When you’re writing an alert to inform people of an issue, there are certain things to keep in mind. Poor usage of language and tone can really take away from your message. So can vague phrasing. Confused? Here is an example.

Let’s say you’re writing a sexual harassment alert. You could start by stating, “numerous incidents of SEXUAL HARASSMENT have recently occurred.” At first glance, this might seem like a good starting point. But if you reread it, imagining yourself as the recipient, you’d see how such a vague statement could be unsettling. You’d see how a statement with no context is incendiary and capable of causing mass panic. So to avoid this outcome, you would add details identifying where the harassment has occurred and groups that have been affected.

Additionally, if you wanted to provide a solution, you could just say, “STOP IT.” This may seem like the obvious answer to you, but I would encourage you to give it more thought. Oversimplifying an issue can cause you to miss out on pertinent factors and can even cause offense to some groups. Instead, I would recommend listing resources to people affected and informing the community of places to find support and safety. It would also be wise to highlight consequences of contributing to the problem.

These are just some things you should keep in mind if you are writing this type of alert.