Legal Writing

Martin Cutts' presentation to PLAIN2009 Conference

presented to
Plain Language Association InterNational conference
Sydney, Australia, October 2009
Martin Cutts, research director, Plain Language Commission, UK
available free from http://www.clearest.co.uk/files/InstructionsForConsumerProducts.pdf

Here is an excerpt:

The Oxford Guide [The Oxford Guide to Plain English (2009) Cutts M, Oxford;] suggests, for example, that companies hire a usability firm to test their instructions with real people.David A McMurrey also gives good advice at http://www.io.com/~hcexres/textbook/instrux.html.
Here are some of the principles in the Oxford Guide:

1 Remember the readers. Usually readers haven?t used the product before; that?s why they?re reading the instructions. Say a little at a time.

2 Favour a basic style of language. This often means using the command form of the verb, the imperative, which helps you state the action early and keep the message simple.

3 Split the information into chunks and use separate headed sections. A common sequence of sections is:
? introductory explanation, overview or summary
? tools or materials needed
? definitions
? warnings
? main text, split into headed sections.

4 Use clear illustrations of adequate size with good labels and captions. Relevant illustrations should be visible while the user is reading the text.

5 Test with typical users.

Full post as published by Building Rapport on October 24, 2009 (boomark / email).