Social media is a great place to find out about businesses and news, and to chat to friends and colleagues, but it’s also become a place to laugh at others’ expense or to expose mistakes. This isn’t very nice, especially when it’s you they’re laughing at or your company’s mistake that’s being shared around the web.

On social media, your mistakes can spread like wildfire.

The kind of people who will spot your mistakes are exactly the sort of people you wouldn’t want to spot them! Of the PR professionals on Twitter, 15% of them follow more than 2,000 people, compared to just 0.29% of all Twitter users who follow that number, according to social media monitoring organisation, Sysomos. So people who spend a lot of time dealing with words for a living are going to reach an awful lot of followers when they share your poor spelling or your hilariously misplaced apostrophe.

There are accounts on Twitter, enthusiastically followed by grammar geeks, who are dedicated to sharing your spelling slip-ups and apostrophe fails. US-based company Grammarly has over 61,000 followers alone. If a social media user uses the right hashtag (#grammarfail #apostrophefail and #proofreadfail are just some examples), these accounts will pick up your grammar errors and share them far and wide. Followers and like-minded people will retweet them and suddenly your spelling mistake is everywhere. The bigger the blunder, the better! Suddenly, you and possibly your company are left looking rather silly.

Daily Mail US ‏@ DailyMail

Girl shot dead stepfather and fatally stabbed mother before fleeing with boyfriend http://dailym.ai/18yzm9k pic.twitter.com/GjjrQGcnsl

(The accuracy of this tragic news story is diluted due to the journalist’s lack of care and leaves us wondering why a girl would shoot an already dead man…)

Don’t forget, it’s not just your tweets and Facebook posts they’re looking at – they’re looking at your reports and brochures, your websites, even your signs above the shop door. Grammar spies are everywhere and they’re just 140 characters away from making you look at best careless, at worst unreliable and unprofessional.

Taking time to check what you post on social media has become just as important as proofreading in print. So, before you publish it, check it! Should that apostrophe be there? Are there any typos? Is it possible to get a fresh pair of eyes to look over it, or even call in the help of a professional proofreader ? Once something is on the web, it’s there forever.

A few minutes of careful checking can save your money, time and, ultimately, your reputation!

A card that says good grammar is like personal hygiene

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The Edit Desk

4 areas to proofread on your website before you go live

By Ultimate Proof Ltd • January 27, 2026

As the virtual face of your business, your website needs to fulfil two key priorities: to read correctly and be easy to navigate – but if you add the pressure to get your site up and live, it can be easy to push proofreading to the bottom of the endless to-do list. Relying on a busy colleague or the website designer to give it a 'once over' might help to a point, but still leaves a lot to chance. Proofreading websites is a specific type of service which covers not only typos but also things like broken links, SEO keywords, your tone of voice and overall user experience. So, if you're thinking of proofreading your website yourself but aren't sure where to start, here are four key areas to focus on: Spelling and grammar All written content on your website should be reviewed, from product descriptions to blog posts, ensuring it is clear, concise and error-free. Branding and tone Consistency is key. Ensure your messaging aligns with your brand identity across all pages, paying attention to the consistency of tone as well – whether it's formal, casual or informative. User experience Check for broken links, slow-loading or missing images, alt text, or any other technical issues that might hinder the user experience (some web designers have software that does this, but it's still worth checking). SEO optimisation Check your meta titles, meta descriptions and keyword usage, to ensure your content includes relevant keywords to enhance its visibility in search engine results. All these checks take time and care. AI can help to a point, but human oversight is essential. A professional proofreader can check these elements for you to ensure your website reflects the level of professionalism and attention to detail that your audience expects – giving you back precious time to focus on all the other tasks before you launch. A proofreader can also work directly from your CMS – saving your web designer amending time. I have proofread websites of all sizes – from a few pages and blogs to complex, multi-level websites. Even if your website has been live for a while, it might be worth getting a proofreader to have a fresh look to identify any problem areas. Find out more about my proofreading-services Email for a quote. Book a call with me in my calendar.