Key website page elements

This section outlines the main elements used to create well-structured, best practice content and website pages. Additional website page elements, including images, videos, maps and forms are covered under other website page elements.

Headings

Page titles and subheadings help users scan content and find what they need.

Heading text

• Write clear, distinctive and precise headings that state the main point of the content that follows. This helps users to understand if they’re in the right spot.
• Keep headings as succinct as possible (typically a maximum of 70 characters, including spaces). Try to front-load your headings by putting the most important words near the start of the heading. This makes them quicker and easier to understand.
• Use keywords and users’ preferred vocabulary in headings, as this helps users find the information they need.
• Do not use ‘Introduction’ as your first subheading – this isn’t necessary.

Use sentence case and minimal punctuation. Only capitalise a term if it’s a proper noun.

Don’t use technical terms or acronyms in a heading unless you’ve already explained them.

Heading hierarchy

Use a logical heading hierarchy to arrange information. The hierarchy shows how important content is and how it’s connected. It’s important for accessibility too.

• Start the website page with a heading 1 (H1) – this is the page’s title. There should only ever be one H1 on a page.
• Use heading 2s (H2) for the main subheadings.
• Use heading 3s (H3) and heading 4s (H4) as sub-subheadings and sub-sub-subheadings. Try not to go lower than H4, as this can be confusing.
• Never skip heading levels in your document – for example, don’t follow H2 with H4.

Accessibility requirements for headings

Headings tell users what they need to know and in which order. For accessible headings:

• Follow the guidelines in this section.
• Write headings that are logical, clear and descriptive enough that users and screen readers can navigate the page and understand what the content is about.
• Do not use bold text instead of using subheadings. A screen reader will not recognise it as a heading.

See also: Headings (Australian Government Style Manual)

Introduction

Introductions explain the purpose and content of the page. They help users to immediately understand whether they are on the right page.

For best-practice introductions:

• start each website page with a short introduction outlining the purpose of the page and the content it covers. This helps people work out if the content is relevant to them and is also used by search engines
• if the page is tailored to a specific audience, call out who it is for
• don’t use ‘Introduction’ or ‘Summary’ as a subhead – jump straight into the text.

Body text

The body text (or body copy) provides the majority – or all – of the page’s information. To create body text that is effective and meets best practice, there are three elements that must be addressed:

• User need
• Structure
• Plain language

User need

Answer the user need. In other words, what do they want to know? The planning guidelines can help here.

Keep text succinct, specific and focused on the critical information; respect users’ time. Agriculture Victoria’s key audiences typically are time poor; similarly, research by Nielsen Norman Group indicates that people only read 20% to 28% of the page. This means the quicker you get to the point, the more likely users are to see the information.

See also: Content planning guide: Understand your audience

Structure

A clear structure helps users find the information they need as quickly as possible. To create a useful structure:

• Use the ‘inverted pyramid’ to structure content. This means the most important information is prioritised higher up on the page, which tapers down to less important information.
• Break up body text with sub-headings, as these help users to understand the page structure at a glance. The only exception is where a content page is very short (fewer than 3 or 4 paragraphs) In this instance, subheadings may not be needed. See headings for more.
• Organise your ideas into short paragraphs under each subheading – one, two orthree sentences is ideal. Paragraphs should have no more than 5 sentences each. Make sure your ideas flow from one paragraph to the next.
• Use bulleted or numbered lists for items or processes. Lists make text quicker to read, make the page less dense and can be used as a design element to make content easier to read.

See also: Paragraphs (Australian Government Style Guide)

Plain language

Use plain English in your writing.

Incorporate your audience’s preferred vocabulary and search terms. This helps them find the information they need (including through search).

See also: Plain language guidelines

Lists

Bulleted or numbered lists are an effective way to break up information, processes or lengthy lists of items, making them easier to read.

Lists are particularly effective when the items consist of a series of single words, short phrases or simple sentences.

Numbered lists are less frequently used than bulleted lists, as they imply that the points need to be taken in order. However, they can be effective for sequential items, processes or prioritised lists.

For best-practice lists:

• follow the style requirements outlined under lists
• avoid using sublevels of bullets, as these can be difficult for users and screen readers to read. Consider reworking the text if sublevels of bullets are needed.

See also: Lists (Australian Government Style Manual)

Boxes

Feature boxes sit separately to the body text on a content page. They can be used to highlight content or share related resources.

Website advisors will advise on the best place to use feature boxes.

For best-practice feature boxes:

• Boxes should be placed near the content they relate to.
• Boxes will usually contain body text.
• Most boxes will contain a short, clear heading that signposts the box’s content. This is optional for boxes that consist of just one or 2 sentences.
• Where needed, a box can include a button that links users to related content or starts an action. The button should follow the guidelines for call-to-action buttons.

See also: Text boxes and callouts (Australian Government Style Manual)

Plant Quarantine Manual

The Plant Quarantine Manual (PQM) outlines requirements for moving plants and plant products into Victoria. You can find any relevant restrictions by searching the manual online. It is structured differently to other content on the website and is designed as a searchable database.

Tables

• Tables can be an effective way to show large amounts of data or numbers that is too detailed for text.
• Tables should be used sparingly. They should only be included if there’s a distinct user need for a table and there is not a simpler way to present the content.
• Do not use tables if they contain only one or 2 items.

Placement

Place the table after the text it relates to. However, as some people will look at the table before the relevant text, the table must be designed to be self-explanatory.

Design and content

All tables include the following:

• A table heading
• A heading for each row and column entries in each cell

Use these rules for tables:

• The table heading is a short, clear heading that explains the contents of the table. If the page has only a single table it does not need a table number; if you have multiple tables on the page include a table number using the format: Table [X]: [Table heading].
• The row and column headings should use simple, plain language. Make sure the structure of the headings is consistent.
• Rows and columns are ordered sequentially (for example, using alphabetical or numerical order).
• Cell information is succinct and streamlined; use abbreviations and contractions if needed. If large amounts of text are needed, consider another way to present this information.

Accessibility requirements for tables

Tables need to be designed so they are accessible and can be read by screen readers.

Include the following in a table:

• A title
• Row and column headings
• Entries in all cells; use ‘zero’, ‘nil’ or ‘n/a’ if there is no information in that cell
• Cross-reference tables in body text

Consider adding notes below the table to help users understand the information and where it comes from.

See also: Tables (Australian Government Style Manual)

Links

Links (sometimes called hyperlinks) play an extremely important role on large sites such as agriculture.vic.gov.au. They help audiences find relevant information and support the user journey.

The Agriculture Victoria website provides links as both in-text links and as a linking component.

Images can also link to larger image versions.

Calls to action also typically include a link.

See also: Call-to-action panel

In-text links

In-text links are links that sit within the page’s body text. They are used to connect people to information related to the text. They can link either internally within agriculture.vic.gov.au or to external sites. Or they can be used to open a prefilled email option using your default email program, for example, Outlook

Planning in-text links

Links should only be used if they help users find relevant and valuable information. You do not need to include every possible link. They can reduce readability and large numbers of unhelpful links can frustrate users.

If relevant information exists on another page, link to the page rather than repeating the information. Duplicated content can be confusing for users and is difficult to maintain.

Where possible, avoid linking multiple times to the same destination on a single content page.

Creating link text

• Link copy forms a grammatical part of the surrounding text.
• Write link text that is specific and makes the destination clear. Users should not have to click on the link to find out.
• Keep link text concise and put the most important words at the start of the link.
• Link only the relevant text, not the whole sentence.
• Do not use vague link text like ‘click here’ or ‘more information’. These don’t give users any information, and impact on accessibility for users using assistive technology.

External links will include the external link icon after the link:

Accessibility requirements for links

• Links should make it clear where the user is heading next.
• Avoid sensory characteristics (for example, size, shape or colour) to explain buttons or links.
• Open links in the same window, as this enables users to use the ‘back’ button.

See also: Links (Australian Government Style Manual)

Linking component

The linking component sits at the bottom of landing pages and content pages. It provides prominent, structured links to related content.

There are 2 separate components:

• Related pages: This provides links to content on agriculture.vic.gov.au.
• Other information: This links to external content and channels (for example, Victorian Digital Guides). However, it may be also used to direct users to relevant information on reputable government or partner sites.

Planning the linking component

Links should be strategic and genuinely valuable. Don’t include links for the sake of ‘filling up’ the component.

Links should always directly relate to the content captured on the landing page or content page. (For example, linking to the cattle diseases filtered landing page from the beef landing page.)

Prioritise information that sits on different sections of the site (for example, related grants or eLearning) drives the user journey or builds on the information provided on the page.

A note on external links

Linking to government sites or partner agencies can help users to access authoritative information. However, you must be confident that the information is, and will remain, trustworthy, accurate and up to date.

Creating the linking component

Each link in the link component includes:

• the name of the linked page, channel or website
• a succinct summary that explains what the page is about and why it is relevant to users on the current page
• external links will include the external link icon after the page name.

Call-to-action panel

A call to action (CTA) drives users to take the next step or complete an action. On agriculture.vic.gov.au CTAs usually ask users to call, email, subscribe, register, apply, enrol or complete something. For example, reporting a disease pest or weed or applying for a permit.

The Agriculture Victoria website uses CTA panels to provide a clear and prominent way to drive those actions.

Planning call-to-action panels

Avoid overwhelming users with too many CTAs. Ideally, a page should include just one CTA. If there are multiple actions you want users to take, identify the priority action and make this most prominent on the page.

CTAs should always provide clear value to users. Do not include a CTA to the Customer Contact Centre unless more information is available in a knowledge article.

For most content pages, the CTA panel will sit at the bottom of the page or below the related text. This supports the standard user research process (‘I have a question – I have read and understood the information – I have my answer’). Placing the CTA at the top of the page interrupts that process.

Creating call-to-action panels

CTA panels provide a succinct description of the action. Most CTAs will include a link button (unless a phone call or another offline action is the desired outcome).

The CTA description should be short, sharp and direct. Typically, this should be no more than one or 2 sentences. Users should clearly understand the value and outcome of taking the action.

The CTA button is concise, uses action verbs and accurately describes what happens next. (For example, Start your application).

Because CTA panels are short, headings are not necessary.