There’s an increased recognition of the need for Plain English for public-facing material. But it’s just as important in internal communications within organisations. It should also be used wherever possible in eLearning.
Basic principles
Plain English is a way of presenting content so it’s easy to understand and is accessible to all. The basic principles are:
- Be direct and use the active voice,
- Keep things as simple as possible by avoiding jargon and needlessly complicated language,
- Organise content using headings, bullets and so on to make it easy for the ready to navigate.
The need for Plain English for the public
Did you know that one in six people have difficulty reading common documents like informational brochures or medication instructions? Removing language that is more complicated than it needs to be makes information easier to understand.
Most people will skim when reading to gather information as quickly as they can. However, some people with reading disabilities cannot skim. Instead, they read text word by word which slows down reading time significantly. But uses features like bullets, subheadings and clear paragraphs to make it easier to skim for information.
Some people may not be native English speakers, but things like simple language and clear organisation of information will help people at all levels of fluency and literacy.
The need for Plain English in your organisation
Let’s now focus on how Plain English could benefit your organisation.
Increasing productivity:
Organisations can deliver raining and documents in a simple and easy-to-understand way which help employees to perform more efficiently.
Removing obstacles to understanding:
Well-written content reduces confusion and misunderstanding. This can increase customer satisfaction levels and customer support will need to handle fewer queries.
Making content inclusive:
It removes barriers so everyone can access content more easily.
Hopefully all of this has convinced you that there is a strong need for Plain English. If you want to learn more about how it can benefit both your customers and your staff, sign up The Learning Rooms Plain English online course.
