Copywriting and Copyediting are two phrases that get thrown around a lot. They are cornerstones of good advertising and marketing. They are the language that customers see first and internalize.
Yet, in today’s digital age it is often overlooked. A lot of small businesses focus on the copywriting and the content writing. The digital age says we have to create more and more content, but at what cost do we create all this extra content? Is it more important to have a lot of content regardless of quality? Or is it more important to have content that is well-written and edited? We’d argue the latter.
It is important, for our purposes, to give a quick definition of what exactly copyediting is. Copyediting is the act of editing the written content (the “copy”) for grammar, punctuation, and readability. Copyediting, in effect, will turn a piece of copy from “okay” to “stellar.” It’ll elevate the message and give it a pristine, easy-to-read quality.
The Digital Age: Misspellings Abound!
You’ve perused the internet, which means you’ve seen the content that exists there. It is amazing how many blogs, websites, reviews and more contain boundless misspellings and basic grammar mistakes. It’s everywhere. Sometimes it is more than just grammar and misspellings. A lot of times there are difficult-to-read, clunky sentences. Other times there is slang, and unexplained abbreviations. In short: not very professional.
Here’s a common example: “Their,” “There,” and “They’re.” This is a simple grammatical rule, yet it is abused way too often. It is an easy fix. If you were to use one in place of the other the meaning is completely lost, or at least muddied. The last thing you want is to confuse your reader, even if they know what you meant. At the very least, they will think you aren’t taking the time to proofread or edit anything you are posting. This won’t keep them engaged.
Why is Copyediting so Important?
So, why is copyediting so important in the digital age? It’ll help you stand out from the unprofessionalism that is abound in the online world. It’ll communicate to the world that you take your business seriously and that you care about how you present yourself.
You want your grammar and punctuation to “disappear” to the reader. What we mean is that you don’t want them to notice. If they notice it means something is wrong. It means something has caught their attention that wasn’t supposed to catch their attention. You want them to have a fluid reading experience.
A good way to catch your own grammatical errors is to read your copy in reverse sentence order. By reading your copy like this you won’t be distracted by the content and can focus on the grammar of each sentence.
Copyediting will distill what you’ve written and make it easy to read. It will clean it up and make it organized; and it will lend a level of professionalism to your online presence.
How can You Step Up Your “Editing Game”
You can step up your editing game in a few basic ways. It is possible to hire an in-house copy editor, but sometimes this isn’t cost effective. You may also consider a contract copy editor. If you have the funds to do so it is worth the investment.
How can you yourself take care of the copyediting? During these uncertain times, especially now in 2020, we need to figure out how to make the most out of a little.
Enable the Editing Software on Your Word Processor
This is an important feature that is usually already turned on. However, a lot of people ignore its suggestions. These programs that are a part of your word processor will give you suggestions for grammar. They will also show you your misspellings.
Don’t, however, stop here. These programs are very useful, but they aren’t 100% accurate. For instance, sometimes you spell a word correctly, but it is not the word you meant to use. For example: “definitely” and “defiantly.” They look similar but are completely different. The software won’t pick up on this and won’t tell you. (Some programs may offer a grammatical suggestion here, but it is possible they may miss it.)
It is important to have a foundational understanding of grammar. This foundation allows you to pick up on the things software may miss. It is also possible, and we’ve seen it ourselves, where the program is telling you to insert commas in places where there shouldn’t be a comma. Likewise, it could tell you to insert apostrophes where there shouldn’t be apostrophes. As long as you know proper grammar up to a point you will be able to tell the difference.
Lend Your Copy to Another Pair of Eyes for Review
Once you’ve edited your content you should give it to someone else to review. A new set of eyes is crucial in the editing process especially when you’re editing your own content.
If you have a business partner give it to them. You may also give it to a trusted friend or spouse. Whoever you give the content to make sure to ask them for suggestions. If possible, try to get someone who won’t sugarcoat anything. You want someone who’ll tell you “how it is.” This is important because when editing you need to be ruthless.
Giving your work to another pair of eyes will help you catch things you missed. Often times we get so used to our own copy that our own mistakes become invisible to us.
Another pair of eyes means another perspective. This new perspective will show you clunky sections where meaning is lost. It’ll show you where to reorganize and where to rewrite.
Don’t Be Afraid to Rewrite
In today’s world we want to produce as much as possible. We become afraid we’ll become stagnant, that folks will forget about us. But we should never sacrifice quality for quantity.
Don’t be afraid to rewrite what you’ve written. After you’ve edited it and lent it to someone else: rewrite it.
The rewrite will further polish your copy and have it be the strongest it can be. It will allow new ideas to shine through while bad ideas will be thrown away.
Proofread, Proofread, Proofread!
Finally, make one last proofread. We can’t stress this enough. Proofread it slowly. Read every sentence and make sure it reads exactly how you like it. You don’t want to lose any meaning in what you are posting and sharing with the world.
Conclusion
Copyediting may not seem like much as first, but it is crucial if you want to stand out in the digital age. Make sure you look everything over. You want to communicate exactly what you mean without anything being lost. In a world where a misspelling could mean a customer vs. a person who never does business with you, copyediting is very important.