Columbia Corporate Style Guide

Columbia Land Trust Correspondence Guide

Meg Bartošovský

Michelle Hensler

Jacob Schmidt

2 COLUMBIA LAND TRUST CORRESPONDENCE GUIDE

COLUMBIA LAND TRUST CORRESPONDENCE GUIDE 3

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................................... 4

Statement of Purpose ........................................................................ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED.

NOTES ON THE USE OF THIS GUIDE ...................................................................................................... 5

DOCUMENT ELEMENTS ........................................................................................................................ 6

VISUAL ....................................................................................................................................................... 6 Logo..................................................................................................................................................... 6 Color Palette........................................................................................................................................ 8 Typography ......................................................................................................................................... 9 Bulleted and Numbered Lists............................................................................................................. 10 Tables and Figures............................................................................................................................. 10 Numerals ........................................................................................................................................... 11 Highlighters ....................................................................................................................................... 11

CONTENT.................................................................................................................................................. 12 Company Name................................................................................................................................. 12 Audience and Purpose....................................................................................................................... 12 Word Choice and Tone ...................................................................................................................... 13 Grammar........................................................................................................................................... 14 Punctuation ........................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

TEMPLATES ............................................................................................................................................... 17 Letters ............................................................................................................................................... 17 Reports .............................................................................................................................................. 17

PROCEDURES ..................................................................................................................................... 17

DOCUMENT ROUTING................................................................................................................................. 17 File Naming Protocol ......................................................................................................................... 17 Signature Authority ........................................................................................................................... 17

TRACKING CORRESPONDENCE ...................................................................................................................... 17 PHOTOCOPYING AND FAXING ....................................................................................................................... 18 COLLABORATIVE DRAFTING.......................................................................................................................... 18


INTRODUCTION

Dear Staff of Columbia Land Trust,

The correspondence guide now in your hands is meant to provide each of us with vital guidelines for effective, consistent communications between Columbia Land Trust and its community of recipients.

As we gain the recognition of a nationally accredited land trust, our choices of voice, style and grammar conventions likewise increase in importance. The Columbia Land Trust Correspondence Guide is premised on the idea that every form of visual communication has its own power of influence, an influence that goes well beyond its textual content. Indeed, our communications also provide their recipients with the greater context of Columbia Land Trust—a context with subtle power to establish our organizational personality and promote our mission.

With the Columbia Land Trust Correspondence Guide, we are not seeking to establish an impersonal uniformity of correspondence that takes no notice of the individual staff members by whom they are generated. In this way, it is not a typical corporate style guide. The Correspondence Guide is a recognition, however, that we need to share an understanding of Columbia Land Trust’s essential style, a consistently defined professional baseline from which each of our communications begins. As such, the Correspondence Guide provides basic format and style choices for the language and layout pertaining to all our organizational correspondence.

I applaud the effort embodied by the Columbia Land Trust Correspondence Guide, and I hope that each of us will be served and instructed by it. Please regard it as the manifestation of much hard work performed with great wisdom and beneficent motivation.

Yours Cordially,

Glenn Lamb


STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

The standards set forth in this Corporate Style Guide aim to assist Columbia Land Trust in presenting a unified, professional, and personable face to the public. The transition from writing as an independent individual to writing on behalf of an organization is not an easy one—the guidelines and information contained herein serve as much to assist and support the valued team members at Columbia Land Trust as to enhance the efficacy and consistency of Columbia Land Trust communications. Therefore, this guide should be distributed to all team members in the organization, both staff and volunteers, to facilitate collaboration in promoting our mission and embodying the clear and cohesive professional identity of Columbia Land Trust.

NOTES ON THE USE OF THIS GUIDE

New writers are encouraged to review this guide to familiarize themselves with the writing styles and procedures particular to the Columbia Land Trust. This guide also serves as a reference manual with which staff members can independently research specific style elements, document templates, or office protocols.

However, not all issues that will be encountered in the writing process could be explicitly outlined in the context of this document. If a specific standard is not described here, writers may consult the designated department coordinator or an approved reference work.

For questions or concerns regarding general style or grammatical conventions not discussed in the body of this guide, staff should consult the most recent edition of The Chicago Manual of Style.

For questions or concerns regarding spelling or word choice not discussed in the body of this guide, staff should consult the most recent edition of The Merriam-‐Webster Dictionary, available online at http://www.merriam-‐webster.com.

DOCUMENT ELEMENTS

This section examines the use of document elements and the ways in which they uniquely distinguish Columbia Land Trust from other organizations. For ease of reference, we have divided the document elements into Visual and Content subcategories. Distinguishing between visual and content areas in this manner also allows for a more narrow focus on the proper use of these document elements.

VISUAL

Visual elements are key to the success and branding of Columbia Land Trust. The use of visual elements should work to create a distinct brand identity that clients and the community will associate with Columbia Land Trust. Failure to properly use these elements threatens the image and branding integrity of the Columbia Land Trust.

The visual elements covered in this section include logo, color palette, typography, bulleted and numbered list, tables and figures, numerals, and highlighters.

LOGO

Arguably the most important visual element in the branding of Columbia Land Trust, the logo is the primary visual way that the organization represents itself across all external materials. In order to achieve this, the logo must appear on every external document. This includes, but it is not limited to, reports, corporate outreach publications, letters, and newsletters.

The Columbia Land Trust logo consists of two components: the custom drawn Columbia Land Trust symbol (Columbia Barnyard) and the logo typeface. The inclusion of the Columbia Barnyard calls special attention to the organization’s farm preservation work. This reflects Columbia Land Trust’s efforts to acknowledge the perspectives of community members who would not normally be considered traditional to environmental causes. Combined with the logo typeface, these two components create a uniquely identifiable brand that the community and clients associate with Columbia Land Trust.


It is important that the logo should not be altered in any way that deviates from the prescribed logo variations below. This includes but is not limited to redrawing, changing the typeface, altering the layout, or changing the logo color palette. Reproduction of the logo must always be completed using the approved electronic art file from the designated department coordinator.

Columbia Land Trust Logo

Columbia Land Trust Letterhead


COLOR PALETTE

The Columbia Palette is a thoughtfully planned color scheme meant to evoke the natural beauty of the Northwest while carefully maintaining the ethos of Columbia Land Trust.

Sandstone #ece9c9

Pine #5a6243

Root #895d1d

Currant #972109

Rhubarb #873624

Mist #aeb795

Brush #d6862d

White #ffffff

Honeywheat #d0be40

Black #000000

These choices are in keeping with the identity Columbia Land Trust has developed in its publications and letters to date. This palette is available within Adobe Photoshop Swatches


and Microsoft Office Styles on computers issued by Columbia Land Trust, or as a digital file available upon request via a designated department coordinator. Alternately, the web-‐safe hexadecimal color codes can be found below. Templates, available electronically, already have their designated colors pre-‐selected. Please note that no unauthorized changes are to be made to the Columbia Palette.

TYPOGRAPHY

Web-‐safe, non-‐denominational for Windows/Mac, and widely distributed by Microsoft, the following typefaces, Calibri and Cambria, have been chosen for Columbia Land Trust’s publications and letters. These two typefaces function across all publishing software used by Columbia Land Trust and maintain their sharp edges at large sizes. To guarantee high quality for print, no use of the authorized typefaces should ever be rasterized within a document or template unless approved by a department coordinator.

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COLUMBIA LAND TRUST CORRESPONDENCE GUIDE

BULLETED AND NUMBERED LISTS

Two types of lists may be used within Columbia Land Trust documentation: numbered and ordered. Numbered lists, also known as ordered lists, are used in instances where there is a necessary hierarchical structure; that is to say, when items need to be listed in an order. When order is less important, or detracts from the message of the list, unordered, or bulleted, lists are to be used.

TABLES AND FIGURES

Every table and figure included in a document, whether public or internal, should be appropriately captioned and cited. With any image not created or owned by Columbia Land Trust, the original source should be cited in 6pt. font along the right-‐hand side of the image, aligned to the bottom. Captions should appear immediately below the image. Captions should include the minimal amount of information necessary to appropriately describe the


image, and they should appear in a size and format consistent with the template for that document type. As a general rule, captions should always appear discrete, employing a smaller font size than the main text and avoiding highlighters. This enhances readability and avoids distracting inconsistencies.

NUMERALS

Numbers between one and nine are to be written out. The numbers 10 and greater are to be written in numerics. If a number less than 10 and number 10 or greater appear in the same sentence, both should be written out to maintain consistency within a sentence. Fractions should always be expressed in numeric form.

HIGHLIGHTERS

Highlighters-‐-‐style differences in a font’s appearance-‐-‐serve as visual cues of emphasis for particularly important or salient text. Examples of highlighters include boldface, italics, and underlining.

Overuse of highlighters can clutter a document, and defeat their intended purpose. Inconsistent use may confuse the reader if emphasis styles are not applied meaningfully. Consequently, modes of highlighting should not be used interchangeably; rather, each should apply to a particular degree of emphasis and be used consistently.

BOLDFACE

Boldface should be reserved for rare occasions in which a stronger degree of emphasis is needed to differentiate from other points of emphasis in a document.

ITALICS

Unless otherwise necessitated by the context of a given document, italics should be used to emphasize words within a sentence.

UNDERLINING

Underlining, all capital letters, or other emphasis methods should never be used to highlight words or phrases within documents.

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CONTENT

The guidelines outlined in this section address issues of content. The sections here work to assert standards for presenting the substantive information and style elements most crucial to conveying Columbia Land Trust’s message and purpose. Consistency in these applications is essential to representing the organization in a professional, relatable, attractive light, and to upholding the unified corporate identity of Columbia Land Trust.

COMPANY NAME.

In 2010, the Columbia Land Trust underwent restructuring after merging with Three Rivers Land Conservancy. The name Three Rivers Land Conservancy was retired and the newly-‐merged organization retained the named Columbia Land Trust. References to the organization within external and public documents should exclusively use this new complete title. Abbreviations such as CLT or CoLaTrust should never be used in letters, newsletters, reports, corporate outreach publications, or other documents available to the public. Because Columbia Land Trust is a smaller not-‐for-‐profit, it is essential for both clarity and organization cohesion that its documents adopt a more formal and specific representation of Columbia Land Trust and its vital projects.

However, the organization does recognize that brevity and ease of reference can be largely beneficial to interoffice communications between knowledgeable parties. Internal documents must first reference the organization by its complete name, after which, the abbreviated reference CLT is acceptable.

AUDIENCE AND PURPOSE

Columbia Land Trust is uniquely challenged with the frequent need to address and persuade myriad audiences. Each person who Columbia Land Trust engages with-‐-‐from progressive, urban donor to rural rancher-‐-‐holds valid concerns informing their individual needs. For this reason, it is critical to a given document’s efficacy and clarity that the writer or writers thoughtfully deduce the audience and purpose of a document during the planning stage of writing. Because spontaneous shifts in purpose within a document can


dramatically affect the reader’s perception of tone and ethos, any shifts of purpose within a document should be intentional, strategic, and understandable-‐-‐an asset rather than an obstacle to its overall readability.

Before drafting, writers are encouraged to revisit the audience and purpose of the document to be drafted. Newsletters inform supporters and stakeholders about relevant issues and Columbia Land Trust projects in the community, as well as personalize the organization by introducing staff members and volunteers. Reports, too, should appeal to those already familiar and involved with the organization, updating them on specific project developments and accomplishments. While outreach publications appeal to a similar audience, their purpose must often balance between soliciting donations, providing information, and requesting volunteers. Where a single document necessitates all three purposes, transitions and connections should be used to blend seamlessly and flow smoothly. Letters, however, can at different times appeal to community members, landowners, or known supporters to inform, persuade, or solicit donations of time or money, but the purpose remains distinct within individual documents. The language used should carefully cater to the letter’s intended audience and purpose.

TONE AND WORD CHOICE

Tone and word choice are the most important mechanisms by which an organization can convey its message and pursue the purpose of a given document. Because Columbia Land Trust serves as both a protector of natural resources and an ally to the community, all publications should uniformly and universally adopt a friendly, warm, and personable tone that upholds the integrity and professionalism of a trustworthy organization. While the specific style and language used should cater to the document type in which it appears, the degree of professionalism and formality should remain consistent within and throughout that document.

Reports and corporate outreach publications can appropriately adopt a more formal style and specific language as they convey detailed and sometimes technical information to supporters, staff, and experts in the community. For these documents, contractions and colloquialisms should be avoided, and the style should embody a crisp, concise, and straightforward quality to best facilitate understandability.

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Conversely, letters and newsletters-‐-‐appealing to existing and potential allies in the community-‐-‐should assume a semi-‐formal style in which contractions and colloquialisms are effectively incorporated to support an unmistakably friendly tone and message. Inclusive language (we, our) and collaborative language (together, as a community) are always preferable to exclusive or individualistic language. Effective letters and newsletters successfully establish a rapport with readers while informing them of critical information or directing persuasive appeals for worthy causes.

POLITICAL SENSITIVITY

As a non-‐profit organization, the success of Columbia Land Trust is founded on ideological neutrality. While employees are certainly entitled to their individual beliefs, at no time should any staff member officially express any political affiliation or stark ideological opinion. For most purposes, staff members write on behalf of the organization, not as individual participants within it. Columbia Land Trust utilizes its physical and cognitive resources to preserve land, and it is due to the organization’s flexibility, versatility, and adaptability that it is successful in doing so. In this way, profound bonds have been consistently built with diverse communities and individuals. Columbia Land Trust brings people together for a common purpose; focusing on differences or divisions is not conducive to this cause.

NEUTRALITY LANGUAGE

Columbia Land Trust’s mission to conserve and care for vital lands, waters, and wildlife of the Columbia River region carries no political intent. Rather, Columbia Land Trust is a nonpartisan, independent organization working for the welfare of local communities and the environment. Collectively, the organization respects and values the convictions of all clients, partners, and community members who share a vested interest in preserving the productive lands and beautiful natural environment of the Pacific Northwest. Columbia Land Trust does not recognize these aims as partisan or political in any way; therefore, political and partisan rhetoric are inappropriate. All language used in Columbia Land Trust documents should reflect this credo.

GRAMMAR


Proper utilization of English grammar conventions acts as a key part of maintaining readers' perceptions of Columbia Land Trust as a sound organization. Broadly speaking, the grammatical decisions writers make will affect both the success of communications goals and how the reader will regard the writer or organization in the future. Most importantly, though, improper word choice and grammar usage makes reading a document more difficult. The following grammar pointers should not be regarded as all-‐inclusive of grammar concerns writers will encounter. However, they do cover the most-‐common errors that have been discovered in Columbia Land Trust documents in the past.

FRAGMENTS

Fragments occur when groups of words are punctuated as if they comprise complete sentences (beginning with capital letters and ending with periods) but the thought is incomplete. They occur for a number of reasons; most commonly, either an explicit subject or verb have been omitted. Independent clauses, which constitute grammatically complete sentences, must contain both a subject and a predicate, the statement about the subject. Dependent clauses may either be missing one of these two elements or begin with a preposition that renders them dependent on another clause for their meaning. These cannot stand alone as sentences.

RUN-‐ON SENTENCES

A run-‐on sentence contains two or more complete sentences that are either not separated by any punctuation at all or are improperly joined by commas alone. Run-‐on sentences can be particularly problematic because they can unintentionally distort the meaning of a sentence, or overwhelm the reader with too much information in too short a space. The reader may have to pause to sort out meaning, which runs the risk of further confusion and, at best, detracts from the flow of a document.

For example, “Both of the Smith's neighbors are encroaching on the conservation easement they are in violation” is a run-‐on, as is “Both of the Smith's neighbors are encroaching on the conservation easement, they are in violation.” There are three ways to correct run-‐ons:

Separate them into distinct sentences: “Both of the Smiths’ neighbors are encroaching on the conservation easement. They are in violation.”

Join them with a semi-‐colon: “ “Both of the Smith's neighbors are encroaching on the

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conservation easement; they are in violation.” Use a conjunction such as and, or, but, so, because, etc. to connect them: “Both of the

Smith's neighbors are encroaching on the conservation easement, so they are in violation.”

COMMAS

All punctuation should be used correctly and consistently in keeping with conventions of English rhetoric. Proper punctuation serves the important function of signaling to the reader precisely how a sentence should be read. Omitting punctuation or using the wrong punctuation can change the meaning of a sentence. (“Let’s save Babe!” and “Let’s save, Babe!” convey two very different messages.)

While they have many uses, commas should be used whenever they enhance clarity, particularly:

After an introductory word or phrase: For almost ten years, Columbia Land Trust has been actively engaged in conserving and restoring tidal wetlands along Grays River.

To separate an independent and dependent clause in a complex sentence: Because it wasn't protected, the salmon population became endangered.·

After the independent clause and before the conjunction to punctuate a compound sentence created with a conjunction: This salmon population is endangered, but they are recovering.·

To set off appositives and non-‐restrictive clauses: Silver Salmon, presently listed as an endangered species, returned upstream over the last several days.·

In lists of three or more items: The most significant adverse impacts to natural river function, fish habitat formation, and wildlife sustainability are caused by the presence of the paved haul road in the floodplain.

To separate lists of two or more adjectives: Columbia Land Trust is a private, non-profit organization with a strong commitment to the local community.


CAPITALIZATION

Directional words, such as north (and associated words, like northern), should be capitalized when they are used to designate specific regions: "the West Coast," " North Portland," or "the Southern state of mind." When directionals only indicate general direction, such as "head north on I-‐5," or "the eastern part of the Columbia River," however, they should not be capitalized. Similarly, these words should not be capitalized when referring to regional climate or geography: "a northern winter," or "a western drought."

TEMPLATES

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LETTERS

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REPORTS

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PROCEDURES

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DOCUMENT ROUTING

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FILE NAMING PROTOCOL

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SIGNATURE AUTHORITY

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TRACKING CORRESPONDENCE

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PHOTOCOPYING AND FAXING

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COLLABORATIVE DRAFTING

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Columbia Corporate Style Guide

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