4 Proofreading Tips for Perfect Printing

Ready to send your Press Release off to press? We know you’d like your new menu or wedding invitations quickly too. But take five minutes to check critical pieces of content before you send it off to ensure the words in your beautiful design are perfect.

1. Double-Check Your Dates

One of the most common mistakes occurs with dates. Perhaps your conference in Morecambe was initially scheduled for 13 December, but due to a venue change, it became 19 December in Lancaster. This mistake can happen when an event is repeated regularly and the old copy is ‘updated’ for the new design. Check your day of the week too.

2. Know Your Names

Imagine there’s a new colleague at work who needs business cards. Let’s call him Tom Zingleman. Or is it Thom Zinglemann? Is it Clare Perry or Claire Parry? Don’t assume someone’s name is spelt a certain way because of your own personal experience. If you have a sister called Claire it’s easy to assume it’s always spelt that way. Double checking a name by running it through a search engine or on a social networking site can save embarrassment and money.

3. Confirm Your Contact Details

Your contact details are essential for people to communicate with you. We look at our details so often that we almost don’t properly check them. Whether it’s your address, your email or your telephone, one missing digit could make all the difference. Your clients want to pop your postcode into their satnav and have you pick up when they ring. And you want RSVPs!

4. Read it Out Loud

Most remaining mistakes can be caught and fixed by reading your copy out loud. You’ll quickly notice a misspelt word or a rogue (or missing) bit of punctuation. There’s a classic line about the difference between “Let’s eat Grandma” and “Let’s eat, Grandma”. Reading aloud often catches things that a quick scan (or an online spell check) won’t. Better yet – ask someone else to read it to you.

Are you double-checked and ready now? Contact us at Colin Cross Printers for all your printing designs in Lancaster and Morecambe.