There is one person who can not only drastically improve the quality your content, but also cut down on the time taken to deliver and the overall cost. I can guarantee with absolute certainty that hiring this person will make you – or your clients – much happier.
The odds are good this person isn’t already on your content team.
It’s not a top-shelf writer.
It’s not a slick graphic designer.
It’s not a subject matter expert.
It’s not a promotion specialist.
It’s not a project manager.
All of those roles are important, but most smart teams figure out how critical they are pretty early on.
Stumped?
If you are, that’s understandable. This person is routinely overlooked. Even when they are considered, they’re often written out of the budget as an “unnecessary cost”. Though once you’ve worked with a good one, you’ll have a hard time going back.
Enough messin’ around. Who is this mystery person?
They’re an editor.
Underwhelmed? You shouldn’t be. Adding a quality editor to your team is like pumping nitro into your Honda Civic – it takes your average team and turns them into a THUNDERBOLT OF UNBRIDLED POWER.
Here’s how:
1. Editors Can Make Good Writers Great, and Great Writers Phenomenal.
One of the biggest struggles for content teams that I talk with is finding talented, dependable writers (read: writers who don’t suck).
Even though there are approximately a bajillion people labelling themselves as copywriters, a trusty “get-it-right-the-first-time” writer who appreciates the nuances of tone and voice can be tough to come across (and well worth paying for).
Working with writers who are “good” but still perfecting their craft can be a massive time suck. And when you don’t know exactly what’s wrong with a piece (other than “This doesn’t work for us”), the revision process can be agonizing for both you and the writer, pushing back deadlines and resulting in piles of lost hair.
http://youtu.be/PP_Fe52PGKQ
This is where an editor can shine.
A great editor will do a lot more than fix up grammar and punctuation.
They rearrange ideas, improve flow and point out areas for improvement that the writers themselves might not even have recognized. They can coach your writers to help them improve their craft – and like a conductor in front of an orchestra, they can turn jumbled noise into beautiful music.
Don’t get me wrong – even a fantastic editor can’t make a horrible writer sound amazing, and some “writers” just aren’t worth working with.
But with an editor in the mix, that meagre caterpillar of “almost there” content is transformed into a majestic butterfly of usable content.
2. Editors Are Enforcers.
You can write all the briefs and style guides you want, but unless someone competent is enforcing them, your content is going to be inconsistent. It’s an editor’s job to live and breathe your style guide – then show others how to do the same. They’re a set of objective eyes that can rummage through copy and find problems nobody else can see.
Big problems, like losing your brand’s voice.
For businesses suffering from inconsistency an editor can be just the ticket, cleaning up rogue voices and ensuring you’re coming across the same way every single time. They can turn a team of multiple writers into one cohesive brand voice – essential if you’re outsourcing your content or working with a group of creators.
Editors close the gap between the strategist and the content creator; they liaison between the documentation and those responsible for implementing it, catching problems before they can poison the well.
3. Editors Are Great for Morale.
For most people, editing blows. It’s probably the least fun part of the content creation process, but unfortunately one of the most critical. There is little joy in returning to the content you’ve already poured your soul into and having to rework it, or having to critique the work of someone who you felt like you gave clear instructions to.
It’s almost as annoying as this is:
Editors? They love that crap (editing, not the tenor balloon fiasco). It’s a game to them; a holy quest for perfection that they plan to conquer.
An editor can alleviate someone else (like a project manager) from having to haggle with copy and tap disgruntled writers on the shoulder. They can make life easier for the writers who need to do the revisions, giving them exact instructions and ideas instead of abstract “Can you make it more ________?”
4. Editors Will Save You Money.
“But paying an editor is an added expense!” you say.
That’s true.
Know what else is expensive? Burning up hours managing 8 rounds of revisions, or wasting time hunting down a new writer when the one you brought on doesn’t cut it. That, and damaging your reputation with poorly written, schizophrenic, inconsistent content.
Maybe the most compelling incentive to hire an editor is that it can free up your more expensive assets (like account managers, CEOs, etc.) to do more valuable tasks instead of grumbling while they monitor-gaze.
Productivity, for the win!
Embrace Editors.
Not literally (unless they’re cool with it). But if you’re one of the many teams who has forgotten or written off editors, maybe it’s time you woke up and smelled the fresh copy.
They might just be the missing piece in your process.
Question: What should my editor do while my copywriter are producing the content ?
Good question! There are a lot of answers, and it really depends on your need. If you’ve got the volume to sustain it, an editor can be busy full time. If you don’t, there are plenty of freelance or contract editors who can come on as needed. Also keep in mind that an editor may excel in some other area of the content process, and as long as you manage their workload, they can take care of other tasks. Things like coming up with content ideas or handling the administrative parts of the content process. Some of that will depend on the skill sets of the person you hire, and the role you try to fill.
Being an all rounder helps, though I doubt that anybody can be good in everything. The only way is to have good and reliable team to work with. Though this can be very expensive option for most small businesses and bloggers.
There are a lot of experienced writers who can also edit; I don’t think it’s all that uncommon. I would say having a reliable team is less expensive than outsourcing to random people every time you need content. Thanks for the comment!
Editing and writing are two different skill sets requiring two different types of focus, and rare is the person who is good at both. Don’t hire a writer to edit your content. Hire an experienced, qualified editor. A professional association such as the Editors’ Association of Canada (www.editors.ca) is a good place to find one.
Anne – I do agree. There’s overlap, but one is not the other.
Editors simply see what you don’t. They have distance and objectivity. Even editors need editors for their own writing!
This is the most kickass endorsement of editors I’ve ever seen. Thanks, Joel K!
Cheers, Rowena! Happy to endorse such a noble (and useful) profession.
Dude, holy crap I laughed so hard when I clicked on that first video. haha. awesome.
Thanks for this post. I’m an Editor and owner of a magazine. Will share with the company president for he does not understands sometimes when I step away from personal feelings for the sake of following the company principles. Funny, I’m Editor, webmaster, interviewer for artists to be in our magazines and writer. Had no knowledge of graphic arts but was obliged by my position to learn some Photoshop, graphic games, web design, app design, In design, video edition and even marketing and promotional stuff.
I have many hats, but I do love the company’s ideals so feel happy about it. Happier about the learning. Musical hugz, Quintrala.