Method Marketing is pleased to release the results of its State of Content Survey 2019, which show that poor spelling, punctuation and grammar have an impact on business success.

The headline statistic shows that 94% of people are less likely to spend money with a company that has mistakes on its website, demonstrating that poor spelling, punctuation and grammar have a direct effect on a business’s bottom line. 

This was in addition to 93% of respondents reporting that they are less likely to trust a company with spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors on its site. In an age when brands are trying to build trust and authenticity, this statistic illustrates that something as simple as a spelling mistake could erode customer relationships.

Other notable data showed that 84% of people generally notice errors, while 80% of people say that spelling mistakes are their ‘pet hate’. The research also revealed that people most frequently spot mistakes on social media (79%), in advertising content (75%) and in print media (67%). 

The statistics also showed that people are typically more bothered when they see mistakes in education (91%), law (91%) and financial services (84%). 

Says Method Marketing founder, Lucy Mowatt: “As a content marketer with an editorial background, I wanted to know about attitudes towards poor-quality content. Having noticed a decline in standards in recent years, I was keen to explore what effect, if any, it has on brand trust and sales. 

“Now that the results of the State of Content survey have been collated and analysed, it’s possible to show that poor spelling, punctuation and grammar do have an impact.

“It demonstrates the importance of investing in professionally produced content, especially in high-trust sectors, such as education, law and financial services where attention to detail is vital to the services provided.”