Editing is not just a phase in content creation. It’s also far more than proofreading. The critical process polishes a piece into its final, publish-ready form. At ClearVoice, we view editing as the essential step that ensures each piece of content not only aligns perfectly with the brand’s voice and editorial guidelines but also fulfills the strategic aims outlined in the assignment brief. The goal is to refine content until it truly reflects the brand’s identity and meets its marketing objectives.
Chefing up a delectable content creation involves three essential ingredients:
- Structure, which hones in on grammar, headings, paragraph length, images, and organizing ideas in a way that makes the content compelling.
- Tone, which focuses on how the author feels about the subject or the emotion the audience should feel while enjoying the content, such as enthusiastic, energized, or engaged
- Consistency, which involves using the same standards for all pieces of content
Thankfully, you don’t have to wing it; this article is your editing cookbook. Here’s a breakdown of what editing involves here at ClearVoice and some tools anyone can use to craft consistently delectable content.
Aligning the Brief and Brand Profile
Getting editing right means sticking close to two main guides: the brand profile and the assignment brief. It’s all about making sure the content feels like it’s part of the brand, speaking in the right tone to the right people, and following the style to a T. At the same time, it’s crucial that the content follows the roadmap provided by the brief — hitting all the right points, flowing just right, and nailing the goals we set out to achieve.
Mastering Revisions
Editing swings between quick fixes and deep dives:
- Quick Tweaks: We’re discussing sprucing up the grammar, fixing typos, and ensuring everything reads smoothly.
- Deep Dives: Sometimes, content needs a deep dive to align more closely with our brand’s vision and objectives. This could involve restructuring for flow, strengthening arguments, or even a full rewrite for clarity. Producers should identify these needs and relay the necessary changes to writers, keeping the Content Project Manager (CPM) informed.
Foolproof Editing Checklist:
Ensure the content is publish-ready each time by using this checklist:
Brand, Style, and Structure:
- Alignment with brand voice and tone
- Alignment with the content brief
- Topic-relevant and provides value
- Written for the target audience
- Relevant sources are cited
Editorial:
- Alignment with editorial style guides (e.g., AP, Chicago Manual)
- Content passes initial grammar and spell checks
- Additional grammar, readability, and plagiarism checks. (e.g., Grammarly, Hemingway, Copyscape)
- Content passes AI detection
- Double-check for common errors that software may not detect
SEO (if applicable):
- Keywords are inserted naturally into headers and body copy
- Content has a clear structure (e.g., H1-H4s)
- All internal and external links work and are relevant
- Clear, compelling CTA is appropriately placed
Navigating Feedback
Giving feedback is an art form in itself:
- Guiding Writers: Be clear about what needs changing and why. Provide detailed guidance to help elevate their work to meet ClearVoice standards.
- Channeling Customer Insights: When customers weigh in, you need to be able to decode their feedback into clear, actionable points for writers. Keep the communication sharp, professional, and educational, helping writers grow with each assignment.
Always encourage writers; if something in the content stands out positively, highlight these successes to motivate and reinforce effective writing habits. This balanced approach ensures that feedback is not only a tool for correction but also for affirmation and professional development.
Key Tools and Technologies for Efficient Editing
Whether you’re on the ClearVoice editing team or DIY’ing your content, you have plenty of tools you can pull off the digital shelf to guide a piece to perfection.
Grammar and Style Checkers: The Spice Rack
Grammar and style checkers are your spice rack — essential for adding just the right flavor to your dish. These tools ensure that every sentence is well-seasoned with clarity, readability, and the perfect tone.
- Grammarly: Grammarly is your season-all. It not only catches basic errors but also enhances the flavor of your writing by suggesting ways to improve clarity, conciseness, and tone.
- Hemingway: Named after a master of lean, flavorful prose, Hemingway is like a dash of salt — bringing out the best in your writing by focusing on readability. It highlights the long, unwieldy sentences and overused ingredients (like adverbs) that can overpower your prose.
- ProWritingAid: ProWritingAid offers detailed feedback on overused words, sentence variety, and even clichés, ensuring that your writing has a balanced and harmonious taste.
These tools help you season your work with just the right mix of style and grammatical accuracy.
Content Structure and Consistency Tools: The Recipe and Measuring Cups
Content structure and consistency apps are your go-to tools for making sure everything in your writing is measured and mixed correctly.
- Scrivener: Scrivener helps you organize the ingredients of your project. It lets you break down your content into manageable sections, rearrange parts easily, and keep track of your notes and research.
- SmartEdit: SmartEdit is your measuring cup, ensuring every ingredient is added in just the right amount. It checks for consistency in language, repetition, and pacing, so you don’t end up with too much of one ingredient (like adverbs) or forget an essential component (like a character’s name).
These tools ensure that every ingredient is in the right proportion, giving your content a well-structured and coherent narrative.
Collaborative Editing Platforms: The Kitchen Island
Collaborative editing platforms are where content chefs come together to prep, share ideas, and perfect their creations. They bring your team together in real time to refine content and ensure it’s ready to be served.
- ClearVoice’s Content Management System (CMS): ClearVoice’s CMS unites producers, editors, clients, and writers, enabling them to share ideas and feedback. You can also toss messages to the team and tag individuals if necessary.
- Google Docs: Google Docs allows multiple editors to work on the same document simultaneously, adding comments, suggestions, and feedback, making the final creation a true team effort.
- Microsoft Word with Track Changes: Microsoft Word’s Track Changes feature makes it easy to see who’s added which ingredient and to tweak the recipe accordingly. Each edit is marked, and you can decide what to include or discard.
- Airstory: Airstory is like a well-organized pantry that makes it easy to pull out exactly what you need when you need it. It allows users to drag and drop research notes directly into their writing, making it perfect for content-heavy projects where every ingredient needs to be perfectly aligned.
Fact-Checking and Verification Tools: The Quality Control Station
No chef would serve a dish without first tasting it to ensure it meets the highest standards. Fact-checking and verification tools are your quality control station, making sure that every piece of information in your content is accurate and credible before it reaches the table.
- FactMata: FactMata is your taste tester, trained to detect even the slightest hint of misinformation or bias. It scans your content for potentially false claims, provides links to verified sources, and highlights areas that might need a little more seasoning.
- Full Fact: Full Fact is like a master sommelier, providing the tools and resources to verify every claim in your content. Full Fact helps you cross-check every fact, ensuring a high level of accuracy.
- CopyScape: This tool acts as a reassurance that your stats or facts are not plagiarized but rather written with a unique perspective. Tools like CopyScape ensure that your content is quality and net-new rather than duplicated.
- CopyLeaks: CopyLeaks acts as an AI detection tool to determine whether your content reads as AI as opposed to human. This tool provides a percentage gauge and areas where you might be able to improve your content for quality control.
These tools are your final checkpoint, ensuring that what you present to your audience is both accurate and expertly prepared.
Polishing to Perfection
Editing is much more than dotting i’s and crossing T’s — it’s about caring deeply for each word and its impact. By following our detailed process and utilizing the best tools in the trade, our editors ensure that ClearVoice content isn’t just seen; it’s remembered. Polish each piece of content to meet expectations and exceed them every single time.
If you need a little help serving up the best content for your brand, connect with one of ClearVoice’s content specialists today.
