Best Practices
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→ Why Proper Structure Matters → Common Mistakes → Global Standards → Captions & Citations → Updating Internal LinksWhy Proper Structure Matters
When migrating content it's tempting to make text look like a heading by making it bold and bigger, or create a "list" by typing dashes manually. This creates problems that aren't visible but have real consequences.
SEO
Google can't "see" your page visually. It reads HTML tags to understand structure. Bold text is not an H1—Google won't treat it as your page's main topic.
Accessibility
Screen reader users navigate by jumping between headings and lists. "Fake" headings made with bold text are invisible to them—they'll miss entire sections of content.
AI & Voice
AI tools and voice assistants pull from properly marked headings and lists—not randomly formatted text. Structure is how your content gets cited.
Common Mistakes
| Don't | Do |
|---|---|
| Make text bold + large to look like a headline | Use the H2 or H3 heading block |
| Type asterisks or dashes to create lists | Use a proper bulleted or numbered list block |
| Add extra blank lines to create spacing | Use proper paragraph breaks—Niki writes CSS for spacing |
| Use a heading tag just to make text bigger | Use headings only for actual content hierarchy |
| Type ALL CAPS for emphasis | Use CSS for styling—ask the developer |
Global Standards
- Page and section titles should be in title case, not ALL CAPS.
- Long pages should have sections broken out using H2 headings.
- Images need descriptive alt text: "tabby cat with gold eyes looking up"—set as both Alt Text and Title in the Media Library.
- If migrated content contains "Click here" as link text, update it to something descriptive.
- Internal links must be updated to point to the new site domain.
Captions & Citations
Captions
Captions are full sentences and end in a period. Photo credits do not get a period.
Photo credit: Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals Media
Citations
Use the AWI Citation custom block for footnotes—don't manually number or style them. Footnote markers go directly after the period with no space: "Niki is awesome.[1] Not Paul."
Updating Internal Links
- Hover over a link in the editor to see its destination URL.
- If it points to the old site domain (awionline.org), it needs to be updated.
- Click the link, then click the chain icon to break it.
- Click the chain icon again to re-link. Start typing the page name—WordPress will suggest matching pages.
- Select the correct page and click the blue arrow button to confirm.
- Save and check the link on the front end.
Use relative paths for internal links where possible: /content/fisheries not the full URL.