The City of Oklahoma City is dedicated to serving all people. We need to give equitable access to all of our digital services and web content. We must consider the need of Oklahoma City residents, City staff and anyone doing business with the City.
Principles of OKC digital services
1. Serves the people of Oklahoma City.
Designed around the needs of people visiting OKC.gov.
2. Everyone can use it.
Accessible to people with mobile devices, older devices and browsers, assistive technologies and with low-data connections. Meet AA+ WCAG standards.
3. Written simply.
Plain language makes our content easier for the public to read, understand and use. Written at or below a 5th grade reading level.
4. Translated.
Easy to access translations of vital information and services.
5. Integrated into service delivery.
OKC.gov is a core part of how the City delivers services because people expect to get great services online.
6. Consistent and unified.
Single website for all City departments that people can trust and easily navigate.
7. Reusable and flexible.
Easy to build and maintain. Works for and across all departments.
Our approach
We take an approach that is based on user-centered principles, acknowledging the broad audience that government content is often addressing.
Start with user needs
Write in a way that suits the situation. Ask yourself: Who is going to read this? What do they need to know? How might they be feeling? Help people find the information they need quickly and easily. Guide them through the process.
Do the hard work to make it simple
Use plain language and simple sentences. Choose clarity over cleverness.
Write for everyone
Respect the complexity of our users’ experiences.
Be willing to be surprised about who’s reading your work.
Build trust
Talk like a person.
Tell the truth.
Use positive language and concrete examples.
Start small and iterate
Make sure your content works for users. Don’t be afraid to scrap what’s there and start over.
Write a draft, test it out, gather feedback, and keep refining.
