MLT Vacations Website Style Guide 2007

Who is this style guide for?
This web style guide serves two functions: to serve as a design reference to keep our web styles consistent, and to serve as a code reference for those needing to work with HTML and CSS. Anyone in the company can utilize this reference guide for their needs.

Why does the web have a different set of styles from print?
Web design is all about form AND function. A pretty site that doesn't work or meet the expectations of the user will fail miserably. Websites need to be easy to access (quick download times), easy to read (scanable), and easy to navigate (can users find what they're looking for quickly?). Thus, web design takes on its own set of rules when it comes to layout and copywriting.

"Writing for the web is not the same as writing for print because people read differently on the web. One of the impediments to online reading is physical: it's harder to read on a screen than it is to read on paper. Even the best computer monitors are hopelessly fuzzy compared with the crisp images on a glossy magazine page, and the extra effort this requires from human eyes and brains slows readers down.. The longer the document, the bigger the problem.

"But the more significant barrier web writers must overcome is behavorial, not physical…Everyone who's observed, tested, or studied online reading agrees that people behave differently when online. When viewing a new page, they don't read — they scan. They look at headings and subheading first; they scan for hyperlinks, numerals, and keywords. They jump around, scrolling and clicking, their fingers never far from the brower's "Back" button. The word that best describes their behavior is: impatient.

"The challenge for the web writer is to overcome readers' impatience by keeping things as brief as possible. It's a big challenge. Writing 250 breezy words on a given subject is usually harder than writing 1,000."

— "The Web Content Style Guide," by Gerry McGovern, Rob Norton, and Catherine O'Dowd

Last modified - 12/7/07