Introduction

These 12 rules help content designers make things clear, helpful, and easy to use. They’re not strict laws-just smart habits that make content better for everyone.

What's the problem it solves?

Many content rules are too vague, hard to check, or not made with real people in mind. This article fixes that by offering clear, practical rules that actually work when writing for users.

Quick Summary

Design heuristics are basic rules that help designers build better user experiences. While content teams have borrowed ideas from design, many past content guidelines are either too fuzzy, overlap too much, or lack ways to test if they’re working. This article offers 12 improved rules made just for content design, covering areas like clarity, access, trust, and usefulness.

Each rule explains what it means, why it matters, and how to check if your content follows it. For example, “Accessible” means your content should work for people with disabilities. “Concise” pushes you to cut extra words. “Ethical” reminds you to put users first, not company goals. The rules also help make your writing easier to read, easier to find, and more inclusive of everyone.

In short: this guide gives content teams a smarter way to check their work-and a better way to help users.

Key Takeaways

• Heuristics are helpful rules, not strict laws.
• Good content is tested, clear, and serves the user’s needs.
• Most past frameworks lack ways to measure success or are too subjective.
• These 12 rules give structure while leaving space to adapt to your situation.
• You should design content with users, not just for them.

What to do

• Use these 12 heuristics to review your content before publishing.
• Start with accessibility and usefulness-if you get those right, others follow.
• Avoid vague words like “engaging”-focus on being clear and helpful.
• Test your content for real-world readability, navigation, and tone.
• Share your content guidelines in simple formats that your team can use.
• Regularly update and review published content-don’t let it go stale.
• Design for everyone, including users with different backgrounds and needs.
• Write with purpose: help people get what they came for, fast.

‍