Aviva's Clare Parry.

The news service on Arena, Aviva plc’s global intranet, has won six major European awards in the last two years, including CiB's "Best internal online publication" twice. Here, Clare Parry, (clare_parry@aviva.com) corporate news manager for the financial giant, gives her top ten tips for running a successful service.

Awards are never guaranteed, but the pointers below should help you offer a news service that both your professional peers and your readers rate highly.

• Know your audience. Be very clear who your target readers are and make every item earn its place - no vanity publishing. That means being prepared to ask awkward questions and not just being a notice publisher. And remember - if you don’t understand it, it is unlikely your readers will either. Keep jargon and technical terms for the manuals.
• Establish a network of contributors. Talking to staff is a vital part of your job, but you can’t be everywhere all the time, especially in an international organisation such as Aviva. A network of committed contributors - whether they are communications specialists or contacts in key departments - will keep you focused on the issues staff care about and ensure you cover the ever-popular "people" stories.  A good news service is an important business tool, helping staff to understand business objectives and their own roles in the organisation, so use it as a key communications channel for senior managers too.
• Adopt a house style suitable for the web.  People read online differently from paper. They tend to skim read, so break up the text with signposts such as subheads and bullet points. Write summaries and descriptive headings, and link to related items. Above all, keep your stories brief - easier said than done!
• Edit and sub edit. Don’t be afraid to edit contributed material, and remember the "two pairs of eyes" rule. Stories should be sub-edited to avoid typos and other clangers.
• Have an approvals process. If you are providing an internal corporate news service, make sure all items are approved by the relevant parties, including legal and compliance where necessary. You might be a fearless truth-seeker, or just after a good story, but you’re also supposed to be on their side. Do not be afraid, however, to argue your case for clarity of writing, plain English and editing!
• Publish promptly. Publish news items promptly to maintain credibility. Find out when most people access the service - often first thing in the morning and at lunchtime - and use that information to help you publish at the most effective times.
• Plan and be active. Run a news diary or planner to ensure that not only major events in the corporate calendar are covered but that you are also planning a range of news, business features, people stories and lighter items. Then you will produce balanced coverage with wide appeal.
• Mix internal and external news. If you have the staff, the best option is to provide your own coverage of relevant external news - properly credited. Otherwise use one of the agencies offering news feeds. This sets your internal news service in context. 
• Employ professionals. People with journalistic training tend to make the best journalists.
• Research and feedback. Are you hitting the mark? You won’t know unless you ask.

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