In the world of publishing, just working with great writers isn’t enough. The pros know this, and that’s why they always pair great writers with experienced editors to ensure the final product is ready to wow their audience.
Editors can help in many ways, from fixing grammar and syntax errors that slip through to keeping brand voice and tone consistent across content pieces submitted by multiple writers. Using a professional copy editing service can add a level of polish that will make your content stand out.
At Crowd Content, we now make it easy for self-serve clients to add editing and proofreading services to their content orders. Doing this assigns a professional editor to the job who reviews for spelling, grammar, flow, logic, structure and formatting, while also ensuring that the initial writing instructions have been followed.
How to Add Editing and Proofreading Services to Your Content Order
There are two ways to add editing and proofreading to your content order on the Crowd Content self-serve platform. You can choose to:
- Add editing and proofreading when creating your order
- Add editing and proofreading when reviewing the writer’s first draft
We’ll walk you through both methods below.
Adding Editing and Proofreading when Creating Your Order
Create Order
As you normally would, click the green “Create Order” button in the top right corner of your screen. You can also “Copy” an existing order.
Select “Yes” for Editing and Proofreading
Begin filling out the order form as you normally would. Below the “Pricing and Word Count” section, you’ll see a new section called “Editing and Proofreading”.
Click “Yes” to add this service to the order.
Choose an Order Type
The Order Type determines which editor will review your content after the writer has submitted his/her first draft. You have three options: Open, Team, or Direct.
Open
The order is available to all qualified editors. The first editor who decides to claim the job will be the one to review your content.
Team
The order is only available to editors you have placed on a Team that you created in the “Writers” section of your account before you placed the order.
Direct
The order is only available to a single editor that you select.
If you haven’t worked with an editor before or have not arranged anything with your Customer Success Manager, we recommend selecting Open. All editors in the pool have passed a thorough application and test specific to editing and proofreading, so your content will be in good hands.
Note: Remember that you will also select an Order Type for the writing portion of this order in the “Pricing and Word Count” section. Don’t get these two areas confused. You can mix and match Order types in both areas to meet your needs. For example, it’s okay to place a Direct writing order, but then select Open in the Editing and Proofreading services section.
Place Your Order
Complete any additional sections of the order form as needed. Then, click Place Order Now and you’re done!
What Happens Next?
Your order will first go to the writer you have selected (or to the first writer who claims it, if you selected Open or Team for the writing portion).
Once the writer has completed the first draft, it will move to the Editing and Proofreading process. If you selected Open or Team, the first qualified editor interested in the job will claim it. If you selected Direct, it will go directly to that editor.
The editor will then review the content for correct spelling, grammar and formatting and will also review the content to ensure it matches the original writing instructions you gave the writer.
Your editor will correct any issues found, and if the content needs significant changes, send the content back to the writer for revision. The writer will then make changes and submit the content back to the editor for review.
When the editor is happy with the content and feels it meets your expectations, the order will be submitted to you for for final review and acceptance.
At this time, you will have the option to accept the content or send it back for revision. If you send it back for revision, it will go to the editor first. The editor can then make the required changes or send it back to the writer if that is more appropriate.
Adding Editing and Proofreading When Reviewing the Writer’s First Draft
In this case, you have already placed a writing order without Editing and Proofreading services. The writer has completed the first draft and submitted the content to you for review.
Click “Send to Editor”
Beside the Accept button, you’ll see a blue button that says “Send to Editor” Click this to bring up the Editing and Proofreading services screen.
Choose an Order Type
Just like in our first example, you’ll need to select which editor will work on this order. You can select Open, Team, or Direct.
View this same step in the first part of this article to see full instructions.
Enter Instructions and Click “Send to Editor”
If you have specific instructions for the editor, you can enter them here. When you’re ready, click the green “Send to Editor” button.
The content is now off to the editor for review.
View the “What Happens Next?” section of this article above to learn more about the next part of the process.
Who Are these Editors, Anyway?
Great question. Although Editing and Proofreading is new to the self-serve marketplace, we’ve been running large-scale editing projects for Enterprise customers at Crowd Content for the past year and a half. These projects range from product descriptions to blog posts and everything in between.
During that time, we’ve slowly built a trusted group of professional editors who can get the job done. We know they’re top notch because they’ve been successful with our most demanding Enterprise customers, and our in-house production team closely monitors this group to ensure only the best editors (who produce results) stick around.
Now, we’re simply giving our self-serve clients access to this group of editors through the platform.
Feedback?
We hope this new set of features helps you and your team create better content more efficiently. If you have questions or feedback, please don’t hesitate to contact your Customer Success Manager or the support team.
