Geeks Can't Spell

[Kirk Ward]

I just went online to check the spelling of a word. Seems the word "Supersede" is commonly misspelled as "Supercede."

It got me to thinking about all the misspellings I see in here, and I got to wondering ...

Do any of you Warriors stop to think about how much of a turnoff bad spelling is to your prospects?

I don't care if English is not your primary language, if you're going to be selling to folks whose primary language is English, don't you think you ought to take a little bit of time and get it right.

It has gotten so that every time I see something as dumb as someone using "your" when they mean "you're" or "bring" when the correct word would be "take," I just leave the site.

I know folks make mistakes, but some of the things I see are just so plain dumb, it makes me wonder if you have any respect for your customers, or if you think they are so dumb that it's not worth trying to put a little effort into your communication.

What's your take? Do you care? Have you ever thought about whether it's keeping you from moving into the big ticket sales class?

Kirk

[Jeff Usher]

Am I missing something here ....supercede is the correct spelling surely !!!!

And yes, bad spelling and grammar is an instant turn-off in my eyes. If people spend hundreds of dollars on sales copy and can't be bothered to check the spelling and grammar then it's sloppy business.

Jeff

[Andy Crofford]

I care. Typically when I write something I proofread it and have my wife proofread it as well. If I think I may be spelling a word wrong I look it up.

When I see words misspelled on a sales page it is a real turn off and I don't take that site seriously at all. If I was going to buy they lose a sale.

Just to make it clear, I know people make mistakes but steps need to be taken to ensure that words are spelled correctly. With all the spell checkers and other tools we have today it is pretty easy to do.

Side note, Jeff is right, Supercede is an acceptable variant of Supersede according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary.

[la dominatrix]

Supersede means to replace something supercede has bot been replacedthe word does not exist. Despite this I do read supercede all the time.
La dominatrix

[Kirk Ward]

Originally Posted by Andy Crofford

... snip ...

Side note, Jeff is right, Supercede is an acceptable variant of Supersede according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary.

I personally like the look and feel of supercede rather than supersede. However, when even my Firefox flags supercede as a misspelling I just go with the flow.

Kirk

[Don Schenk]

Some words have diffent spellings depending upon whether the word comes from UK English or USA English.

Eye do knot worie abouut it beecauz I kan't spel anywhey.

:-Don

[JayXtreme]

You might need to check your own spelling before preaching on a forum..

Originally Posted by Kirk Ward

What's your take?

It's an issue...

Do you care?

I care about my own content, but that's a personal thing..

I don't care about spelling on other people's pages, unless it makes the page difficult to read...

Have you ever though (<--cough!?) about whether it's keeping you from moving into the big ticket sales class?

No.. because I'm already there

Peace

Jay

[Kirk Ward]

Originally Posted by JayXtreme

You might need to check your own spelling before preaching on a forum..

Jay

Ouch, and corrected. Thanks.

Didn't feel I was preaching. Felt more like I was bitching.

Cheers,
Kirk

[Sandor Verebi]

Originally Posted by Kirk Ward

... Do any of you Warriors stop to think about how much of a turnoff bad spelling is to your prospects?

I don't care if English is not your primary language, if you're going to be selling to folks whose primary language is English, don't you think you ought to take a little bit of time and get it right.

It has gotten so that every time I see something as dumb as someone using "your" when they mean "you're" or "bring" when the correct word would be "take," I just leave the site.

I know folks make mistakes, but some of the things I see are just so plain dumb, it makes me wonder if you have any respect for your customers, or if you think they are so dumb that it's not worth trying to put a little effort into your communication.

What's your take? Do you care? Have you ever though about whether it's keeping you from moving into the big ticket sales class?

Kirk

Hi Kirk,

Although only this much mistake would be on web pages. But there are so much. Many people do not take care on that their sales letter need to be faultless.

Would be worth it though, more products would be able to be sold. As you know, the clever one learns at another's expense, the unwise one do not learn at his neither.

Cheers,

Sandor
__________
“Learning is not child's play; we cannot learn without pain.”Aristotle

[MDalton10]

As long as I can understand the information I don't care if they spelled it soo-per-seed. But Supercede and Supersede are both correct. Just like tire and tyre.

[John Boyd]

The colour of my tyres are now superceded as I have a new favourite color...sorry...colour.
Discuss.

[Jeff Usher]

Ah nice one John, teaching them yanks how to spell

[Frank Donovan]

Hi Kirk

It's surprising how often this topic seems to crop up.

However, if you've ever been on one of Mike Filsaime's lists, you'd realize that there's very little correlation between spelling and income


[Wombat Alert] Spelling's a cinch when you understand the etymology of a word. Supersede derives from the latin word "Supersedere" = be superior to [/Wombat Alert]



Frank

[crissanteiro]

As much as I do not like misspellings, nobody's perfect. If I find one misspelling I am not going to immediately think you are a loser. But if the misspellings seem to be a habit, then it is a turn off, and I am not inclined to look at this person's offers.

[Anomaly1974]

I keep American dictionaries, British (Sometimes referred to as "Proper" English) dictionaries and International dictionaries with me at all time. Google has recently implemented a spell checker as well, much the same as the ones included in word processors. Unfortunately, there are numerous marketers who will never care and believe that their customers should not either.

Here's one for you ... irregardless (which has never been a word) it remains a problem.

Just for the record though, some of us Geeks can spell. Nerds may be smarter but Geeks get things done!

Just my two cents for what it's worth

[Paul Myers]

How often are we going to have this same stupid argument?

If anyone wants to see all variations of both sides, search this forum for the word wombat. You'll see more grammar copping than you can stomach.


Paul

[Jim Phillips]

Hi Kirk,

Sometimes I think spelling errors are caused on purpose.

Only testing will show for sure.

Other times our brains are thinking way ahead of our typing.

Many times this is caused by super multi tasking.

If you're a perfectionist...

...or anal retentive "mutitasking" can make a difference.

Have a great week.

Best Regards,

Jim

[Thomas]

Originally Posted by Kirk Ward

I just went online to check the spelling of a word. Seems the word "Supersede" is commonly misspelled as "Supercede."

Originally Posted by Frank Donovan

[Wombat Alert] Spelling's a cinch when you understand the etymology of a word. Supersede derives from the latin word "Supersedere" = be superior to [/Wombat Alert]

Originally Posted by TMG Enterprises

Actually, what it says is that it is common but that it is still widely regarded as an error. Just because people spell it wrong frequently doesn't mean that it is acceptable.

Y'all are all wrong.

The Latin word supersedere turned into superceder in Old French and superceder turned into superceden in Middle English... and THAT'S where the Modern English word supercede comes from. As a result, it's the ONLY version in common every-day use here (Hiberno-English), and I'd imagine it's the same in British-English. In fact, I'd imagine it's the only version used by most English speakers world-wide.

But it's NOT a misspelling of supersede and, since the word didn't jump straight from Latin to Modern English, it's seems more correct to say that supersede is an acceptable variation on the Modern English word supercede.

God, I love being a pedantic prick...

[Frank Donovan]

Thomas, we should probably take this into the OT forum, but the Old French word was superseder (as it came from the Latin)

The modern usage of supercede most likely stems from its similarity to words like intercede.



Frank

[Kappa]

With that said, I feel like if I am going to buy your product, the least you can do is take 2 s and run spell check. It is so unprofessional to NOT run spell check (and at least try to do grammar check). If it is one of those more complicated words that spell check wouldn't pick up, like affect and effect, I can ignore especially if English is a second language

[Kirk Ward]

Originally Posted by Thomas

God, I love being a pedantic prick...

Thanks Thomas,

I are do be luv your analysis!

Most folks ain't perfect. And, language flows and grows from changes in usage.

But, I have to agree with Tina ...

The words that I expect a grade schooler to know are where I start lifting an eyebrow - their, they're, lose, loose, your, you're - I don't know how someone graduates from high school without knowing the basics.

Cheers

[GarrieWilson]

Is it that time of the month for the wombats again?

Do the people who create these type of threads have a superiority complex and do so to boost their own egos?

Or are they trying to make up for other inadequacies and/or failures by trying to show people that they are "smart"?

[Kirk Ward]

Originally Posted by GarrieWilson

Is it that time of the month for the wombats again?

Do the people who create these type of threads have a superiority complex and do so to boost their own egos?

Or are they trying to make up for other inadequacies and/or failures by trying to show people that they "smart"?

Some people like to blow off steam about stuff, others try to be denigrating.

I don't know if it's time for short legged, short tailed, marsupials or not. I, however, am long legged, non-muscular and absent of tail.

Cheers

[Thomas]

Originally Posted by Frank Donovan

... but the Old French word was superseder (as it came from the Latin)

Larer on it was, but not in Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooold French.

[Paul Myers]

Kirk,

Some people like to blow off steam about stuff

[sigh] Look at your sig file. You're missing a preposition. And an apostrophe.

I'm still waiting on the wombat who can make it through their own thread without obvious mistakes...


Paul

[JayXtreme]

Originally Posted by Paul Myers

Kirk,[sigh] Look at your sig file. You're missing a preposition. And an apostrophe.

w00t! that is flippin brilliant!

[Paul Myers]

Jay,

w00t! that is flippin brilliant!

There are other mistakes in that little 3-line comment. Kirk's a good guy, so I didn't want to get too wombat on him. Just enough to make the point.

We all get sick of sloppy spelling. I don't see why this particular Holy War has to be fought every week, though. Especially by someone who's seen it at least half a hundred times over his membership.


Paul

[CDarklock]

Originally Posted by Kirk Ward

Do any of you Warriors stop to think about how much of a turnoff bad spelling is to your prospects?

Has anyone stopped to think that since so many people do it, maybe it's not a turnoff anymore?

And has it occurred to anyone that the word "supersede" breaks the pattern? It relates to timing. You have "precede" and "antecede," why do you then suddenly switch to an S for "supersede?" It only makes sense that it ought to be "supercede."

I'm still a pretentious jerk, so I say "supersede," but I don't hold it against anyone if they say "supercede" instead. It just makes sense.

[Shermaine]

If a particular sales page:

1. contains misspellings,
2. has the most awful graphics ever created splashed all over, or
3. was written in tiny 6 point fonts that I would have to squint my eyes to read...

...I would still purchase the product if I was really, really, really interested in that product! In fact, I would even read every single word on that page, and I would read everything at least twice.

While good communication plays a part in selling something, spelling is not the total sum of all the parts.

There is also the structure of sentences, flow of meanings, and the subtle art of persuasion through words that convey logic and emotions to consider in the overall "feel" of a sales page.

And apart from all that, there is also the rhetorical process of visual and verbal communication (i.e. videos) to consider. For example:

1. The conceptualization

• Does the sales page meet objectives?
• Was it written with the target audience in mind?

2. The arguments

• Is the product valuable? If so, why?

3. The arrangement

• Visual weight and balance, etc.

4. Techniques for memorization

• How much of your sales pitch does the target audience actually remember? Or is it yet another forgettable fad?

5. The final presentation

• How you manage the project.

The main objective of this post is just to let you know that you shouldn't get too worked up over misspellings. They occur, whether intentionally or unintentionally, so just give the copywriter the benefit of doubt. Who would knowingly jeopardize themselves? Would you?

I understand your point-of-view and it's definitely not wrong to feel that way. For me, the one thing that really aggravates me is when people structure sentences wrongly. For example: "Have you eaten?" becomes "You eat already?"

It has been agreed many times over by prolific writers that trying to write in simple English to convey thoughts or a story is the hardest form of writing. The best writers are those who do not use bombastic words, jargon and double meanings of words in their articles. The best writers are those who are able to convey their thoughts and feelings in an impactful manner through the use of simple words.

I'm not that kind of writer. But I do know that there is more to a good sales page than misspellings.

Kind regards,
Shermaine