If we’re so strategic about content – about content contributing to the success of your company, team and career – then why do we sometimes harp on about commas and apostrophes?

We’ve heard several versions of that question through the decade that Collective Content has been around.

Around nine years ago, we started a series called ‘Copy-wise’. The idea was to pick up on a single point about grammar or style and, in a single blog post, make sense of it to anyone who’s a writer – which is everyone.

I’ve laid out a list of some of our best Copy-wise posts below, along with some ‘Copy-wise-adjacent’ pieces.

Why do we do Copy-wise?

To return to the big question of ‘Why?’, the answer is that you’re not just avoiding a grocer’s apostrophe (one of my personal favourites) or saying ‘which’ when a ‘that’ won’t do, but showing clarity and confidence in who you are and what you do.

Think of it like walking into a room with an assured stride – confident yet humble.

The best organisations in the world can look silly if they don’t get the basics right. Being 100% on top of spelling, grammar and style won’t make sure you win, but it can stop you falling at the first hurdle.

Get these fundamentals right and you’ll look assured and ready to become a trusted partner to those you really want to work with.

Here’s the roundup of some of our favourite copy-wise posts:

1. Should I say ‘which’ or ‘that’?
2. Follow this simple rule for lists (and don’t be a copy bro)
3. Buzzword bingo will hurt your content
4. ‘Less’ and ‘fewer’ are not interchangeable
5. Semi-colons – use with care
6. Possessives, plurals and greengrocers