How many times have you opened a document, only to find the formatting in complete disarray? Perhaps the numbering does not flow correctly, or the fonts mysteriously change midway through a page. You try to fix it, lose half an hour and still end up frustrated as it is taking more time than it should.
Well formatted documents are often taken for granted, yet they play a critical role in how professional your business appears. More importantly, they directly affect how productive your team can be.
Whether it is an invoice, an HR policy, a legal report or a simple client letter, a reliable template or standardised format can make all the difference. This is where the work of a professional document specialist becomes invaluable.
Let us break down what this really means for you and your business, with examples and practical advice you can use.
Standard Documents and Templates: Are You Making the Most of Yours?
Take a moment and think about your current workflow. Are you still copying and pasting standard paragraphs from older documents? Maybe you have saved versions of letters or contracts you reuse time and time again. It might seem efficient, but this practice often introduces hidden problems.
Old content often carries outdated formatting, incorrect styles and sometimes even confidential information that should not be reused. If you are reusing templates that have not been properly built or reviewed recently, you might be creating more work rather than saving time.
A better approach is to invest in creating a proper template that matches your current brand, language and document use cases. A well built template:
- Keeps formatting consistent across your organisation;
- Reduces the time spent editing;
- Improves the quality and clarity of your communications; and
- Supports less experienced users with built-in prompts or content controls.
Templates can be built for almost any type of document. From order forms to staff handbooks to board minutes. And once created properly, they become assets that pay off every time they are used.
Ask yourself: when was the last time you had your standard documents reviewed?
Microsoft Word: Common Problems and Why They Happen
Working in Microsoft Word can feel straightforward until you hit something like broken numbering or a table of contents that refuses to update. This is where most people start manually adjusting things, which often creates even more inconsistencies.
In a recent survey for “The Lawyer”, these challenges affecting legal professionals were documented:
“Some 30 per cent of survey respondents stated that they frequently find applying numbering challenging. Meanwhile, 29 per cent frequently find it challenging to ensure indentations are currently aligned…and almost 25 per cent frequently find it challenging to update a document to a house style”.
And it is not just lawyers who have this issue. It happens across all business sectors. So, if you have experienced any of the following, then you would likely benefit from expert support:
- Table of contents not updating correctly
- Broken or misaligned numbering
- Page numbers that disappear or restart
- Cross-references that lead to the wrong section
- Styles that are inconsistent or difficult to apply
These are all solvable problems. But they require someone who understands how Microsoft Word works at a deeper level. A document specialist can not only fix these issues but also show you how to avoid them in the future.
Template Usability: Matching the Tool to the User
One overlooked issue in template creation is failing to match the document’s design to the skill level of those using it.
If your templates include advanced features like content controls or cross-referencing but your team does not understand how to use them, you are setting people up to fail. Similarly, if a document is shared with an external party and comes back broken, it creates rework, confusion and delays.
Document templates should be easy for all to use. This is even more so the case for those with basic Word skills. If document users and collaborators struggle to apply your house style, then it clearly does not work. A house style needs to match the skill set that will use it to ensure successful document production (for more information read: The Pros and Cons of House Styles).
Templates should be:
- Simple to use for all team members regardless of skill level;
- Easy to collaborate on without breaking formatting;
- Aligned with your brand and formatting standards; and
- Flexible enough to work across different departments or third parties.
For example, if your business uses documents across multiple teams and third-party contributors, then a well-built template with clear guidance and locked formatting can make the collaboration seamless.
If not, you risk wasting time and money fixing documents that come back needing repair.
Version Control: Why You Need to Get It Right
Staff Handbooks, HR documents, business policy documents, and operational handbooks should be strictly controlled. Therefore, document version control practices here are often necessary, together with some form of document protection.
Document version control management helps your business keep all its important files controlled. It makes sure everyone knows which version is the latest and can save time as:
- Employees do not need to waste time opening each version of a document to work out which is the latest version.
- Employees avoid accidentally working on older documents.
Version control is more than just naming files correctly. It is a critical part of your businesses governance as it would:
- Prevent staff from using outdated versions of important documents;
- Reduce duplication and conflicting edits; and
- Improve compliance and audit readiness.
Thereby saving your business time and money. A document specialist can help you develop a clear version control system. This may include:
- A consistent file naming structure
- A version control coversheet inside each document
- Version numbers printed on each page for physical copies
- Restrictions or protections on editing finalised versions
These steps are especially important for HR policies, legal precedents, safety documentation and operational manuals. If you have not reviewed your approach to version control recently, now is a good time to do so.
PDFs: What You Should Know About Converting and Creating Them
PDFs are great when you want documents to look the same on every device. But they also come with limitations. Understanding how PDFs work will help you use them more effectively.
Converting a PDF to Word
Sometimes you need to turn a PDF into an editable Word document. This could be for repurposing a physical form or updating an older document.
However, not all PDFs are created equally. If the original PDF was made from an image or scanned incorrectly, then converting it back to Word might produce messy or unreadable results.
For instance:
- Poorly scanned PDFs can result in random characters or missing words
- Formatting often breaks during conversion
- Locked or protected PDFs cannot be edited without a password
In many cases, it is faster and more accurate to have a document manually retyped by a professional. A document specialist can assess your file and let you know the most efficient way forward.
Creating a PDF from Word
On the other hand, if you want to share a final version of a document, exporting it to PDF ensures others cannot easily alter it. A document specialist can help you structure your Word document so it converts cleanly. This includes:
- Correct use of styles and headings
- Clean pagination and spacing
- Embedded fonts and consistent layout
If your PDFs often look different from your Word documents, then the original formatting may be to blame.
Fillable PDF Forms: A Smarter Way to Collect Data
Have you ever sent a form to a client, only to receive it back incomplete or illegible? If so, it might be time to use PDF forms instead.
Fillable PDF forms offer several advantages:
- User Friendly: Forms with dropdowns, checkboxes and calendars are easier for users to complete. They eliminate the need for printing, handwriting or scanning.
- Visual Consistency: PDF forms look the same on every screen, whether on a PC, tablet or smartphone.
- Data Integration: Data entered into a PDF form can be exported into spreadsheets or databases, saving hours of manual entry.
A document specialist can build professional, fillable PDF forms using tools like Adobe Acrobat Pro. Whether you are collecting customer feedback, onboarding new staff or managing compliance questionnaires, well-designed forms reduce friction and improve accuracy.
Copy Typing: Yes, It Is Still Relevant
Despite all the technology at our fingertips, there are still times when a document needs to be retyped from scratch. You might have handwritten notes from a meeting. Or you may be working from a printed document that cannot be copied or edited digitally.
In those cases, having access to a reliable copy typing service is invaluable. Rather than trying to recreate the content yourself, a document specialist can do it quickly and accurately, freeing you to focus on other tasks. This is particularly useful when:
- Converting physical documents into digital ones;
- Updating old forms or agreements that only exist in hard copy; and
- Typing documents that were originally created in formats that no longer work with your current software.
If your team regularly deals with legacy documents, outsourcing copy typing can save time and reduce errors.
AI Tools like ChatGPT and CoPilot: Useful For A First Draft
More and more people are turning to AI tools such as ChatGPT and Microsoft CoPilot to help reword or generate content for business documents. These tools can be helpful for speeding up first drafts or summarising long pieces of text. However, if you are using them to prepare professional documents, it is important to be aware of some common pitfalls. Several businesses have reported the following issues after copying AI-generated content into Microsoft Word:
Wrong Regional Settings
Most AI tools default to American English. That means you might see words like “organization”, “color” or “analyze”, which are not aligned with UK spelling conventions. You may also find punctuation or grammar structures that are inconsistent with British usage.
Use of Contractions
In professional documents, especially legal, academic or policy writing, contractions such as “it’s”, “don’t” or “they’re” are often inappropriate. AI tools will regularly insert contractions unless they are specifically told not to. This creates extra work for you or your team when editing.
Broken Formatting When Pasted into Word
Copying content directly from AI tools into Microsoft Word can often cause formatting issues. These include:
- Inconsistent font sizes and styles;
- Paragraph spacing errors;
- Numbered lists and bullet points that do not align correctly or restart unexpectedly;
- Styles that do not match the rest of your document.
House Style Mismatch
- AI-generated content does not automatically apply your organisation’s preferred tone, formatting or structural conventions. Even if the content is mostly accurate, it still needs to be reviewed and aligned with your internal document standards.
Generic and Repetitive Wording:
AI-generated writing can often sound robotic, vague or repetitive. It can include phrases that feel empty, such as “leveraging cutting-edge solutions” or “transforming workflows at scale”. These types of expressions may sound impressive at first glance but rarely add any real value. More importantly, they often do not reflect how your team or business actually speaks.
Overuse of Clichés and Broad Claims:
Another common issue is the tendency to overstate or generalise. For example, phrases like “every business must innovate to survive” or “this solution changes everything” are often thrown in without context. These types of statements should be questioned before being included in any external or internal document.
Incorrect or Fabricated Sources
AI tools are known to generate citations that look plausible but do not link to real sources. You might be given a link to a news site or publication that either does not exist or contains unrelated content. In some cases, statistics or quotes are attributed to real organisations but are either inaccurately summarised or misrepresented.
This is where the role of a document specialist becomes important. They can review AI-generated wording and make sure it:
- Sounds natural and human
- Avoids repetition, vagueness or overly complex language
- Reflects your organisation’s tone and voice
- Includes properly verified and accurate references
- Aligns with your formatting standards and templates
AI can be useful, but only when combined with good judgement, editing and human review. If your goal is to produce a polished, accurate and professional document, you need more than just automation. You need a process that brings consistency, clarity and reliability.
Final Thoughts: Is It Time to Rethink How You Handle Documents?
Many organisations treat document production as an afterthought. Yet poor documentation creates real and measurable costs. These include wasted staff time, inconsistent branding, poor client impressions and even compliance risks.
You might not need a full-time specialist on your team. But having access to a professional who understands formatting, templates, version control and document automation could save your business considerable time and frustration.
So ask yourself:
- Are your templates still fit for purpose?
- Do your documents break when shared with others?
- Is your team wasting time fixing formatting issues?
- Do you have reliable version control processes in place?
If any of these strike a chord, it might be time to speak with a document specialist.
Clear documents mean clearer thinking. And in business, that is always a smart investment.
About OutSec
OutSec is the UK’s leading online transcription company whose business has grown substantially since 2002. We are one of the most successful transcription companies in the United Kingdom.
OutSec provides secure outsourced transcription services to the medical, legal, property and surveying, universities, media and interviews, advisory boards, conferences & seminars, inventories, financial, corporate, HR, recruitment and Executive Search sectors.
With OutSec there is no minimum spend. Accounts are free to open. There are no monthly fees or hidden charges. You are charged on a per-minute basis (rounded up to the nearest minute).
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