Proofreading your Copy

“Always be sure to proofread your copy properly and check you haven’t * any words out.”
Although the origin of this phrase is lost in the mists of time, its wisdom and humour are still as current today as ever.

Don't leave proofreading to your computer

Once again we return to the joys of word processing software, a topic which is rapidly becoming a favourite around the office.

Whilst proofreading was once considered to be an absolutely essential part of any writing endeavour, many people now see it as an obsolete skill, in the mistaken belief that their word processor will inform them when something is wrong.

Cheerfully scanning their text for red or green underlines, they have total faith in the computer’s superior knowledge of the English language without ever questioning its ability to actually comprehend what they have just written.

The trouble with this approach is that any mistakes missed by the word processor will not usually come to light until some self congratulating Smart-Alec sends an email harping on about how poorly a web site’s content is written or their business gets a phone call pointing out errors in their brochures.

Worse still, they may go entirely without being brought to anyone’s attention and silently drive potential customers away for months.

Bad copy affects your business

Make no mistake, bad copy really can hurt your business.
Although this may sound like a sales pitch, it is usually best to let a professional copywriter handle the task.

However, if you have chosen to author your own sales materials or web site content, at least do yourself a favour and set a few friends, family members or colleagues the task of proofreading your copy before publishing it on the internet or sending it to the printers.

Furthermore (and you may consider this to be professional advice), don’t try to be your own proof-reader; it does not usually work too well.
Most people (professional copywriters included) are unable to read their own work with any degree of depth since they will usually see what they expect to find rather than what is actually written.

Computers are not perfect and word processing programs cannot pick up every error.
Proofreading your copy is still as essential today as it was twenty, fifty or a hundred years ago.

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* Proofreading Humour - There have been a few emails...