Insights archive

Red Pony is a team of writers, editors, Microsoft Office template developers and communications trainers. We have been writing about our areas of expertise since 2009 in our Red Pony Express newsletter.

This collection features a selection of our best articles.

Clodagh Walsh 12/6/24 Clodagh Walsh 12/6/24

Using headings to create impact

Whether you are writing a 100-page report or a one-page fact sheet, effective use of headings can greatly enhance your document.

Dom Symes 16/8/22 Dom Symes 16/8/22

Cite management

All writing which makes claims based on available information requires citation. To help use citations effectively, it’s important to understand why we use them and how to use citations appropriately in context.

Belinda Nemec 17/6/13 Belinda Nemec 17/6/13

Every pica tells a story

Clear writing and a firm editorial hand (whether your own or Red Pony’s) are the most important elements of clear business communication. But visual presentation also makes a big difference in getting your point across.

Peter Riches 14/2/13 Peter Riches 14/2/13

What the font?

When the physicist announcing the possible discovery of the Higgs boson last July used the font Comic Sans in her presentation, she unwittingly became a combatant in the war against this widely derided typeface. But in choosing Comic Sans, perhaps Fabiola Gianotti was deliberately drawing on recent studies that suggest fonts that are harder to read actually help us retain information.

Peter Riches 15/10/12 Peter Riches 15/10/12

Applying styles in Microsoft Word

Way back in issue #2 of the Red Pony Express, we wrote about the advantages of using Microsoft Word templates to improve the presentation and usability of your written materials. However, there’s not much use in having a suite of nicely formatted templates if no one actually knows how to use them.