Via LinkedIn Groups

Group: Social Media Advisors

Discussion: Using Proper Grammar Through Social Media

Excellent article. I'm all for language evolving, but it feels as though many writers are in such a hurry that they lose track of basics and as the article discusses, consistency. Spell-checkers are an obvious tool, yet one that even the newspaper industry seems to be leaving behind as many national business and daily newspapers seem to full of errors these days.

An important aspect of writing is targeting the audience accurately, so that they feel you are writing to them as a peer, i.e. they can relate to you as if you were talking directly to them. Another mistake many people make imho is that they understand your jargon:)
Posted by Luigi Cappel

Via LinkedIn Groups

Group: Social Media Advisors

Discussion: Using Proper Grammar Through Social Media

Great article. I completely agree that the way our social pages are written will change how page visitors view us. If we want them to view us as a trusted professional, then we need to give them a reason to!
Posted by Craig Faulkner

It’s not only in English, I see it in Dutch & German tweets/postings as well…
Posted by Marc van Maanen

I think that is because we are used to abbreviate due to texting now. Social Media is not really the place for “creative” English as you put it Jonathan. I think those should take the time and reread their work before sending as much of Social Media now focused on business marketing, therefore should be looked at as a professional forum.
Posted by Doreen Savran

Group: ASBPE
Discussion: Using Proper Grammar Through Social Media

As a veteran journalist, I believe we should write for readers, not for search engines. In fact, some of the more experienced (and less self-serving) SEO experts agree.

But that’s a different issue from grammar and typos. These days a lot of people send e-mail via smart-phone, and they have this signature line: “Sent via my smartphone; please excuse typos.”

In other words, typos are not just OK but practically *de rigueur* as a byproduct of mobility and hyper-responsiveness.

Posted by David M. Freedman

Getting your message across in a concise manner while still utilizing keywords, hashtags, and other SEO-optimizing efforts is definitely a challenge.
Posted by Mikaila Adams Breeding

Good find, Mike! Some of my social media pet peeves are horrible grammar and intentional misspelling (i.e. text speak, etc). Proper spelling, in particular, is important for keywords to work. It also builds a business’ online visibility (SEO) and positive reputation. Have you experienced social media horror?

This is both my biggest pet peeve and crime online. I thought I was pretty good with punctuation until I had an article reviewed (red penned) by a professional editor at a big magazine. Ouch!
Posted by Angela Neal

Right you are. And while you are at it encourage them to use upper case for the personal pronoun, I.
Posted by James E Tate

And it’s a popular topic of discussion lately – thanks for posting this. I say there are times to be creative (of course as a copywriter I would say that) but there are many times where it’s not appropriate nor does it reflect well on the writer!
Posted by Caryn Starr