It never fails: I come across a website with really beautiful site graphics (like a site header), only to see that the site name or description is misspelled on the graphic. (Either that, or I catch an error in my own graphics. LOL) A couple of examples, below:

Errors like these pop up all the time across the Internet, usually because we get caught up in the throes of website creation, or we’re in a hurry. Thus, letter reversals (like the above) and other misspellings can slip through the cracks and end up posted for everyone to see.

This IS a Problem!

The Internet these days is chock-full of such errors. But, unfortunately, misspellings (especially in site graphics) make your site look unprofessional, and therefore less likely to be trustworthy. It’s not just English majors and English teachers who have a problem with misspellings, either; many users will be turned off by such errors, because it makes one’s whole site look amateurish or ill-made.

Thus, it’s worth taking a little extra time to spellcheck first–after all, we don’t want to turn visitors away from our sites because of a few little errors!

How to Spellcheck Graphics (Don’t Worry, It’s Easy)

Most image editing programs do not have a spellcheck function built in, so you’ll have to do it yourself. Don’t worry, though, it’s not a hard process!

1. Before you save your image, read the text on it aloud–this alone will help you catch 90% of your errors, because you’re taking the time to look at each word while you read it.
2. If you are unsure of a word’s spelling, search for it using a search engine, or look it up through Dictionary.com.

Just these two simple steps can remove most errors–it just takes a little more effort. Additionally, if you don’t trust your own spelling, have a friend or colleague who is good with spelling check your image before you publish it. A second pair of eyes always helps!

Spelling’s Not the Only Thing that Counts

Next week, I’ll demonstrate another important language point in web design–grammar! (It’s not just for school anymore–it’s for communicating your ideas correctly!)