Blog posts, magazine articles, social media posts, manuscripts, research papers; no matter what type of content you create, you want to make sure that it is all cleaned up and as professional as possible before you send it out for publication. In order to do that, you really should hire a proofreader.
What is a proofreader? Why should you hire a proofreader? To find the answers to these questions, keep on reading.
What is a Proofreader?
There’s no doubt that you have heard of proofreaders before, but you might not know exactly what a proofreader is and what they do.
A proofreader can be defined as a professional who verifies that written material is free of errors. Proofreaders can assess all types of written materials, including manuscripts, research papers, blog posts, website content, magazine articles, marketing materials, and much more. When evaluating the contents of the documents they’re proofreading, these professionals use a fine-tooth comb, looking for grammar, punctuation, spelling, formatting, and other types of similar errors. They also assess information for accuracy, and they may check to make sure that projects adhere to specifications, such as specific spacing requirements, typeset, and font.
There are five main types of professional proofreaders, which include:
- Freelance proofreaders. These professionals are self-employed and they offer their proofreading services for a broad range of clients, including individuals and entities. They can be hired on a per-project basis, an hourly basis, or for a specific period of time.
- Online proofreaders. Online proofreaders are professionals that help business owners assess various types of web-based materials. These materials vary and can include blog posts, landing pages, website service pages, emails for marketing campaigns, and social media posts, just to name a few.
- News proofreaders. This type of proofreaders works specifically for the media. They’re a member of a media publishing team, such as a newspaper, an online news publication, or magazine. News proofreaders ensure that articles are free of errors before they are finalized and submitted for print.
- Legal proofreaders. Legal proofreaders assess court transcripts. They check these transcripts over for inaccuracies before the documents are sent out to become official records.
- Publish proofreaders. These professionals assess the final copy of a book’s manuscript prior to being produced by the publisher.
Reasons to Hire a Proofreader
Now that you know what a proofreader is and the different types of proofreaders, let’s take a look at some of the top reasons why you should hire a proofreader.
A Proofreader will Save You Time
When you hire a proofreader, you will save yourself a lot of time. A lot of writers don’t realize it, but proofreading requires a good bit of time. On average, it takes about 3 to 4 hours to edit a single document, and you’ll need to add that onto the hours that you put into researching and writing the document. That can really add up. When you hire a proofreader, you will be able to free up a lot of your time. These professionals will take on the job of looking over your written materials with a fine-tooth comb, which will save you a good bit of much-needed time that you can use for other things, whether that’s spending time with your family, relaxing, or working on new projects.
Proofreaders Ensure Your Writing is Error-Free
When you hire a proofreader, you can feel confident knowing that your writing will be error-free. Proficient proofreaders will have the knowledge, skill, and experience that’s needed in order to perform a thorough and accurate job of assessing your documents. They will know exactly what type of errors to look for, and if any errors are spotted, a proofreader will highlight the changes that need to be made. When you look over your own work, no matter how much time you put into doing so, and how thorough you thought you were, there’s always a chance that you could end up missing something. Well, that’s something you won’t have to worry about when you hire a professional, experienced, and talented proofreader.
A Proofreader Will Save You Money
A lot of writers avoid hiring a professional proofreader in an effort to save money. In reality, however, hiring a professional proofreader can actually save you money. Why? Well, because if there are any errors in your writing and they aren’t spotted until after publication, you could end up having to toss out all of those already published materials – and the money that you spent on them – on creating newly published materials that have been updated to address any previous errors that you overlooked. This can translate to significant cost savings in the long run.
Proofreaders Will Improve the Readability of Your Work
No matter what type of content you’ve written, readability is extremely important. If your content isn’t readable, well, it really isn’t going to do what you intended it to do. Plus, people who read your documents likely won’t take you as seriously as you would like them to, your reputation could suffer, and you might take a hit in the pocket, too. When you hire a proofreader, they will make sure that your writing is more readable, as they will be on the lookout for any inconsistencies, and will highlight grammatical and punctuation errors.
A Proofreader will Cross-Reference Changes from Copyedit
Another major benefit of hiring a professional proofreader is that they will check to see whether or not the changes that your copyeditor made were a success. To further explain, when a copyeditor reviews your manuscript, the changes that will be displayed as suggestions, and as the author, you will get the final say on whether you want to accept these changes or not.
A Proofreader Can Improve Your Success
Finally, hiring a proofreader can help to improve your overall success. Because these professionals will assess your work, fine-tuning your writing, and correcting any errors and inaccuracies, your writing will look a lot more professional. The more professional your writing looks, the more your readers will take you seriously, which will certainly help to increase your success.
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