The why and how to clean up your social media punctuation
C’mon, admit it. Some Facebook post at some time was written so poorly, so hideously that you LOL’d, SMH’d and OMG’d at the same time.
My guess, your immediate reaction was, “How can people put this out there for the world to see?”
The truth is, poor grammar on social media isn’t always over-the-top obvious. Sometimes it shows up in a misuse of it’s, its or its’. Or the wrong use of their, there or they’re. What happens if these mistakes show up on a LinkedIn post, or you write a company blog and have a few massive spelling mistakes?
Many take a Jekyll and Hyde view of grammar. When they’re cranking out a post or blog, grammar is a low priority. But that same person will roll his or her eyes at someone else’s spelling error.
We all associate grammar with errors and correctness. Improper use of grammar isn’t just a poor reflection of you and your business - it tears apart the message.
And whether it be a Facebook post, a Tweet or a blog, consider this: It stays on the web FOREVER!
Think of grammar this way: You’ve spent hours getting dressed up for a party. The moment you walk out the door, you get splashed by mud. That’s essentially what poor grammar does to the dynamic and thoughtful content you’ve been working so diligently to create.
So would you like a crash course that will make you a perfect grammarian overnight? Well, there isn’t one. But we can at least get you going in the right direction.
START CARING
First, a confession. I used to think grammar was silly. Tiny mistakes just weren’t nearly as big a deal as the overall picture. My general philosophy was: Listen to people, not to words.
Then I became a newspaper editor and realized proper editing was, well, my job. Those tiny mistakes were suddenly not so tiny. And when people found all those errors the next day, guess who got made fun of?
Once I took it to heart, grammar — more accurately poor grammar — became a big deal. So I looked up everything I wasn’t already 100 percent sure on. And, even if I was sure, I still double-checked spelling, commas, hyphens, just about anything that might be a mistake.
After checking things over and over, they got stuck in my brain.
The point? Once you start taking grammar seriously, you’ll get better and better at it.
Learn it but don’t kill yourself
Learning grammar can be boring and tedious. It’s like math for word people.
So the best way to learn it is in sips - not long chugs. Take a few minutes a few days a week and read up on the subject. Here’s a few grammar blogs to get you started: Top Ten Grammar Myths and 12 Mistakes Nearly Everyone Makes. Both of these articles provide a simple list to help you avoid common errors.
Want a short but thorough book to read? Try the classic grammar tool The Elements of Style by Strunk and White. This book is in its fourth edition because it’s the type of grammar tool you can read and reference regularly. Not only is it a good book for grammar usage, it helps communicate the best way to use the principles of the English style.
One of the best tips a writer should know: Be concise.
Read out loud
One final tip that should become habit. Once you think you’re done, read everything out loud.
When you write something, you tend to gloss over words, phrases and grammar marks. If you read it out loud, it slows you down. Reading your writing out loud is not only going to help you spot incorrect punctuation, it will also let you know if the text could be written better.
If the text sounds dry, doesn’t make sense or is just wrong, rewrite it.
Using good grammar in your social media content won’t necessarily always get noticed, but using poor grammar certainly will. Remember, proper spelling and punctuation is a reflection on you and your business.
Perfection doesn’t have to be your goal. If you keep grammar usage top of mind and make the effort to produce clean copy, you’ll be ahead of the curve.
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