get a hold of. They’re probably juggling a ton of projects, and thousands of Slack requests for grammar checks.
But boy, do we appreciate having people on our side, looking out for the words when we can’t be in the room. Take a minute to talk to your content designer, learn about the challenges they’re facing, and ask all your word nerd questions.
We love words, and the people who obsess over them. You’re welcome in our club, dear designer!
There you have it! Your new, New Year’s resolutions (I hope). Here's to a 2021 full of fabulous turns of phrase.