Proof reading isn't the most glamorous of tasks; however it is the most critical step in copywriting. The sheer pressure of getting it right just before a marketing communications piece gets published can be daunting.
Let's face it, we are only human and we do make mistakes. I will never forget one of my first jobs as a Marketing Assistant coordinating the design for a Crown Pokies (Slots) newsletter. At the time the Graphic Designer and I; a couple of rookies, were over the moon when we got our first job under our belts. All of the stake holders within the business had seen and approved the newsletter. Best of all we managed to get it to print on time, as this job was infamous for being constantly late.
When the samples had arrived, I proudly dropped them off to the head of the department. I asked her if she was happy with them. She took one look at it then looked at me and said. "It looks great, but there's one problem... there are 3 T's in word Newsletter on the front cover." At first I thought she was joking, but to my horror it was true. There it was, that third letter T peering up at me. I was absolutely mortified. "How could this have happened?" I said. "We all checked and signed it off!" But that was the point. Somehow five of us, including the department head had missed it. It was simply human error.
Ever since my first bungle, I vowed to find as many ways as possible to ensure that this wouldn't happen again. So here are my tips for effective proof reading:
Find somewhere quiet - With no interruptions you will less likely miss something.
Read your copy backwards - Doing this will ensure that you will focus on each individual word which will help you pick up on spelling errors.
Read your copy out loud - If you say it, hear it and it makes sense to you, then it is less likely to have a mistake.
Use a light box - A great trick for print jobs. Place the printer's print proof over the top of your graphic designer's print proof and place them over a light box. The light will show up anything that has dropped off in pre-press proof. This is old school, but very effective.
Print it out - Do you regularly proof read broadcast emails or websites? Proof reading on screen can cause you to just scan not read, which I have been guilty of. So print it out on paper so you can go through the contents thoroughly.
Punctuation please - Get back to basics and ensure that the punctuation in your copy is correct. This includes having commas, semicolons, full stops and so forth are where they should be. Also don't forget about capitalising the right words.
Watch your Homonyms! - No I'm not telling you off. These are words that have the same pronunciation or spelling but have a different meaning. Most common mistakes are the use of their and there as well as piece and peace. This goes for using apostrophes as well such as, its and it's or their or they're, which are also commonly misused.
A third party - Simply get another person that is not connected to your work to read it for you. You'd be surprised what a completely different perspective can pick up.
Have fresh eyes - Don't just read it over and over again at the same time. If your deadline permits, leave it overnight and read it again in the morning. If not, take a break from it and come back to it a couple of hours later. It's a great way to get a new perspective on an existing piece.
And my most important tip...
Don't beat yourself up if you do miss something - Downfalls as much as triumphs can contribute to your experience as a copywriter, so learn from it and move on.
So don't forget we are only human and we are prone to making the odd mistake, but hopefully these helpful tips will get you well on your way to producing more accurate copy.
Let's face it, we are only human and we do make mistakes. I will never forget one of my first jobs as a Marketing Assistant coordinating the design for a Crown Pokies (Slots) newsletter. At the time the Graphic Designer and I; a couple of rookies, were over the moon when we got our first job under our belts. All of the stake holders within the business had seen and approved the newsletter. Best of all we managed to get it to print on time, as this job was infamous for being constantly late.
When the samples had arrived, I proudly dropped them off to the head of the department. I asked her if she was happy with them. She took one look at it then looked at me and said. "It looks great, but there's one problem... there are 3 T's in word Newsletter on the front cover." At first I thought she was joking, but to my horror it was true. There it was, that third letter T peering up at me. I was absolutely mortified. "How could this have happened?" I said. "We all checked and signed it off!" But that was the point. Somehow five of us, including the department head had missed it. It was simply human error.
Ever since my first bungle, I vowed to find as many ways as possible to ensure that this wouldn't happen again. So here are my tips for effective proof reading:
Find somewhere quiet - With no interruptions you will less likely miss something.
Read your copy backwards - Doing this will ensure that you will focus on each individual word which will help you pick up on spelling errors.
Read your copy out loud - If you say it, hear it and it makes sense to you, then it is less likely to have a mistake.
Use a light box - A great trick for print jobs. Place the printer's print proof over the top of your graphic designer's print proof and place them over a light box. The light will show up anything that has dropped off in pre-press proof. This is old school, but very effective.
Print it out - Do you regularly proof read broadcast emails or websites? Proof reading on screen can cause you to just scan not read, which I have been guilty of. So print it out on paper so you can go through the contents thoroughly.
Punctuation please - Get back to basics and ensure that the punctuation in your copy is correct. This includes having commas, semicolons, full stops and so forth are where they should be. Also don't forget about capitalising the right words.
Watch your Homonyms! - No I'm not telling you off. These are words that have the same pronunciation or spelling but have a different meaning. Most common mistakes are the use of their and there as well as piece and peace. This goes for using apostrophes as well such as, its and it's or their or they're, which are also commonly misused.
A third party - Simply get another person that is not connected to your work to read it for you. You'd be surprised what a completely different perspective can pick up.
Have fresh eyes - Don't just read it over and over again at the same time. If your deadline permits, leave it overnight and read it again in the morning. If not, take a break from it and come back to it a couple of hours later. It's a great way to get a new perspective on an existing piece.
And my most important tip...
Don't beat yourself up if you do miss something - Downfalls as much as triumphs can contribute to your experience as a copywriter, so learn from it and move on.
So don't forget we are only human and we are prone to making the odd mistake, but hopefully these helpful tips will get you well on your way to producing more accurate copy.
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