Our Commitment to Communication

DAWSON LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

External, or branded, communications from Dawson should generally follow AP Style (we’ve chosen this style because we believe in brief, concise writing – saying more with fewer words and characters). There are, however, some exceptions. Those exceptions – and other important grammar, copy, and style rules – are outlined in the pages that follow.

Following these language guidelines enhances the integrity of our brand, by ensuring:

Consistency Clarity Accurity Brevity

Branded Communications from Dawson include: • Job board postings

Social media posts (LinkedIn posts, tweets, Facebook posts, Instagram captions) All external advertising (B2B and B2C) All internal communication pieces (emails, newsletters, company updates) All printed marketing collateral and brochures Powerpoint and other Client-facing presentations Email communication with all of our audiences

Abbreviations and Acronyms When using an acronym the reader may not recognize, define the phrase word-for-word on first mention, followed by abbreviation in parentheses. Abbreviation or acronym is appropriate in second and later mentions.

Example: Dawson’s Managed Services Provider (MSP) team is headquartered at Riverside Methodist Hospital. Count on Dawson MSP to help staff your business more efficiently. Never use periods in acronyms: ASA, not A.S.A.

Never use an apostrophe to make an abbreviation plural: CPAs, not CPA’s. If an abbreviation is more common than the long form (OSU, NCAA, CPA, etc.), you may use it at your discretion.

All Caps Please refrain from using ALL CAPS, as it is generally understood as YELLING at the consumer. We want to appear friendly, polished, and professional; and avoiding the use of all caps will help us achieve this goal.

Ampersands

Aside from proper division or company names (Accounting & Finance, Abercrombie & Fitch), don’t use them – they are informal, and could appear lazy.

Apostrophes

NEVER make anything plural with an apostrophe – this includes BDMs, DMs, and CPAs. If this looks wrong to you, retrain your brain.

Capitalization Use common sense. Do not capitalize these words: website, email, online, or internet.

Colleagues, Clients and Communities Speaking of capitalization, we always capitalize these three words and treat them as proper nouns (they’re all important to us!)

Company Names and Their Products Always honor companies’ brand convictions, according to their official websites or style guides. (examples: lululemon, OhioHealth, iTunes, YouTube, Walmart)

Dates and Times Follow AP Style (Day of week spelled out; Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov. and Dec. abbreviated) Never use “th,” “st,” or “rd;” people intuitively read dates that way. Example: Monday, Nov. 18, 2014 Use numbers except for Noon and Midnight; Noon and Midnight are always capitalized. Use a space between the time and a.m. or p.m. Example: 9 a.m., Noon, 3:30 p.m. We do not use :00 for on-the-hour times, because it does not add information. :15, :35, :45, etc. add information.

Emojis We love them too, just not in professional communications. Save them for texts with your mom.

Exclamation Points Use them sparingly; not everything is exciting. Never use more than one; it’s unprofessional.

Hiring Divisions Always capitalized as proper nouns Always listed in the following order: Office & Customer Service, Warehouse & Distribution, Marketing & Creative, Accounting & Finance, IT (not Information Technology), Legal – see icons and sample positions on page 13.

Industry Language or “Jargon”

Know your audience. Avoid using recruiter lingo or HR-heavy terms like “Clientbased staffing agency,” “market you over,” “sendout,” “submittals,” “markup,” etc.

Italics Italicize to emphasize a word, or indicate a title of a publication or award (Forbes magazine, Columbus CEO Top Work Places award)

Job Seeker We prefer to use this term when talking about applicants who haven’t been placed yet (through research we know that the word “candidate” has a negative perception). Please note: once a job seeker is placed, they become a working associate.

Lines of Business Capitalized, in the following order: Job Placements, HR Management Solutions, and Community Workforce Programs

Links Do not display web addresses (www. dawsoncareers.com/about-us/the-dawsondifference). Instead, use a descriptive title – including a verb as a call to action. Examples: Learn about The Dawson Difference, Watch a quick introduction to TalentRooster Video Interviews

Numbers Spell out one through nine and first through ninth. Exception: 1st-, 2nd-, and 3rd-shifts (See also Commonly Used Phrases) Unless it’s the first word of a sentence, use numerals for 10 and above. Use a hyphen to indicate a range of numbers: 20-25 immediate openings.

Quotation Marks Use double quotes when referring to words, articles, or direct quotes. Use single quotes when using a quote inside a quote. Generally speaking, punctuation (commas and periods) is placed inside the quotes.

Semicolons Again, use these sparingly. Consider using an em dash in its place, or starting a new sentence instead.

Slashes If it’s in a URL, it’s a forward slash (we refer to it as a “slash.”) Forward slashes and backslashes aren’t the same thing.

Telephone Numbers Follow this format for phone numbers: parentheses around area code, followed by a space, followed by hyphenated phone number: (614) 255-1400.

www. Don’t say this. Ever. (Unless it’s 1999 again).

Common Terminology

$13.50/hour

1st shift; 1st, 2nd, and 3rd shifts

Client, Job Seeker, Colleague (always capitalized – they’re important to us)

#dawsome

dawsoncareers.com (all lowercase – no exceptions)

The Dawson Bus

Direct hire

Email (no hyphen, only capitalized at the beginning of a sentence)

Excellent Customer Experiences

Full-time

Full-time, part-time, full- and part-time

FAQs (not FAQ’s or Frequently Asked Questions)

Log in (verb; i.e. log in to our site – do not use log on)

Login (noun or adjective; Login name, Site login)

Managed Services Provider on first mention, MSP is fine after that

Onsite

Payrolling

TalentRooster Video Interviews (TalentRooster on second reference)

Temp-to-hire

DAWSON BRAND STANDARDS OVERVIEW

Dawson Logos

Our logo is the most basic level of our brand representation – please treat it with respect. Be aware of these rules, and make sure not to stretch, squish, or distort our logo in any manner.

Logo with tagline Logo without tagline

Alternate Logo: monochrome

Alternate Logo: grayscale

Lines of Business

Industry Specialized Industries

Office (Administrative and Clerical) Customer Service Warehouse and Distribution Marketing and Creative

Dawson Blue – PANTONE® 3015 Through branding research and insight on color psychology, we know that consumers universally view blue as a color of trustworthiness and integrity. We’ve chosen a shade of blue that stands out as vibrant and unique in a sea of blue brands – we call it Dawson Blue.

PANTONE® 3015 100C 35M 3Y 21K #00619d

Other Primary/Logo Colors

PANTONE® 0821 47C 0M 7Y 0K #6fcfeb

Accent Colors

PANTONE® 390 CP 27C 0M 100Y 3K #bfd22b

PANTONE® Cool Gray 11 44C 34M 22Y 77K #54565b

PANTONE® 7655 CP 33C 72M 0Y 0K #ad64a8

PANTONE® 7463 C 100C 82M 44Y 45K #082a47

Typography

Brand Typeface

Museo Sans 300 We use this weight for body copy.

Museo Sans 700 We use this weight for in-copy headlines.

Museo Sans 900 We use this weight for call-out headlines, digital applications, and throughout print campaigns.

System Typeface When our Brand font is unavailable (for Client presentations, emails, etc.), we ask that you substitute a sans-serif font most similar to the Museo family. Arial and Helvetica are our preferred system substitutes, because they are the most universallyrecognized options.

When Would I Use This Information?

Are you working on a presentation for a client or prospect? Setting up your email signature? Writing an email to explain Dawson’s services to a job seeker or other interested party?

These are all times that you can make sure the logos, colors, and fonts you are using are a consistent, on-brand representation of Dawson.

Boilerplate – About Dawson

Dawson is a family-owned workforce solutions company offering Job Placements, HR Management Solutions, and Community Workforce Programs. Based in Columbus, Ohio, the company has been continuously operating since 1946. Its staffing and recruiting divisions place job seekers in temporary, temp-tohire, and full-time jobs in a variety of fields and its Managed Services Provider division streamlines recruiting efforts and administers other employee management programs at premier employers across Ohio. Dawson is committed to the community with strong philanthropic and volunteer initiatives and has been honored with multiple top workplace and best of business awards by Columbus CEO magazine and Columbus Business First, among others.

Learn more, or search for your next job at dawsoncareers.com.

COLLEAGUE RESOURCES

We count on you to provide Excellent Customer Experiences, so you can count on us to be the best place for you to work. That’s why we offer these #dawsome work perks.

Flexible Work Environment

We trust you to know how you work best. That’s why, in 2019, we introduced “Dress for Your Day” and flexible work schedule policies to allow Colleagues and Managers more freedom. See the official company handbook for more specific details on these policies.

The best coworkers ever (seriously)

We know we’re biased, but we’re pretty sure the most kick-ass group of people anywhere is gathered right here.

Community Champions VTO Bonus

Dawson’s volunteer program helps you earn an extra day off (adjacent to an upcoming holiday) for every 20 hours you volunteer in the community. Learn more on page 35.

Paid Birthdays Off

It’s our gift to you: If your birthday falls on a workday, you get the day off! How cool is that!?

Wellness Programs

In addition to a state-of-the art gym and subsidized fitness classes at Home Office, our committee plans events to keep you healthy and active all year long.

Friday Hours

If your work is done by 3 p.m. on Friday, you’re done! All managers are empowered to approve early release on Fridays.

The #DAWSCARS

Our annual employee recognition banquet and after party, held each January, has kind of earned a reputation. Past themes include The Dawscar Derby, Cinco de Dawscars and a Mardi Gras Masquerade. It really is the Oscars of Workforce Management.

Quarterly Colleague Engagement Events

The DAWSCARS pretty much take the cake, but we create other all company experiences throughout the year. In the past, we’ve had March Madness pop-a-shot tournaments, food truck roll-ins, and old school field days (just to name a few).