Nothing screams “shoddy work!” more than typos, grammar errors and sloppy formatting, especially online where the content is so visual. Strangely enough, proofing is often the most overlooked step in the writing process.
Today, 90% of B2C marketers use content marketing and 73% of marketers said that content increases brand awareness. With those statistics your content needs to be absolutely, 100 percent correct. Don’t publish content without putting serious thought behind the words. Today’s consumers are savvy and readers can detect poor quality faster than ever.
Make sure to proof your work and if you’re the writer ask someone else to take a look. Often a second pair of eyes is all that’s needed to catch mistakes that are very easy to overlook, especially after reading the same material for days or weeks.Asking another person to take a look at your piece can offer a fresh perspective.
Are you both writer and editor? Then please make sure to use a spellchecker to catch any obvious misspelling or grammatical errors. If the package you use doesn’t come with a spellchecker, you have a few options. Try one of these:
- Copy and paste the content into Word and use its spellchecker feature.
- Use an online spell checking service. There are many online programs to check spelling. A search for online spellchecker will give you many to pick from.
- If you have a WordPress site, use this popular WordPress spellcheck plugin to add a spellchecker to your CMS so you won’t miss any silly typos.
Don’t count on yourself to catch the errors even if you’re a great writer. It’s easy to have misspelled words slip through the cracks and end up on the front page of your written material or blog.
What Makes Good Content?
Well written content is concise, informational and engaging. When writing online you need to break up text with images, videos and an appealing mix of color and fonts. It is estimated visitors stay on a web page for only 4 seconds before moving on.
Write your content short and sweet and express your point quickly and articulately. Here are some things to look for when proofing your work:
- Are all the fonts consistent and rendered properly?
- Have you used consistent colors?
- Is the text readable?
- Have you proofed all text and run the content through a reliable spellchecker?
- Do titles stand out and grab the viewer’s attention?
- Do you have a contact phone number that is easy to find? Is it a working number? Dial the number to make sure.
Proofreading is a very important part of the design/printing process. In the long run, it will save time, money and frustration. Remember, poorly written content represents your brand. If you’re not a good speller, writing doesn’t come naturally or if English is your second language and you don’t feel comfortable then consider hiring a content writer to help you.