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Sunday, January 22, 2012

The Danger Of Relying On Spell Check

By Bailey Daniels


It is relatively easy to have correctly spelled words that are still wrong for the context in which they are used. This is perhaps the most insidious danger of relying entirely on spell check.

Another danger, seen most often on "smart" cell phones but also occasionally found on computers too, is well-meaning spell checkers which auto-correct your words to the wrong thing.

I'm not saying that spell checkers are bad or shouldn't be used but the spell checker between your ears is still often the best one. If you're simply a terrible speller, it can pay to get help with anything important.

Hire someone to write it for you or, at the very least, get someone to read over what's been written. This is especially true in business communication and advertising. When it's your business you are presenting, you don't want to present the wrong image.

Very public errors

Along the highway near my home there is a large sign painted on the side of a large trailer. The trailer is parked right next to the road and is seen by everyone who passes by. The sign reads:

"YOU SHOULD OF STOPPED"

Clearly, the intended meaning was "You should have stopped". What percentage of people who see that sign do you suppose refuse to do business with that establishment purely on principle? Is that something you even want to find out the hard way for your own business?

A similar error appeared on a huge billboard for a very well-known pizza restaurant. The sign has since been replaced but it was up for years and read:

"CAN YOU TASTE IT!"

Obviously either the exclamation point should have been a question mark or the first two words were inadvertently transposed.

This may seem like nitpicking but such very basic errors reflect poorly on the businesses they represent. After all, the examples above are not even up to a 5th grade reading level.

Would you accept such mistakes from a doctor who was about to perform surgery on one of your children? Or an attorney who was writing up the contracts you use for your business?

There is no substitute

One of the things a professional copywriter does is make sure to use correct spelling and grammar. When "wrong" sentence structures are employed, it is done deliberately and for a purpose.

For instance, in certain types of promotions I may start a sentence or even a whole paragraph with a conjunction such as "and" or "but". While it's true that such usage is incorrect according to the rules of proper English grammar, it reflects the way people actually speak.

Written promotions which reflect how people speak are faster and easier to read. They read more naturally and are proven to generate a higher response and more sales.

The same principle usually explains paragraphs that are only one sentence long.

Or sentences that are only one or two words...

Sometimes without verbs...

Or the apparent over-use of ellipses...

And semicolons.




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