Episode 110: What Kind of Financial Consultant are You Looking For (One who has good grammar in their commercials.)

Charles Schwab has yet another commercial where a sentence, and in this instance two sentences, ends in a preposition. The beginning of the "Financial Consultant" spot has the financial consultant saying that he does not like being "sold to."

I was a real estate salesperson for 13 years. I never sold someone a house. I helped them purchase a home. I helped market a home. I helped negotiate the sale of a home. I sold my skills as a marketer and a negotiator.

The two lines in question could have been:

When I invested with a broker I wanted to be advised how to balance my trades. I did not like being pushed into an investment. I wanted to be guided to a successful  financial destination.

What attributes do you want in a financial consultant?

What kind of investment advice do you want to receive?

This is evidently a new tagline: "What kind of broker are you looking for?" I wrote a previous column on this same tagline. You can find that brief article using the link in the previous sentence.

I am looking for more examples of poor grammar in advertising.

What Kind of Grammar Are You Looking For?

I think that it is time for Charles Schwab to invest in a grammar checker. The current advertisement has a broker who has moved from another company to Charles Schwab. She asks "what kind of broker are you looking for?" I am looking for someone who speaks proper English, especially when it is scripted.