From Nora Kiernan, Associate Director, Editorial Services, Palio

I often wonder why some bloggers don’t take the time to break out a virtual red pen and proofread their blog posts before telling the world what’s on their mind. Perhaps I’m biased because it’s my daily duty to ensure accuracy in grammar, punctuation, and content. But out of respect for your readers and the English language, why wouldn’t you take the time to proofread your work? Better yet, throw it in front of a friend or colleague; get some fresh eyes and perspective on that crafty blog before the world becomes your critic.

GooseGrade, a site for readers and writers to interact with each other to improve the quality and accuracy of online information, conducted a survey in 2008 to find out if users of social media are affected by spelling errors and/or misrepresented content.

The power of social media is in the ability to rapidly share information and create dialogue or buzz. Could the rapid release of up-to-date information be causing errors and stalling traffic to your blog and social media efforts? Of the 175 people polled, 64% reported that they are less likely to share, link to, or forward an article containing spelling and grammatical errors. Additionally, 85% reported that they are less likely to share or forward anything containing a factual error.

And what about the readers’ perception of the author after stumbling upon an error? When respondents were asked if their perception of an author is negatively impacted by an encounter with factual error, 88% answered yes. Not only were errors distracting, but they also lessened the author’s credibility, which is certainly more damaging than poor spelling or grammar in the realm of social media. The Internet is hypercritical, so be mindful of your blogging reputation by proofreading your work.

Writing well is a talent—kind of like singing. Many can do it, but not everyone is good at it. And if you don’t know whether or not you’re good at it, check out the traffic to your blog site—is it where you want it to be? You never know who is reading your blog or who is no longer reading your blog, so take the time to check your work, pick up a well-known style guide, run a spell check—and respect your virtual voice.