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Fix spelling mistakes in testimonials?

by charliemwallace
20 replies
Hey guys,
Out of you who have collected testimonials, do you fix the spelling and grammar when they made mistakes? Or just leave them raw and real?

Just adding my testimonials to my site and I see there are a few mistakes in there and it got me thinking!
#fix #mistakes #spelling #testimonials
  • Profile picture of the author Joe Lumbergh
    personally I would correct it and let the person who wrote it know, that I fixed a grammatical/spelling error but left the content unchanged.
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  • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
    Banned
    Originally Posted by charliemwallace View Post

    Out of you who have collected testimonials, do you fix the spelling and grammar when they made mistakes?
    I certainly wouldn't, if the meaning's clear.

    (And if it isn't, you need to ask them to change it, not do it yourself.)

    Trivial grammar mistakes look authentic. People make mistakes. If they're within "others' comments" they don't detract in any way from your own credibility or professionalism.

    I think changing theses is a "mistake to avoid"!
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  • Profile picture of the author DeadRooster
    I would fix it for sure; for instance, if they wrote:

    "This product totally sucks..." -- Disgruntled and Dissatisfied Customer

    I would change it to:

    "This is the MOST AWESOME PRODUCT EVER!!!!!!" -- Barack Obama

    Just kidding, but you probably knew that.
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    • Profile picture of the author Raydal
      Originally Posted by DeadRooster View Post


      "This is the MOST AWESOME PRODUCT EVER!!!!!!" -- Barack Obama

      Just kidding, but you probably knew that.
      I don't think that political subjects are allowed on the Warrior Forum.

      Just kidding, but you probably knew that.

      -Ray Edwards
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  • Profile picture of the author NK
    I usually just publish it as-is, unless the testimonial is difficult to understand, then I would ask for clarification and offer them to edit it if they would prefer it that way.
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  • Profile picture of the author charliemwallace
    Ok sweet I shall leave as is!

    Yeah it's more just little typo's more than anything, like writing didn't as did'nt and stuff like that.

    Cheers for the feedback!
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    • Profile picture of the author WillR
      Originally Posted by charliemwallace View Post

      Ok sweet I shall leave as is!

      Yeah it's more just little typo's more than anything, like writing didn't as did'nt and stuff like that.

      Cheers for the feedback!
      Things like that I would fix. I know Alexa said it makes you look more authentic but visitors to your page know that your customer didn't write the testimonial directly on your salespage. They know you put that salespage together and small little spelling or punctuation mistakes like that could leave them thinking you are careless and don't have an eye for detail. Never give visitors a reason to question your credibility if you don't need to.

      I would always fix little things like that but I would leave the sentence structure, etc as is, even if it doesn't sound completely right.
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  • Profile picture of the author JacobS
    I completely agree with Will. I would leave the grammar the same but correct spelling mistakes. If I see a bunch of spelling errors on your website then I'm going to be less likely to give you my money, even if you weren't the one who originally made the spelling errors.
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  • Profile picture of the author Brent Stangel
    I recently worked with someone who's native language is not English to edit for readability.

    Besides situations like that I leave it as they wrote it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ben Holmes
    I'll agree with a few of the above posters... leave it as is unless actual readability is at stake. I agree with Alexis that this adds authenticity to the reviews - as it makes it crystal clear that it's a different person reviewing than the sales page author. Generally speaking (but I admit, not always!) the authors of sales pages have far better spelling & grammar than the average.

    In fact, I usually note very quickly spelling errors, and although I expect them in reviews, it's surprising to find them in sales copy.
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  • Profile picture of the author ListMarketingGenius
    Well absolutely. Fixing the misspellings is very important because you want to make make sure you site remains crisp and readable. If you had a bunch of misspellings in your testimonials then people would naturally question the literacy of your customers. They would naturally think that your product mainly sells to "idiots".
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    • Profile picture of the author MNord
      One other consideration: If you are giving full attribution so that the testimonial-giver is identifiable, they may prefer that you correct the error.
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  • Profile picture of the author HelpingYouBeAnExpert
    I don't fix it, if did it's not true, so I leave it. That's me I'm sure most will disagree.
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  • Profile picture of the author HelpingYouBeAnExpert
    It's more authentic and true if you leave it and it's more believable.
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  • Profile picture of the author talfighel
    I think that it would make sense to actually fix it yourself. It looks more professional in my view.
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  • Profile picture of the author JohnnyPlan
    Minor errors in your testimonials might not even be noticable to an average reader. However, if someone is using internet speak (such as u for you and ur for your), then you can either choose to correct it or refuse to use the testimonial on your site.
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  • Profile picture of the author Edwin Torres
    I don't know if I shouldn't but I've fixed peoples spelling AND grammar in testimonials I've received. Even though the person doesn't know about it, I feel it would make my site look unprofessional.
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  • Profile picture of the author TiffanyLambert
    I'm glad someone else said it first. If I see a testimonial page full of errors, even if YOU, the seller didn't write them, I'm going to view the product as a product for a more "dumbed down audience."

    Plus, I'll wonder why you didn't correct the mistakes - maybe you didn't know they WERE mistakes?

    Doesn't look good. At the very LEAST, reach out to the person and ask. They probably don't want to look stupid, either and would appreciate the fix.
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  • Profile picture of the author James1212
    I would correct it, it makes you look better and the person. I'm sure they wouldn't mind.
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  • Profile picture of the author LuckyIMer
    I would leave it as it is clear, if not, I would only fix the grammar.
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