Top 5 Business Writing Errors
1) Canyou see3 the mistakeshere?
Remember to proofread
This is the number-one mistake business people make with their written communications. Have someone proofread what you’ve written. A second set of eyes will help you catch grammar mistakes, factual errors and confusing elements of a document.
2) “its” or “it’s”; “your” or “you’re”
Watch your grammar
"It's" -- with an apostrophe -- is a contraction meaning "it is"; "its" -- without an apostrophe -- is the possessive form which conveys ownership. It’s absolutely necessary that your writing should be grammatically correct. Yet too many people make the same mistakes time and time again. Be mindful of run-on sentences and improper use of abbreviations.
3) TLAs keep your text short
Acronyms
TLAs help to keep your text short. But if your readers don’t know that 'TLA' stands for 'three-letter acronym', then it's important that you spell the word in its first instance. Then you're free to use "TLA" as much as you like, and everyone will know what you mean. Assume that your readers will understand the meaning of an acronym and you’ve lost them already.
4) Is THIS CORRECT?
Typeface clutter
Sometimes we receive emails full of big type, bold type, italicised type, underlined type and type enclosed in boxes that we can't tell what to read first.
The most important information in a document deserves the most prominent type size and font, while explanations, minor points and supporting material should be formatted in a less eye-catching style of type.
5) How long or short is your document?
If you write a 100-word contract, no one is going to take it seriously; if you write a 1,000 word e-mail, no one will read it. Business correspondence comes in a variety of forms or formats and each one has an appropriate length. Give people what they expect at the length they expect it.