Every Friday’s post is a collection of typos or grammatical errors I’ve spotted throughout the week. Sometimes they are things I find while out and about and sometimes they are things I find on the Internet. If you are anything like me, these typos drive you crazy, especially when they come from people who should know better.
Even small typos can cause big problems. You may not realize that something as small as leaving out a letter or using the wrong word could make a big difference, but it can damage your reputation. Your customers will probably still get the gist of your message, but they’ll also pick up another message: the writer doesn’t have credibility.
Here are just a few examples of small typos that can cause big credibility problems:
My friend Emily sent me this picture of a sign she found in a pizza restaurant. It’s hard to read, but the sign reads: “We No Longer Accept Personal Checks We Apologize For Any Incovenience.” Ah! This just hurts to read. Don’t apologize for not taking my check; apologize for displaying a sign with a typo, a run-on sentence and improper capitalization!
One look at this and all the credibility this “expert” has is gone.
Credibility is especially important for news and informational copy. People look to news sites and sites that share industry knowledge as a professional resource. A typo like this will make a reader second-guess the source.
Small mistakes lead to bigger problems. In order to gain and retain credibility with your publics, your copy must be free of errors. Even small typos, like an extra letter or the wrong choice of words can put your professional image at risk.