Before You Begin

  • Pinpoint your post’s purpose: Blogging should be an intentional act with a clear goal in mind. Blogs should align with the University mission and promote the work of faculty, students and programs that align with University priorities, including enrollment, academic quality and expanding Campbell’s reach.
  • Identify your audience: Who do you envision as the primary audience for your post - peers in profession, institutional peers, alumni, current students ,or prospective students?
  • Brainstorm: What kind of content would your audience find useful and interesting? Create a content calendar to help plan for future posts.
  • Proofread: Content contributors should review each post thoroughly before uploading to the blog.
  • Publish: All blogs must be updated by a faculty or staff member who has completed Wordpress training provided by University Communications & Marketing.
      • If you are not a content contributor,  we recommend reaching out to the primary contacts before submitting a blog request to University Communications & Marketing.

Content to Avoid

  • Copyrighted content including images, videos and music.
      • Content on campbell.edu must be original or considered public domain (free from copyright). Publishing an image, video or music that you do not own could result in legal action.
  • Gifs, emojis, memes, bitmojis and clipart.
  • Visual content across campbell.edu – including graphics, advertisements, illustrations, infographics or other artwork – must follow University brand guidelines, be properly formatted and meet accessibility compliance. Graphic content that does not adhere to these policies is subject to removal from the website.
  • Third-party logos on the University website must be approved by University Communications & Marketing.
  • Event information. All events should be added to the University calendar. Event information should only be included on the blog if it is marketing related (i.e. an interview the the guest speaker, a look at what to expect from the event, etc.)

Best Practices

  • Stay active: Plan to post at least twice a month.  
  • Keep posts brief: The average person’s attention span is 8 seconds, brevity is key.
  • Get to the point quickly: Important information should be placed first to ensure it’s seen.
  • Make it reader-friendly: Break up content by using subheads and pull quotes. Small, well-organized “chunks” of content improve clarity and retention.
  • Use plain language: Avoid jargon, acronyms and abbreviations wherever possible. Embrace the University’s voice and tone.
  • Keep it accessible: Images should always include alt tags for accessibility and search engine optimization. An alt tag is text associated with an image. It is not seen by the user, but is readable by search engines.
  • Crosslink for maximum exposure: Reference portions of campbell.edu by providing links to similar content.
      • Avoid use of “click here.
        ”Use of “click here” as link text is a significant accessibility violation
        Visually-impaired users’ screen readers can’t get significant content from “click here” links.
        Many of our web visitors are mobile users; they tap links, instead of clicking.
          AVOID: Click here to download the guide.
          BETTER: Download the guide
          BEST: Download the Student Success Guide
      Set links to open in a new window.
  • Share your work: Use social media to share your blog posts and grow your reach.
  • Start writing: Prepare at least three posts before your blog’s launch.