These guidelines serve as a starting point for developing and communicating project-specific copy/character length recommendations to writers and partners. 

• Writer's should also reference the Writing Web Copy Google doc

A good time to share relevant copy guidelines is when the wireframe is feeling solid. Be sure to consider the specifics of your project before sharing copy guidelines with the team. 

Examples of project copy guidelines:

• Degree comparison project (very granular since copy choices affected the complexity of the code)
• About page 

For Webpages

General guidelines

Headings

• 60 characters max

Introductory copy 

Typically right below a heading.

• 200 characters max
• Use sparingly since users often skim over it; not every section/heading needs intro copy

Supporting copy

• Keep the copy short. Web users are often skimming headings and jumping around the page to find content they care about. If a section looks like a lot of text, they may skip it because another section is more visually interesting/approachable.

Guidelines for specific content 

Meta-description

• 160 characters max
• include SEO keywords; spell out acronyms

Hero

Microtitle

• Only available for pattern hero 

Page title/H1 heading

• Suggest a page title based on what the page is called in the navigation. (e.g. for the About page, suggest title be "About" or "About the Wisconsin School of Business")
• Short and scannable (user might be thinking "Am I on the right page?" when they see this – copy should confirm that quickly)
• Should not be filled with marketing copy; if it is, move that copy to a subhead or supporting copy

Supporting copy

• 60 characters max

Opening section with 3 chunks (simple card)

• Subhead - 25 characters max
• Supporting copy - 150 characters max