Proper grammar and spelling in daily business communication is unfortunately an often overlooked, essential tool. Many of the people you work with on a daily basis (such as your management, employees and even your customers) may judge your company's reputation based on the written documentation you provide to them. Failure to use proper grammar and spelling can quickly weaken your company's reputation and decrease your business success before you can blink an eye. Your current website or flyers might invite your current customers to visit your store or buy more goods and services. You don't want to risk not being understood by your target audience simply due to a lack of proper grammar and spelling! Even the Wall Street Journal wrote an article about "rampant illiteracy" in 2012: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303410404577466662919275448.html
But do not despair! We are here to provide you with three simple tips that can help you to improve your business communications:
1) Review your current skills
How confident are you in regards to your own writing skills? Do you take the time to keep the target audience in mind when writing a marketing piece and do you check the spelling of your document before going to print? Have you thought about cultural barriers that may have an influence on what you are trying to convey?
In order to improve your written communication skills, let's have a look at where you stand. Take the "Communication Quiz" on the website of MindTools to get a better understanding of your own strengths and weaknesses: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCS_99.htm
After completing the quiz you are presented with concrete, personalized steps to improve your business communication skills.
2) Take some time to update your skills
Let's face it - most of us have been out of school for several years, if not decades. It's been a while since we last looked at the various grammar and spelling rules that we have to keep in mind when working on our written documentation. The Internet offers so many fun and interesting sites that can help to refresh your knowledge. Take a look at the website from Jay White, the founder of Dumb Little Man: http://www.dumblittleman.com/2006/12/40-tips-to-improve-your-grammar-and.html
On his website you are provided with a beautiful variety of articles that elaborate on all the tricky grammar and spelling bits that we all wonder about. It starts with simple things, such as the writing of numbers. Do you write them out or not? Visit Jay's site at your lunch break to find out!
3) Put your updated skills to the test
After you've spent a few of your lunch breaks refreshing your memory in regards to grammar and spelling rules, consider putting your skills to the test. There are a nice variety of online tests available that only take a few minutes to complete. With every completed test you improve your skills and solidify what you have learned in the past.
The following college website offers a large number of free online quizzes that let you zero in on the particular area you are trying to improve, may it be spelling, vocabulary or general grammar: http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/quiz_list.htm
If you have no particular connection to writing in general, do not be discouraged. There are always companies out there that are trained and willing to help! As a translation agency we deal with business documents on a daily basis, in English and various other foreign languages. We do not only translate, but we also offer proofreading and editing services to our clients. If in doubt, feel free to send your document to us for a quick review!
Last, but not least, we'd like to leave you with a humorous quote that brings across the importance of proper grammar:
"Good grammar is like personal hygiene - you can ignore it if you want, but don't be surprised when people draw their conclusions".
~ Kerstin Kramer
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