Find out who your readers are:

• Why are they coming to the site?
• Do they have a problem?
• Do they need information?
• How old are they?
• How literate are they?
• How much do they already know about the subject?
• How much time are they likely to spend to learn more?

Don't start to think about what you need to write before you find out who you're writing for.

Knowing our readers also helps us remember that we're writing for real people, and that makes it easier to avoid wording that can be insensitive or insulting.

For example:

Under the Get Back To Work Program, you might be worth up to $500 to a new employer.

Our reader is probably 'worth' a great deal more than $500. Try:

Under the Get Back To Work Program, you might be able to offer a wage subsidy of up to $500 to a new employer.