Don’t let your spelling make you look silly
January 27th, 2023
Are spelling and punctuation your blind spot? Unsure whether you mean “licence” or “license”? Are you looking for a sale’s manager or a sales manager? Every time you post on social media, or write a letter, or send out a flier or a newsletter, you’re presenting yourself and your organisation to the world. That’s why you need to be sure the message is right – including the spelling and punctuation – before you send it.
If you mis-spell anything, the chances are some of your recipients will spot the mistake at first glance, and their judgement of you may be coloured by that. Add to that the probability that the document with the silly mistake, which perhaps you noticed the day after writing it, is the one that’s already been copied hundreds of times and shared by colleagues and potential customers.
Large organisations have communications departments, including people with proofreading skills, to look after these things. If your business doesn’t have those skills in-house, you could let me take charge.
I’ve worked in journalism for more than 50 years, and spelling and punctuation are my bread and butter. Send me links to your social media channels and I’ll check them at agreed intervals. If I find not a single error, there’s no charge; if I find one mistake, I’ll alert you and charge you £5; if there are two mistakes or more, you’ll get an invoice for £25.
We can come to a similar arrangement with brochures and other documents, which can be proofread at draft stage.
Worried that your written matter makes you look silly? Let’s talk about it.
Categories: Proofreading, Words for Business
