This Digital Engagement Resources site includes guidelines for website development, design and content creation across Queen's digital properties. The guidelines apply to all properties under the queensu.ca domain as well as those on another domain where the main affiliation is Queen's.
Adherence to these guidelines will ensure a consistent, accessible, and brand-aligned web presence for the university.
Topics under the guidelines work together to enhance user experience. Following the principles set out in the guidelines will also help establish better rankings for Queen's research and academic initiatives across search engines, making the work of our community more visible online to prospective students and collaborators around the world.
Some pages on this site provide very general information on a topic, then link to another Queen's websites for further details.
Guideline topics include:
Visual identity / branding
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Visual identity: Queen's logo, official colours and complementary colours; typography
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Branding tools: resources for branding audio and video content, image selection, principles of inclusivity
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Website CMS: the benefits of using WebPublish, Queen's centrally supported and branded content management system (CMS) for publishing websites
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User interface: components library and mobile-first/responsive design
Analytics and insights
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Website analytics: tracking and shared tools, dashboards and reporting
User experience and content optimization
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Planning tools: defining project objectives, strategy, and scope
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Content and information architecture: site structure and navigation, URL best practices, document and image file naming, digital documents as web content, contact information, 404 pages and redirects
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Search engine optimization (SEO): optimizing content and monitoring progress for better search rankings
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Writing for the web: how users read, reading level, crafting accessible links
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Queen's Writing Style Guide: based on CP style, this guide outlines Queen's-specific topics and choices
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Accessibility: practices for creating accessible content – images, colour contrast, link text, captioning, documents
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Image Alt Text and Captions: more on accessibility and images
Development
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Centralized content generation: utility bar, cookie disclosure, emergency messaging
Governance
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Committees and working groups: WebPublish, Digital Analytics, Data Quality, SEO
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Governing policies: accessibility, domain name, visual identity, copyrights