Challenge

The Municipality of Sittard-Geleen wants to improve the readability of its communication and ensure that all texts meet the B1 reading level. This is especially challenging for legal and bureaucratic texts, which are often difficult for citizens to understand.

Why Textmetrics?

Textmetrics helps municipal employees quickly identify where a text can be made clearer. The municipality’s writing guide is integrated into Textmetrics’ writing rules, so employees can immediately see if elements like salutations, phone numbers, or numbers are written in the preferred format.
Textmetrics offers practical improvement suggestions and helps make texts accessible and understandable – even legal documents – so that all citizens can comprehend them.

How is Textmetrics used?

• Style and writing guidelines: Employees can instantly see whether texts follow the municipality’s house style.
• Legal requirements: Textmetrics helps the municipality prepare for the requirements of the European Accessibility Act (EAA).
• Recruitment: To support the HR team in writing sharper job postings, the municipality also uses Textmetrics’ recruitment module.

What are the results?

• Time savings: Revising texts is faster thanks to real-time feedback from Textmetrics.
• Awareness: Employees learn how to replace complex words with simpler alternatives on the spot.
• Wider use: Textmetrics is no longer only used by the communication team, but also by policy advisors and HR. Around 300 employees now use Textmetrics – including colleagues in customer-facing roles, those writing policy documents, and teams with a leading communication role, such as Communications.

Future

The municipality hopes that – with the help of Textmetrics – more and more of its texts will become easier to read so as many people as possible can understand them.

Conclusion

• Accessible and understandable: Helps meet the EAA and makes language clearer – even for complex legal documents.
  Consistent style: Everyone writes according to the same guidelines.
• Efficient working: Less time, higher quality – no frustration.
• Broad adoption: From Communications to HR and policy teams – applicable across the organization.
• Future-proof communication: Increasingly clear texts in a consistent and recognizable tone of voice.

Are you thinking about following in the footsteps of the Municipality of Sittard-Geleen and implementing Textmetrics in your organization?