Writing About People

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Writing About People 
We write the same way we build apps: with a person-first 
perspective. Whether you’re writing for an internal or external 
audience, it's important to write for and about other people in a 
way that’s compassionate, inclusive, and respectful. Being 
aware of the impact of your language will help make Mailchimp 
a better place to work and a better steward of our values in the 
world. In this section we'll lay out some guidelines for writing 
about people with compassion, and share some resources for 
further learning. 
As part of an audience 
Don’t capitalize “audience” unless it’s grammatically 
necessary. 
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Don’t refer to an audience as “it.” Audiences are made 
up of real people, so always use “they.” 

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This goes for contacts, too. Contacts are real people, 
never pieces of data. 
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There’s a feature in our app called “lookalike 
audiences,” which is a way for our customers to market 
to people who are similar to their existing contacts. 
Always use the “lookalike” qualifier when referring to 
this feature to avoid confusion. 
AGE 
Don’t reference a person’s age unless it’s relevant to what 
you’re writing. If it 
is
relevant, include the person’s specific age, 
offset by commas. 
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The CEO, 16, just got her driver’s license. 
Don’t refer to people using age-related descriptors like “young,” 
“old,” or “elderly.” 

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Disability 
Avoid disability-related idioms like “lame” or “falling on deaf 
ears.” Don’t refer to a person’s disability unless it’s relevant to 
what you’re writing. If you need to mention it, ask whether your 
subject prefers person-first language (“they have a disability”) 
or identity-first language (“they are disabled”). 
When writing about a person with disabilities, don’t use the 
words “suffer,” “victim,” or “handicapped.” “Handicapped 
parking” is OK.
 
Heritage and nationality 
Don't use hyphens when referring to someone with dual heritage 
or nationality. For example, use "Asian American" instead of 
"Asian-American.
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Document Outline

• Writing About People
  • As part of an audience
• Writing About People
  • As part of an audience
• Writing About People
  • As part of an audience
• Writing About People
  • As part of an audience