University Calendar Best Practices

Content

The areas where we see the most challenges in posted event content are listed below with some best practices. The university follows AP style and has a complementary house style guide for voice and tone and unit references. For consistency and clarity, the university’s editorial style must also be followed for calendar listings.

Title

Relevant information that is at most 10 words. Also, avoid acronyms in your titles.

Summary

Succinct information about the event that does not exceed 45 words. This information is displayed on your calendar group public page. It is also often pulled into feeds displayed on various units’ websites.

Location

Use an actual address in this field; if it is virtual, use the online event option. Do not type in virtual.

Event Description

Use this section to provide a maximum of three paragraphs of additional information that is not a direct copy and paste of the summary. If an official webpage supports registration or full details, please link to it rather than duplicate the information in the calendar listing. Also, include a contact in this field with both a name and email address. When a visitor chooses the option to download the event to their calendar, this information is included in the shared file.

Links

Select the “Open link in new window” option for all links added to your copy. This allows users to continue interacting with the event posting while accessing the linked information separately.

Images

Image Field

For each calendar entry, post a relevant image for your event or choose your unit’s official lockup/logo if a unique image is not readily available. Using an image provides visual interest and improves search engine optimization (SEO) and ranking, particularly in Google.

Image Size

Due to recent changes in how website calendar feeds display, your images should be resized to a 16:9 aspect ratio. This should be between the size of 1280×720 pixels and 1920×1080 pixels. For those unfamiliar with resizing images, Adobe Express, which everyone at the university can access, has quick actions for resizing images. Open the Adobe Express Resize App in your browser. Upload your image. Once uploaded, you will see options to resize the image; choose standard. Once selected, choose the 16:9 widescreen option; it will auto-resize. When complete, choose the download option.

Image Optimization

In addition to resizing images, they will also need to be optimized for the web. A free browser-based tool like Tinify will reduce and compress your images without losing details. Images should not exceed 350 KB.

Image Alt Text

Alt text is required for all images to meet web accessibility requirements. Also, writing relevant alt text assists with SEO and provides contextual information for search engines on the content of your event. Keep the information short, descriptive and relevant — describe what a viewer would see. You can choose the decorative image option if the image is your logo or lockup.

Image Color Contrast

Check the contrast ratio between text and background colors for accessibility compliance. A free browser-based tool, like the WebAIM contrast checker, allows for a check between the foreground and background colors.

Style and Accessibility

Texas A&M and The Texas A&M University System follow the Associated Press (AP) Style Guide. Please reference the Texas A&M University Editorial Style Guide to ensure university standards are met when writing and creating events for the calendar. Specifically, the Writing for the Web section provides information on content SEO and accessibility.