The Catholic Church teaches us that sloth is one of the seven deadly sins. Yet laziness is part of human nature. Perhaps that’s why Americans read 40% less today than they did 20 years ago.
It’s been proven that reading more increases one’s vocabulary, so reading less suggests the exact opposite effect. This helps explain why spelling and grammatical mistakes aren’t caught most of the time by both marketers and their customers.
Thus, it was inevitable that I’d see a diner offering “HO-Made Chili.”
Merriam-Webster defines “HO” as slang for a promiscuous woman, though this diner was probably just saying it was homemade.
Now consider the headline reading “Kids Make Nutritious Snacks.” I’m wondering if the kids themselves are nutritious snacks, or are they MAKING the snacks?
What can I say? Words matter!
Every business, nonprofit, and individual must be concerned about getting their communications right. Whether it’s a social media post, banner, press release, or business card, your spelling, grammar and word choice can easily change your message’s meaning.
Admittedly, I’m a pill when it comes to these sorts of things. Yet I can’t help but feel that taking a few extra minutes to get your communications to say what you mean, rather than what can be easily misinterpreted, will help your bottom line, regardless of what you sell.
Because, unless you’re building a brand on typos and purposeful grammatical errors, you’re always better off using language properly.
For almost 20 years, I’ve been writing this column. During that time, I’ve witnessed immense value in having someone review all my writing and marketing materials. I’ve been called out for tone, messaging, consistency, spelling and grammar.
These language-checkers have allowed me to make corrections before something goes live, ensuring control. What was said was what was meant.
With this in mind, I’d encourage you not to get cute with language. Make an extra effort to keep your communications clear and to appeal to your audience’s intelligence.
Because while it’s easy to fix a typo on your website, some things in your business will probably get printed. And the moment you print a shirt, mug, pen, brochure, or menu with a mistake in place, you’re confusing customers, wasting money, and creating instant garbage.
And that’s probably not something you want on the menu!
With that said, I wish you a week of profitable marketing.
Got marketing questions? www.askmrmarketing.com.
