Public Relation Final Project

COMMON ERRORS

1. Capitalization: majors, random

a. English, Chinese, French = yes

b. PR = yes, but public relations and advertising = no

c. Capitalizing Words Does Not Make Them More Important

2. Redundancy, repetition – read aloud to catch it, remedy it (remove or replace)

3. Typos: proofread; use spellcheck

a. Write in WORD, cut and paste to discussion board

4. Learn AP Style

a. States: know the difference between postal, abbreviation and when to write out in full

b. Dates: May 1, 2015, not May 1st

c. Times: 9 a.m., not 9am

d. Numbers: 1-9 = words, 10 and above = numerals; look them up there are exceptions

e. Titles: lower case when standing alone, or after a name. Uppercase when preceding a name

f. Fractions: look up how they are handled.

5. Agreement

a. Pronouns: who = people, that = things/situations

b. Nouns/verbs (singular/plural)

c. Verb tense: present, past, or future. They should agree.

6. Toward/towards, regard, regards. Generally do not use “s”

a. Regards is for feelings: Best regards to you and your family.

7. Beware of “that” – it can be a crutch and is often overused

8. Proofreading: see typos. Are you reading your work aloud? Is someone else proofing for you?

9. Understand the “corporate entity” and use of pronouns. The “corporate entity” McDonalds, DePaul University, the Village of Oak Park are ALL singular. When you refer to them as a pronoun, use “it” or “its”—not “they/their” Sounds dumb. You don’t want to sound dumb.

a. Old Spice ran a clever campaign; its brand benefited from humor and use of social media.

b. McDonalds today announced that it will begin paying its workers $15/hour.

10. Know these things:

a. A part/apart:

i. a part = means to be “part of”

ii. apart = means to be separate

b. a lot/”a lot” is not a word.

c. Without is one word

d. complement/compliment = complement is to complete; compliment is to praise

e. loose vs. lose

f. It’s/its. Know the difference.

11. USA = no periods. U.S.

12. Paragraph structure: keep it short and focused. New idea = new paragraph

13. Fact check!

a. Look things up to confirm their accuracy; it’s so easy.

b. Names, titles, regions, etc.

c. Is something one word or two? Look it up. Get in the habit of looking things up.

14. Possessives: one little apostrophe can undermine your credibility. Is it possessive? Plural possessive? Look it up. Use it right.

15. Lastly: please, please don’t use “lastly.” Good writers don’t say “lastly.” They say “Finally.”

C:\Users\Jill Stewart\Documents\_H Drive\2015 PLANNING\515 ONLINE\Common errors.docx