The workforce is changing, and hiring practices are changing along with it. Not every position needs to be filled with a permanent employee. In many cases, a freelancer can do the job just fine. 

What about content, though? These days, a brand lives and dies by its content. From snappy social media captions to thoughtful blog posts and informative whitepapers, you need a freelance editor. 

Freelance editing services can help you nail your brand voice, avoid embarrassing mistakes, and hone your messaging in order to reach out to prospective readers and clients. 

If you’re wondering whether hiring an editor is worth it, we’ve assembled a guide to 7 benefits of freelance editing services that you’ll love.

1. Cross-Industry Experience Is Invaluable

Whether it’s freelance writing or freelance editing, different content requires a different approach. Expectations for tone, sentence structure, and content format changes. 

Writing for a brassy young startup is far different than the content expected from a venerable scientific institution. Working across different types of industries, as most freelance editors do, strengthens their muscles. 

There’s no one more flexible and adaptable to change than a freelance editor. They pull knowledge from so many different industries, and your content will benefit from this vast range of experiences.

2. Get Unbiased Feedback

If you’re currently writing content, or your in-house team is, they are too invested in the content. After all, they’ve spent so many hours, weeks, months, and years in this industry. 

It’s easy for experienced industry vets to forget that not everyone knows as much as they do. As a result, their content can be value-packed, but incomprehensible to industry newbies. 

That’s where an unbiased third party comes in. They aren’t emotionally attached to your content, which means they can make it so much better than it was before.

3. Benefit From Their Experience 

Cross-industry experience is great. But what about a freelance editor that has participated in all parts of the writing funnel? To make it as a freelancer, you need a diverse skill set and a can-do attitude. 

That means most people start as freelance writers. As their skills and client list grow, they may dabble in SEO, graphic design, WordPress posting, and more. Then, as they grow in experience, they make the transition to freelance editing. 

With experience on all sides of the writing funnel, they know how to rip a piece of content down to its foundations and put it back together again. They have such an intuitive knowledge of each building block that they can turn content restructuring into an art form. 

Sometimes, that’s exactly what your content needs!

4. Save Time 

Hiring editing services can be time-consuming. This is especially true if you’re trying to fill a permanent, full-time editorial position. You need to come up with a job description, screen applicants, conduct interviews, and do all the tasks associated with onboarding a full-time employee.

When you work with an editing company, they’ve done that work for you already. When you hire their editing services, you’re hiring an editor who has already been completely vetted and has worked with the company for a while. 

This makes your job of bringing on a freelance editor so much easier. That way, you save time and money!

5. Save Money

With a salaried, full-time position, you’re paying an employee no matter what they’re doing. If it’s a slow season and you don’t have much work for them, you’re paying them anyway. 

You’re then forced to make the decision—should you lay off someone who is depending on you for their livelihood, or should you keep them on? These types of questions aren’t an issue with freelance editors. 

All of their client workloads tend to ebb and flow, which is why freelancers are encouraged to have a healthy savings fund and a full roster of clients to rotate depending on demand. 

The flexibility associated with freelance editing is one of the main perks. If you want an editor that’s on-call when you need them, you can look for that. Or, you might just hire an editor for the duration of a certain project. 

Freelancing can be tailored to your specific needs! That’s the beauty of this type of working model, for both freelancers and their clients. 

6. Communicate Better

Content is an iterative game. Sometimes, it takes collaboration and different people’s perspectives in order to get it where it needs to be. 

However, communicating with an entire in-house team can be tricky. There’s the team hierarchy, which means your feedback could be filtered through two or three people before it reaches the person that actually wrote it.

There’s also turn-around time. Your in-house editor could be working on ten different things. By contrast, your freelance editor is laser-focused on your satisfaction as a client.

7. Avoid the Content Mill 

When you hire a dedicated freelance editor, you can avoid working with subpar agencies that have no regard for content quality. Commonly referred to as content mills, they often hire writers and editors with little experience. 

The more content they can crank out, the better. Little regard is given to the client’s needs or the quality of output. These types of content mills can wreak havoc on your brand messaging if you don’t pay attention. 

When you partner with a top-notch editing company, you’ll get the best freelance editor that can do good work for you.

Hiring a Freelance Editor

If you’re interested in hiring a freelance editor, now is the time! Freelancers are a great option if you want to cut costs and save time. 

Maintaining quality is crucial, whether you work with an in-house team or hire a freelancer. By partnering with the right editing company, you can rest easy that the editor you get has only your best interests in mind. That way, your content can soar to new heights. 

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Nick Jones

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