You spotted it straight away, didn’t you? Whatever I say now has lost credibility. Except that on this occasion, the typo was intentional. It just proves, however, quite how vital proof reading can be. It is a much under-valued skill – until something goes wrong. Errors online can be changed quickly and easily; although the nature of digital communication means that a vast number of people have probably already seen the mistake before you become aware of it. With traditional print format, a simple typo can be very expensive to correct.
It doesn’t just come down to time and cost either. If the error has already gone out into the public domain, then your reputation will instantly be affected. Employers are known to discard CVs purely because of poor spelling or typos. I myself have rejected a sales website and moved on elsewhere having been offended by simple mistakes.
Having, and even using, spell check is no enough. See what I did there? ‘No’ is a word, so is not picked up by spell check, even though it is clearly a typo in this instance.
Even proof-reading experts can’t proof their own work. You become blind to mistakes, reading what you think you have written. Please recognise the skill of proof reading and don’t let silly typos lose you work.
