Proofreading tips for an error-proof press release
Any editor knows the secret to error-proof copy is attention to detail. Now, if you are like me, running around, frazzled, with a million things on your mind, clients to think of, creative strategies to come up with…and you tend to think in terms of the big picture rather than the little, itty-bitty, mundane details, this is a challenge. First things first in getting your press release and other marketing copy to be error-proof:
1. Take a deep breath before diving in and scanning over your drafts - this will help clear your mind of all the other things you may have going on upstairs. It will also prepare you to focus on the task at hand.
2.Clean desk = clean copy - This is an old editor’s trick. As simplistic as this sounds, your environment matters. If your desk is littered with papers and projects it makes it that much harder for you to focus on what you are reading and catch those mistakes.
3. Keep consistent - From Ragan’s proofreading tips, “Like typos, inconsistencies in style will break the “spell” enabled by professionally written copy. Don’t, for example, allow a publication under your discretion to refer to “e-mails” as well as “emails.”
4. Proofread copies with a red pen - this will help the mistakes you tend to make pop out. It helps your recognize your weaknesses and look out for them in the future.
5. Proofread using editor’s marks - Sure, this can be intimidating if you don’t know these marks, but learning them and using them will help you in communicating changes that need to be made. These marks are universal and can help someone else out when they go to read your copy as well…Which brings us to the final tip:
6. Have someone else glance over your copy - sometimes we fall in love with what we’ve written, or we’ve read over it so much our minds simply skip the mistakes. Letting someone else look it over with a fresh pair of eyes will help catch those final errors you maybe didn’t see.
Need a fresh pair of eyes? Need someone to write copy or a press release for you? Let Big Star PR help you write or edit that next press release.
Call us at 801-708-0958
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