I love the Oxford comma.
There, I said it. Ask any copywriter, editor, or proofreader and they will probably tell you “Yeah, I prefer the Oxford comma, but the AP Stylebook recommends against it.” So, what’s the deal? We all have read the book Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss, so why does it seem like ad agencies are anti-oxford comma?
When I started my career in the ad industry four years ago, I remember my agency was anti-Oxford comma just because the AP Stylebook recommended against it. When I moved to freelancing a few months ago, all of the agencies I worked for were also against it for that same reason. Again, I ask the question, “WHY?” Why are we allowing this little tadpole of a punctuation to add a layer of ambiguity to ads, emails, and social posts?
Theory 1
It takes up too much space
Ok. Yea. We have all been there. A character count is barely maxed out and we are trying to make that 126 turn into that much more appealing 125. Removing that pesky Oxford comma would make it an automatic “OK” where we can move on to bigger and more exciting tasks. Overall, it allows for an ounce more creative freedom, but what is an ounce of freedom when you’re leaving the consumer scratching their head over what you are actually saying.
Besides, content in the sweet spot of being large enough for lists, but small enough to be particular about character count are pretty much just sponsored social posts.
Theory 2
The AP Stylebook recommends against it (kinda)
In actuality, the AP Stylebook recommends it on a case-by-case basis, which is more confusing, and might I add way more inconsistent, than just using the Oxford comma in the first place. Let’s be honest, consistency is the key to branding. As creatives, why are we allowing this willy-nilly rule to add inconsistency in how we allow our brands to express themselves grammatically.
Theory 3
It slows down reading pace
Isn’t that what we want as advertisers? To make our consumers slow down and smell the carefully marketed roses? That extra second a consumer takes to read our words might be the few seconds it takes for them to notice our cool graphics or stellar product/promotion. We should be championing the Oxford comma for this reason alone!
I’m not afraid to say it, I love the Oxford comma. It’s clear, a rebel in the ad world, and takes up just the right amount of space on a page. I think agencies are missing out on the beautiful consistency that is the Oxford comma. Oxford comma on my fellow grammar fiends.
