Why you should never skip proofreading
Proofreading your messaging—external, internal, marketing materials, social media, etc.—can seem a bother. Extra steps, extra people involved, let’s get it out now. But creating a process and taking what can be just a few minutes can pay big dividends.
A realtor gave me critical advice years ago: Eliminate the negatives, he said, and you are only left with positives. A polished, flawless presentation—a lack of errors—provides an aura of quality. As a consumer, you are comfortable. Nothing’s amiss, so your message rings through.
Conversely, if your audience is “arguing” with you about your vs. you’re, its vs. it’s or a poor-quality image, they’ve stopped receiving your message.
Ideally, everything you produce, from major projects like web sites to the most commonplace, like letters/emails to customers and posts on Twitter and Instagram, should have a second set of eyes. Take the time to proofread documents whenever they’re going out into the world.
Some tips on proofreading:
Read and review slowly. Sound out syllables in your head.
Read twice. Look specifically around where you’ve already found one error; it’s easy to lose concentration on nearby words and punctuation when you’re thinking about the first error.
Review the quality and look of the entire piece or project—production quality, feel and tone.
Does anything in this piece stray from your values or meaning? (Wow, we didn’t intend to say that.)
Does the overall tone live up to our sense of quality? Are you being flip in a serious moment? Are you being inclusive? Is this common phrase insensitive in any way?
Check images and graphics.
Do we own them?
Is the quality up to our standards?
Do the images show setting or behaviors that cast you in an unflattering light?
No egos. You may find your best proofreader is not on your executive team. Embrace those with an eye for detail, regardless of position.
Nobody is at fault. Errors happen. We all make them. Keep your eye on producing something great, not finding fault.
Build in the time. In the post-it-now social media era, it can be hard to slow down. But insist on avoiding rushed mistakes. Trust in your process; make it part of your quality brand.
Things can change. Update your style guide accordingly. (You have a style guide, right? If not, more on that below.)
Ok, but what is our standard?
Start with words.
As many of our team have journalistic training, we often use the Associated Press Style Book, which is great for covering countless everyday items that appear in AP stories. The Chicago Manual of Style is another.
But your industry may have its own style, as might your company. A good idea: create a simple Word document or Google doc that can become a living, breathing guide. Add to it as items come up. (Hey, our team members are really important. Should we use initial capital letters—Team Members—when referring to them?) Invite broad participation, perhaps create a small team that reviews/approves new items to your guide. It can be as easy as “is everyone ok with Team Members?” Gather “Yes” votes from the review team, and it’s done.
As you develop your own guide, you begin reinforcing messages, behaviors, goals within your organization. Instead of “I think we do it this way,” you memorialize it in your style document.
Make sure to share updates! With broad use and input, it becomes a way to keep everyone on the same page and is invaluable when you bring new people onto your team.
