If you hadn’t already noticed the typo in our title, now that we’ve pointed it out it’s probably making you feel uncomfortable! Not only does it look careless and untidy, but most people would assume that the search giant Google would pick up on any errors in your content and therefor deem is as being low quality. Well, you’ll be pleased to know that Google Webmaster Trends Analyst John Mueller has confirmed that that is in fact, not the case.
Of course, we should always endeavour to fix known mistakes and keep our content as clean, clear and concise as possible, though Google doesn’t actually go out of its way to downgrade your content when it comes to your SEO and search rankings.
@JohnMu:
“It’s always good to fix known issues with a site, but Google’s not going to count your typsos.”
Again, while Google isn’t actively counting the typos littered throughout content, that doesn’t mean that you should allow yourself to get lazy. Go that extra mile, proof-read your work and ensure that your work is tip-top before publishing it live on the internet, particularly if it is on your own website.
High-quality content that has no visible errors will not only add credibility to the person writing the article, but also the brands associated with it. You wouldn’t want poor quality content going out to your target audience – if you want to demonstrate an air of worth and reliability, you need to be seen as being competent, especially when it comes to the minor details which are all too easy to overlook.
If you are trying to establish your brand as being a leader in your industry, then you won’t be able to do so if you’re regularly releasing content that is littered with poor grammar and spelling mistakes. Your readers will invariably seek advice and information elsewhere, from sources who take their work seriously. So, to summarise, it’s not necessarily Google that you need to be worrying about, but your readers.
If you’re not confident in the writing that you produce, then there are other avenues that you can explore if you’re looking for high-quality content. Whether that’s requesting more blog posts and article submissions through your SEO Marketing contacts or using useful tools such as Grammarly to point out your mistakes and help with suggestions and corrections.
Especially Avoid Typos in Social Media
Have you ever posted a Tweet or a Facebook status with a simple typo? Something like using ‘your’ instead of ‘you’re’? Then you’ll be all too aware of how eager people are to climb up on their high-horses and correct you, making a public display of how careless and uneducated you are. It is important that you endeavour to avoid that at all costs when posting on social media websites with your brand. It is not difficult to proof-read a short status, though in the same breath, because of that fact mistakes are incredibly easy to miss.
A great way of combating that is by never posting anything live, and instead scheduling it for later so that another member of your team can double check and proof read your updates in the mean-time.
Don’t get caught out with silly mitsakes!