I was looking for an excuse not to ride the rollercoaster with my family when I came across this sign. (Please excuse the poor photography.) Note the use of “there” instead of “their” in the eighth bullet point. Note also in the next bullet point, they’ve written “effects” instead of “affects”. Easily confused words in both cases, but also easily avoided errors if they’d bothered to use a proofreader.
Unreasonable conclusion
I started to think, if people are sloppy with their spelling, punctuation and grammar, chances are they might be sloppy about other things as well! If their public image is not important to them, what are their safety policies like?
No matter how irrational my thought processes might be, I had found my excuse.
People Will Form Impressions About You Based on Your Writing
I’ve read that the average time people take to form a first impression about someone is just seven seconds. How crazy is that? But it’s true. People form opinions about us based on, in many cases, just our appearance. Is it worth risking your public forming a negative opinion about you solely based on errors in your writing? In your advertising, signwriting, newsletters, website, and other communications, do yourself a favour and present your brand well. The cost of ensuring your work is proofread accurately is far less than the loss of potential clients.
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