In this day of freelancing and the internet, you probably work with writers from all over the place. They also probably submit content of varying qualities, depending on their rates and other factors. But one of the things they should be doing is editing their work before they submit it. Why? Typos. Awkward phrases. Weird sentence structures. There are all kinds of things that they might want to adjust before they hit that magical “Send” button.
And even when they edit their own work, they’re human. It’s surprising to hear that, we know, but they really are human — and that means they can make mistakes. How should you handle that? By having the work edited by someone else before it makes its way to you! That fresh pair of eyes can make all the difference. Here are three of the most important reasons why you should just pony up and pay for editing. It’s completely worth it.
1. Editing Gives a Fresh Perspective on the Written Work
As a writer, it’s possible to be too close to something you’re working on. It may seem perfect, but in reality there could be flaws. No writer is perfect. While communicating with your writers is vital to making sure you get the content you need, it’s also important for you to take the initiative to ensure the finished piece is what you really want. Getting more than one perspective is one of the best ways to do that, and an editor can provide that second look. It may be a matter of fixing a couple mistakes, or it may need more of a rewrite, but either way the editor will help catch problems before they get to you. That means you get better content, every time.
2. You’re More Likely to Spot Other People’s Mistakes Instead of Your Own
It’s true of writers and everyone else — when you make mistakes you may not notice, but others probably will. How many times have you seen a typo in a magazine article, or even in a bestselling author’s book? It definitely happens, and you can reduce those kinds of issues with your own content by making sure there’s an editor in the mix. They’re more likely to catch any mistakes because they didn’t write the content themselves, and they’re seeing it for the first time as it makes its way from the writer’s hands to yours.
3. Good Content Needs to be Free of Errors, or Readers May Not Come Back
People can certainly forgive an occasional typo. Everyone gets things wrong once in a while, and even the best of writers and editors may not catch 100 percent of the issues, 100 percent of the time. But the fewer errors you have in your content, the better. Content that’s riddled with typos, awkward phrasing, and other problems isn’t going to impress your readers. You could have the best product or service in the world, but if you don’t market it well through quality content, readers aren’t going to buy what you’re selling. They might not even come back to see what else you have to offer in the future. You’ve lost their trust at that point, and you don’t want that.
Working with an editor reduces risk, so reach out to both writers and editors when you need content. By paying a little bit extra for editing, you’re saving yourself a lot of potential problems. You could even increase your conversion rates and bottom line by giving customers content they love and a reason to come back again and again. And that’s worth a few extra bucks.
Michelle B writes web content, articles, blog posts, product descriptions, and more, and has created thousands of pieces of content for companies all over the world. She holds an associate’s degree in business management and a bachelor’s degree in legal administration.
