Grammar Rules – How Much Does It Matter?

Published by admin | Filed under Writing and Speaking

How important is your copy? Should writing quality evaporate for rankings? I’ve read articles that talk about these subjects. Some say grammar and spelling aren’t essential. Some say just getting your stuff out there is the key – don’t worry if there’s no point to your debacle of an article. I’ve even seen it suggested that misspelling intentionally is all right to get SEO rankings.

So, is it acceptable to have typos, misspellings, bad grammar, and poor sentence structure in your articles or on your website? Spelling, especially, is a hard concept for a whole lot of people. Grammar is a bit fluid because the rules change for different styles of writing. And, besides, readers don’t really notice anyway. Or do they?

A lot of people don’t know the workings of their car engines. You know when it’s working and when it isn’t. You might not know exactly what the problem is, but it’s there. Would you feel more comfortable having a mechanic fix your car who does or doesn’t care about all the little details? One tiny little spring could make the difference between having your car fixed for good or having to go back because it quit running … again.

It’s very unfortunate that writing quality isn’t taken more seriously. It’s especially unfortunate when professed writers poo-poo the rules and say it doesn’t really matter. It does matter. If you are the professional and want to appear that way, regardless of what the average Joe’s and Jane’s know or don’t know, quality should, unequivocally, matter.

It boils down to personal pride in your work despite what goods or services you are offering your readers. With the availability of publishing anything and everything via the World Wide Web – quality and pride are going to you know where in a blazing hand basket. It’s important to be seen, but it’s twice as important to be heard.

There are a lot of interesting ideas, information, and businesses out there. Competition is getting tighter every day. Google and Yahoo are focusing more on content these days. Rankings are depending more and more on your content structure. Newspapers and magazines have relied on this method to stand out from the rest for a long, long time.

Poorly designed print with shoddy copy doesn’t win any awards, doesn’t gain reader trust, and doesn’t last. Now, with the ability to bounce from page to page with a press and a click, first impressions count.

When the content is haphazard, poorly structured, full of typos, misspellings, weird punctuation, and leaves the reader wondering what your point was, you might get people to visit once, but you’ll never see most of them again. When I see more than five errors on a web page, I’m gone. I’ve lost respect for the writer. I can’t believe him or her anymore because they didn’t care enough. Fool me once …

So, which rules do you follow? Spelling is obvious, but don’t completely rely on your spellchecker. It doesn’t see the difference between “I don’t have my shoes” and “I don have my shoes.” Grammar check might see it as a bad sentence, but beware. Edit, read it out loud, take the time to get it right.

For articles, blogs, general sorts of essays, stories, and stuff, I’d say you could closely follow Chicago Manual Style. It makes the most sense. For general web content, like for internet retail, Associated Press (AP) Style makes the most sense. Customers are scanning pages like they would a newspaper. AP condenses certain things to make copy quick and easy to read.

I haven’t seen or heard of a web style manual, yet. Maybe there’s one out there. There will be eventually. The important thing is to keep your copy clean and as free of mistakes as you can. Your readers will notice. And you’ll get your rankings without being deceitful, lazy, or sloppy.

Shawn is the editor for Sewell Direct, an online computer retail store. She also handles copywriting, editing, and much more for independent clients. An award-winning journalist, columnist, and trumpet player, her knowledge of performance will enhance your copy. For services or just for fun, visit http://www.shawnshearer.com

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