Why you need a grammar pedant in your life

I will freely admit that I’m a grammar pedant - obviously that’s a bonus in my line of work - but I feel like we often get a bad press.

I understand that griping over misplaced apostrophes and innocuous typos comes across as trivial and, well, pedantic, but that’s not how I like to look at it.

I see my desire to correct these errors as a positive thing. For me, it’s about making the copy I’m working on as good as it can be - and as a business why wouldn’t you want something you’re paying for to be the best it can?

Why is it important?

Like it or loathe it, grammar is important. Everyone’s familiar with examples like:

“Grammar: the difference between knowing your shit and knowing you’re shit.”

And:

“Let’s eat Grandma” rather than “Let’s eat, Grandma”.

Using an apostrophe incorrectly or misplacing a comma can change the meaning of a sentence. Now, there are those who argue that many people simply don’t notice any more, and that the context of what you’ve written will allow people to infer the correct meaning. But why rely on people’s interpretations when you could make it clear with a simple piece of punctuation?

We have these wonderful linguistic tools at our fingertips and I think it’s a real shame to disregard them.  

Who cares?

The other thing I often hear when grammatical errors are mentioned is “who cares?”. And I accept that the majority of people don’t flinch inwardly when they walk past a sign advertising “DVD’s for sale” (just typing that made me cringe).

But I can tell you now, for those of us who do notice, it really does matter. If I see basic grammatical errors on a business’ website, I start to wonder what else they’ve overlooked. And I can guarantee you that given a choice between a company that has correct grammar and spelling on its website and one that doesn’t, I’d choose the former every time.

Of course, no one is perfect and when you’ve got a large website and many contributors it can be challenging, to say the least, to keep on top of things. But that’s where grammar pedants like me come in.

We’re happy to take the time to proofread any copy you’re going to print or publish online. I enjoy correcting copy, not because I like finding mistakes, but because I like making something the best it can be.

I get a lot of satisfaction from knowing that I’ve contributed positively to something. Finding a typo, noticing an errant apostrophe, picking up on an incorrect job title, whatever it is, it isn’t about showing someone else up, it’s about working together to make a piece of content great.

So don’t take offence if someone points out errors in your copy - chances are they’re just trying to help you improve it, and that’s got to be a positive thing.