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Improvement tags (also known as maintenance tags or cleanup tags) are templates that can be added to articles needing cleanup. Their purpose is to foster improvement of Bulbapedia by alerting editors to changes that need to be made. Improvement tags are meant to be temporary notices that lead to an effort to fix the problem, not a permanent badge of shame to show that you disagree with an article, or a method of warning readers about an article.
Unless otherwise noted, improvement tags should be placed at the top of the page, before other templates, images, or infoboxes, but after hatnotes. Improvement tags should be placed directly on the article, not on its talk page. Certain tags can be placed at the beginning of an individual section instead.
Before you tag an article, please remember the following:
Don't tag an article if you can easily and confidently fix the problem.
The goal is an improved article, not a tagged article.
Do some research to attempt to solve the problem before tagging.
Don't put the burden of doing so on another editor if you are capable of fixing the problem yourself with a simple search or consulting a reference work.
Don't do "drive-by" tagging.
Tags must be accompanied by a comment on the article's talk page explaining the problem and beginning a discussion on how to fix it, plus a remark using the reason parameter as shown below. At the very least, tagging editors must be willing to follow through with substantive discussion.
Don't do "drive-by" de-tagging.
Likewise, please provide a similar rationale for removing a template, unless your preceding edits have clearly fixed the announced problem.
Don't insert tags that are similar or redundant.
For example, articles that are stubs are by their nature incomplete, so it is unnecessary to tag with both {{stub}} and {{incomplete}}.
If an article has many problems, tag only the highest priority issues.
A lengthy list is often less helpful than a shorter one.
Don't add tags for trivial or minor problems, especially if an article needs a lot of work.
For example, there is little point in noting grammatical problems for a section that needs to be completely re-written to comply with content policies. Focus on the biggest one, two, or three problems.
This article does not yet meet the quality standards of Bulbapedia. Please feel free to edit this article to make it conform to Bulbapedia norms and conventions.
This tag is intended to identify pages that need correction of spelling, grammar, typographical errors, tone, and other similar, non-content-focused changes.
Used at the top of article pages or at the start of sections, by typing {{cleanup|article}} or {{cleanup|section}} respectivly.
Use the |reason= parameter to give details about identified issues.
This article is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this article to add missing information and complete it.
This template should be used when certain necessary information is absent from the article. Please open a corresponding discussion detailing the missing information on the article's talk page before placing the tag.
Used at the top of article pages or at the start of sections, by typing {{incomplete|article}} or {{incomplete|section}} respectivly.
Use the |reason= parameter to give details about identified issues.
The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please discuss the article's content on the talk page, and do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved.
Place this template in an article or section when you have identified a serious issue of balance and the lack of a neutral point of view, and you wish to attract editors with different viewpoints to the article. You must start a discussion on the article's talk page about the issue before placing this tag on the page.
Used at the top of article pages or at the start of sections, by typing {{neutrality|article}} or {{neutrality|section}} respectivly.
This article contains old or outdated information, or has not been updated in a while. Please check the content of this article and update it as required.
This template can be used to mark articles or sections that have old or out-of-date information.
Used at the top of article pages or at the start of sections, by typing {{outdated|article}} or {{outdated|section}} respectivly.
Use the |reason= parameter to give details about why an article needs updating.
