The Word Wrangler

I can understand that many businesses don’t want to hire a professional copywriter to handle their marketing and advertising needs. They’re expensive and who wants to pay a pro to put some sentences together when someone in the office can do the job for free, right?

Well I’ve seen enough copy in the form of press releases, business to business correspondence and web sites to know that - while everyone might be capable of slapping some sentences together - they’re not always capable of knowing when they’re making asses of themselves.

Here are some common mistakes I see on a daily basis.

You’re and Your. This is by far the most common mistake I see. I don’t know if people simply never learned the difference or just forgot over time. But here’s the deal: You’re is a contraction for you are. “You are a great person”, or “You’re a great person”. Your is used to denote possession. “That is your car”. See the difference?

Could’ve and Could of. This mistake is more the result of the way we speak rather than not knowing basic grammar rules. Could’ve is another contraction for the words could have. “Jim could have had a beer with lunch if he wanted one”, or “Jim could’ve had a beer with lunch if he wanted one”. People end up writing could of because when we talk, it often comes out sounding like could of. And - as time goes by - people just assume that’s the way it’s spelled.

Hear and Here. It’s tough to believe, but there are many people out there who don’t know the difference between these two words. Here’s a little tip: If you’re talking about someone listening to something, use the word with “ear” in it. If you’re talking about a direction or place, use the other one.

There, Their and They’re. These are especially confusing because there are three choices that all sound alike. They’re is another one of those pesky contractions for they are. “They are a nice couple”. “They’re a nice couple”. The word there is used when referring to a place. “I went over there to get some coffee”. Use their when you’re talking about somebody’s stuff. “Their house needs a new coat of paint”.

There are plenty of other mistakes that people make when writing, but these are just the ones I see on a regular basis. If you’re bent on writing your own copy, then at least have someone proofread it before it goes out to the public. Readers are pretty forgiving when it comes to marketing copy and such, but these errors simply can’t be overlooked.