Did you know that poor writing is costing you money? A new study of freelancers by Grammarly reveals that people with strong writing skills are better at their jobs and get paid more than people with poor writing skills.
Good writing is critical to business communication. It can open doors or shut them very quickly. Looking for a new job? If your cover letter is poorly written, you can forget it.
Today, we write more than we speak. Between email, social media, and text messaging, our writing skills are tested on a daily basis. Have you received email messages from people with such poor writing skills that you clicked the delete button before you finished reading? You’re not alone.
Here are some interesting findings about professionals’ writing skills from Grammarly’s small, but insightful study:
- Writers, followed by administrative support professionals, make fewer mistakes than any other type of freelance professional.
- IT and programming professionals, followed by finance and management professionals, make the most mistakes.
- Better writers tend to earn more money per job, particularly in the manufacturing and engineering, sales and marketing, finance and management, and legal fields.
- People who make fewer writing mistakes receive more positive reviews from the people the work with.
This isn’t the first time that Grammarly has reported data about the correlation between poor writing and career success. In 2013, the company shared data about writing errors in LinkedIn profiles and how those errors affected career growth. At the time, it was found that professionals with fewer errors in their LinkedIn profiles achieved higher positions, got more promotions, and made fewer job changes.
You can see all of the details from the new study in the infographic below. If you’ve been procrastinating about brushing up on your writing skills, it’s time to prioritize your self-development. As the results of this study show, your career development will progress as your writing skills improve.
Susan Gunelius
Susan Gunelius is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Women on Business. She is a 30-year veteran of the marketing field and has authored a dozen books about marketing, branding, and social media, including the highly popular Ultimate Guide to Email Marketing, 30-Minute Social Media Marketing, Content Marketing for Dummies, Blogging All-in-One for Dummies and Kick-ass Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps. Susan’s marketing-related content can be found on Entrepreneur.com, Forbes.com, MSNBC.com, BusinessWeek.com, and more. Susan is President & CEO of KeySplash Creative, Inc., a marketing communications company. She has worked in corporate marketing roles and through client relationships with AT&T, HSBC, Citibank, Intuit, The New York Times, Cox Communications, and many more large and small companies around the world. Susan also speaks about marketing, branding and social media at events around the world and is frequently interviewed by television, online, radio, and print media organizations about these topics. She holds an MBA in Management and Strategy and a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing and is a Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).
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