AI Content Style Guide Template

Why a Style Guide for AI-Assisted Content

Most content teams use AI tools daily in 2026. Without a style guide, the output varies wildly by writer, drifts from brand voice, and gets cited (or mis-cited) by AI assistants in unpredictable ways. A style guide tightens the voice, makes the workflow auditable, and improves both human readability and AI citation rate.

Section 1: Voice and Tone

1. Active voice over passive. "Stripe shipped X" beats "X was shipped by Stripe."
2. Specific over generic. Cite a number, a date, a named person instead of "many", "recently", "experts".
3. Plain over corporate. "We disagree with this approach" beats "We have concerns regarding the proposed methodology."
4. Confident over hedged. State conclusions; explain uncertainty separately rather than burying both in one sentence.
5. No em-dashes in published prose; use commas, periods, or parentheses.

Section 2: Structure Standards

1. Lead with the answer. The first sentence of any explainer should contain the key claim, not the setup.
2. Paragraphs 2-4 sentences. Longer paragraphs hurt both reader retention and AI passage extraction.
3. One idea per heading. H2 headings should be answerable as standalone questions.
4. Numbers and dates in figures, not words ("12 million" not "twelve million"; "May 15, 2026" not "the fifteenth of May, twenty twenty-six").
5. Named entities consistent. Same product name spelled the same way every time.

Section 3: AI Tool Usage

• Drafting: Approved tools may be used for outlines and first drafts. Always with an explicit prompt brief from a named editor.
• Editing: AI tools may be used for line editing, grammar, and structural suggestions. Final voice and structure decisions stay with the human writer.
• Fact-checking: AI tools may surface candidate facts and citations but cannot be the sole source. Every published fact must be verified against a primary source.
• Research: AI tools may be used for background research. Citations to AI-summarised content must point to the underlying primary source, not the AI assistant.
• Image generation: Permitted with named human review and watermark / disclosure.

Section 4: Citation and Sourcing

1. Every numerical claim has a source link.
2. Sources are primary where possible (filings, official statistics, scientific papers).
3. AI-assistant summaries are not citable sources; the underlying primary source is.
4. Citation links open in a new tab with rel="noopener noreferrer".
5. Dated claims include the date the figure was sourced.

Section 5: Disclosure

• Substantive AI contribution to a piece is disclosed at the top of the article.
• AI-generated images are labelled in the caption with the model used.
• AI-translated content is labelled in the top metadata and via Schema.org markup.
• The site has a publicly accessible AI use policy linked from every article footer.

Section 6: Quality Bar

1. Every published article has a named editor who is accountable for its accuracy.
2. Every published article passes a 5-point quality check: structure, voice, citations, accuracy, AI disclosure.
3. Articles flagged by readers for factual errors are corrected within 48 hours.
4. Articles are reviewed for currency at 90 days and 365 days post-publication.

Section 7: Schema and Metadata

• Every article carries Article schema with author, datePublished, dateModified.
• Articles with FAQs include FAQPage schema.
• How-to articles include HowTo schema.
• Featured images have descriptive alt text and license attribution.
• Article URLs are stable; we do not redirect or rename URLs once published.

Section 8: Style Tics to Avoid

• "In today's fast-paced world"
• "It is important to note that"
• "Whether you are X or Y, this article will Z"
• "Let's dive in"
• "In this article we will explore"
• "The bottom line is"
• Closing rhetorical questions ("So what does this mean for you?")
• Filler intensifiers ("very", "really", "actually") without earning them