edovo library guides - DE4II/advocacy-tools GitHub Wiki

Empowering Discovery: Why Edovo Should Partner with Incarcerated Authors to Publish SEO-Friendly Library Guides

Edovo already delivers a huge amount of valuable educational and recreational content to incarcerated people, but many users struggle to find the pieces that matter to them. The platform’s current search limits make discovery hit-or-miss. The solution is straightforward and high-impact: create curated, search-optimized library guides and invite incarcerated people themselves to co-author them. These guides act as signposts, teach search strategies, and — when written by people with lived experience — dramatically increase relevance, trust, and long-term discoverability.

The problem: great content, poor findability

Edovo’s catalog contains courses, books, videos, and tools that are useful for education, reentry preparation, mental health, and daily life. But discoverability suffers when:

  • Titles and descriptions lack consistent keywords.
  • Users can’t follow hyperlinks from one item to another.
  • Search queries often return noisy or irrelevant results for users with limited time or search experience.
  • Content partners don’t have a standard template for telling users exactly how to locate recommended items.

The result: content sits unused, learners miss valuable resources, and content partners’ investment delivers less impact than it could.

What library guides solve (short list of benefits)

Library guides are short, topic-focused collections that package content with human guidance. When designed with SEO best practices and practical navigation instructions, they:

  1. Reduce search friction — give users exact search terms and browsing steps so they can find content quickly without guesswork.
  2. Surface curated, relevant resources — distill the best content on a topic so users don’t have to sift through everything.
  3. Multiply content value — a single guide links (by instruction) to many items across formats (courses, books, videos).
  4. Improve platform metrics — better findability increases usage, completion, and user satisfaction.
  5. Build trust and relevance — guides authored by incarcerated peers are more likely to reflect real needs and the language users actually use when searching.

Why co-authorship with incarcerated people matters

People who live inside the system are experts in how to navigate it and what information actually helps day-to-day. Partnering with incarcerated authors brings unique advantages:

  • Lived expertise: authors understand search behaviors, constraints, and the kinds of phrasing that work in practice.
  • Cultural and contextual relevance: they select resources and examples that resonate (e.g., reentry checklists, family communications, ID paperwork).
  • Trust and uptake: recommendations coming from peers feel less institutional and are more likely to be tried.
  • Capacity building: authoring guides teaches writing, research, and digital literacy skills that have rehabilitative and employability value.
  • Equity and inclusion: collaborative authorship centers incarcerated voices in the product they use most.

A step-by-step blueprint for effective, SEO-friendly Edovo library guides

Below is a practical template and workflow content partners and incarcerated co-authors can use to create guides that are both discoverable and actionable.

Guide template (fields every guide should include)

Use this template so every guide is consistent, searchable, and useful.

Guide Title (SEO-optimized): e.g., "Job Readiness for Reentry: Resumes, Interviews, & Applications"

Short description (120–160 chars): One or two sentences that include the main keyword and a call to action.

Primary keyword: Job readiness for reentry Secondary keywords: resume building, interview prep, reentry jobs Long-tail queries: how to write a resume in prison; finding work after release

Target audience: People preparing for release; education level; language notes

Why this guide helps: 2–3 sentences describing the guide’s focus

Curated content list (each item):

Title / Type / Author / Length

Why we recommend it: 1–2 sentences (peer voice if possible)

How to find it on Edovo (exact steps or search term): e.g.,

From Home → tap Library → choose Career

In Search, type resume writing basics (include quotes if exact phrase helps)

Filter by Course or Book; look for author: CareerWorks (If it's a chapter in a book, list: Book Title — Chapter 4, pages 72–89)

Related topics: short list of 2–4 related guides or keywords

Contributor(s): Name, facility, short bio (if allowed)

Last updated: YYYY-MM-DD

SEO and writing best practices (short, practical)

  • Place the primary keyword in the title, description, and first paragraph.
  • Use clear, plain language — avoid jargon.
  • Include step-by-step search instructions instead of vague directions.
  • Keep item descriptions short but specific.
  • Update guides regularly to reflect new or removed content.
  • Write in a peer-to-peer voice when possible to increase trust.

Conclusion:
Edovo already connects incarcerated learners with resources that can inspire, educate, and prepare them for the future. But those resources can only make an impact if they can be found. SEO-friendly library guides — especially when co-authored by incarcerated individuals — bridge the gap between content and learner. They make discovery faster, recommendations more relevant, and the platform more valuable for everyone involved. This is not just about navigation — it’s about empowerment, equity, and ensuring that every piece of knowledge reaches the people who need it most.