Is there a need for Proof-reading Services?

[Ashley_Price]

I am looking to change direction because, as some of you will know, the typing and transcription business seems to be dying.

One thing I thought of is proof-reading. I am very good with spelling, punctuation, grammar, etc., and I wondered if there is a call for this sort of service.

I know there are a lot of copywriters out there, of which proof-reading would be part of their job, but I am thinking more niche and just offering to pick up on general mistakes and errors, rather than offering to rewrite someone's whole article or website.

To give an example, I was looking at a website earlier today which had a number of typos and spelling errors. They might have had the best product or service going, but I believe these sorts of errors do make them appear amateurish. So it does make me think there is a need for a proof-reader.

Do you think there would be a need for such a service?

 

[billybob99]

I've seen a ton of people offer this on various sites, just saw one for proofreading 8000 words for £20 - not sure if this is the kind of area or price point you want to be near.

It depends are you going about this as a freelancer or want to make a solid business around it?

There are certain players like these guys.

1000 words cost £34 with 1 day turnaround or £48 for 12 hour turnaround.

On the other hand 8000 words with them would cost you £192 for a 2 day turnaround or £248 for a 1 day turnaround to give you an idea.

I would image you would want to be closer to the latter and focus on quality clients instead of quantity.

 

[Clinton]

Is there a hyphen in proofreading?

... but I am thinking more niche and just offering to pick up on general mistakes and errors, rather than offering to rewrite someone's whole article or website.

I would call that general rather than niche.

This is a very crowded market and I know several good proofreaders who are struggling for work. But if you do specialise in a niche, there may be opportunities. For example, there's someone who specialises in copy for long sales letters. He charges about five grand for one page! And people pay that because they know his copy has been A/B tested to death and tweaked and tweaked and tweaked again for maximum conversion.

In my own industry I've been approached to proofread the occasional Information Memorandum / Pitch Book - a 50 to 100 page document covering the information investors and buyers want in the initial stages. I've never taken on any such work but there does seem to be a demand.

 

[Blaby Loyal]

There is a demand but also a lot of supply.

The last time I looked on People Per Hour the rates were very low.

Based on my recent experiences, no one seems to be that bothered about spelling errors etc. these days. Whenever I recommend corrections to errors in work with wot I am involved then I am labelled a pedant or worse.

But what do I know!

 

[Alan]

Yes, there is demand. But as others have mentioned, it could be a challenge getting worthwhile contracts due to the supply.

 

[Peter Bowen]

I advertise for a proofreader. She specialises in academic proof reading and editing. She's got as much work as she can handle and, she tells me it's fairly well paid.

 

[Ashley_Price]

Is there a hyphen in proofreading?

If you are asking me that question, then you need my services (and, no, there isn't).

 

[Ashley_Price]

I've seen a ton of people offer this on various sites, just saw one for proofreading 8000 words for £20 - not sure if this is the kind of area or price point you want to be near.

Yes, there is demand. But as others have mentioned, it could be a challenge getting worthwhile contracts due to the supply.

There is a demand but also a lot of supply.

The last time I looked on People Per Hour the rates were very low.

I guess the question is how good are they?

Would they know when to use a serial comma (or "Oxford comma" as it's more usually known)? Can they spot a split infinitive? (And @Alan, your signature has a split infinitive - just saying. )

At the end of the day, like most services, it comes down to "Do you want the service to be cheap or do you want the result to be right?"

 

[Ashley_Price]

Interestingly, I applied for a freelance proof-reading position with a marketing firm. They're sending me tests to do, but their supporting documents contain errors ("effect" for "affect", "now" instead of "know", and so on).

 

[billybob99]

Interestingly, I applied for a freelance proof-reading position with a marketing firm. They're sending me tests to do, but their supporting documents contain errors ("effect" for "affect", "now" instead of "know", and so on).

Maybe their supporting documents are meant to be the real test.

 

[Ashley_Price]

Maybe their supporting documents are meant to be the real test.

Well, this is what I am wondering, but I don't want to appear to be a "know it all", especially after their initial "Dear applicant" email had five errors in it - which I did point out, as I assumed that was a test.

 

[Ashley_Price]

As you can see from my signature, I've decided to give this a go. In the words of Richard Branson: Screw it! Just do it.

I think my first call will be to whoever the ad agency is that has done this advert for the NHS:

 

[BigPhill]

Surely the best people to target are self-publishing authors? indie publishing houses, one-man band operations, etc?

 

[Ashley_Price]

Surely the best people to target are self-publishing authors? indie publishing houses

Hehe! You should see on Facebook: "Typing For Authors" and on Twitter @Typing4authors.

 

[Noah]

Is there a hyphen in proofreading?

If you are asking me that question, then you need my services (and, no, there isn't).

I applied for a freelance proof-reading position

Uh-ohh!

Not taking the mickey Ashley, just laughed when I saw that. It was inevitable, wasn't it?

I wish you good business in you're new venture.

 

[AllUpHere]

There certainly is plenty of work around for good proof readers. As with most things in business (and in life), it's all in the marketing though.

Don't end up competing with those who will work for next to nothing, and don't under value your service. Having said that, don't fool yourself (or try to convince others) into thinking your services are more vital that they actually are. Just because you can spot technical grammatical errors in a piece of work, doesn't necessarily mean it's poorly written.

 

[Clinton]

Uh-ohh!

Not taking the mickey Ashley, just laughed when I saw that. It was inevitable, wasn't it?

I wish you good business in you're new venture.

Bait?

I grew up in India (and had all my education there except for the MBA in the US), so my English ain't too good, but we were taught that there's no hyphen in the word. So I did a quick Google search and got this: link 1 | link 2

I do agree with AllUpHere - most small businesses don't bother about the minor mistakes (and their customers don't seem to care either). This is a shame, and the next generation is likely to be even less fussed about spelling / grammar.

I still think Ashley's best bet is niche.

 

[Andγ]

Can they spot a split infinitive? (And @Alan, your signature has a split infinitive - just saying. )

I am like you, because bad spelling and grammar can most definitely put me off a product or business.

Unlike you, I don't care about split infinitives. I think there's a difference between spelling and grammar, and arbitrary rules created by prescriptivists that are now largely ignored. The end result should be that the meaning is clear.

But good luck in your new venture, and well done for having the courage to boldly go into the unknown!
​

 

[Scott-Copywriter]

Don't end up competing with those who will work for next to nothing, and don't under value your service. Having said that, don't fool yourself (or try to convince others) into thinking your services are more vital that they actually are. Just because you can spot technical grammatical errors in a piece of work, doesn't necessarily mean it's poorly written.

I agree.

In copywriting there's a train of thought that "correct" grammar and syntax aren't actually that important.

Times change. Languages are fluid. People absorb information differently than they used to. It's therefore more important to use grammar and syntax to make text easier to digest instead of worrying about rules that are often archaic.

One example is starting a sentence with a conjunction (such as "and" or "but"). Most were taught in school that this is bad practice, but it's fine to do and often beneficial. In fact, it's fairly common in publications that are even centuries old.

Paragraph structure is another one. A lot of media websites resort to one-sentence paragraphs these days. While I know this irks some people, it's simply in keeping with a modern world that has shifted more towards one-sentence communication. We used to write lengthy letters with fountain pens. Now we bat around text messages like ping-pong balls.

Another favourite of mine is "have gone" vs "have went". Technically, "have went" is incorrect due to the past participle rule, but it's so commonly used that to some people "have gone" sounds a bit odd.

There's ultimately no central authority on the English language. It's different from 50 years ago, and it'll be different in another 50 years. Every word written, and every punctuation mark used, has an element of subjectivity to it. That's why pretty much every newspaper has its own style guide that will differ from one to the next.

The most important thing for any proofreader to remember is that their job isn't just about fixing spelling and grammar mistakes. They must also ensure that such fixes improve (or at least don't worsen) the readability and overall flow of the copy. Sometimes that's not clear-cut.

 

[The Byre]

The concept of one correct way of saying something or one way to spell a word is relatively new.

 

[Ashley_Price]

Uh-ohh!

Not taking the mickey Ashley, just laughed when I saw that. It was inevitable, wasn't it?

I forgot to put that in quotes, Noah... because that's how the firm offering the position had written proofreading.

 

[Deleted member 59730]

In copywriting there's a train of thought that "correct" grammar and syntax aren't actually that important.

"WhatalotIgot" and "go to work on an egg" were reputedly written by Fay Wheldon.

I was a bit amused by the latest Bill Bryson book where he mentions the "Scilly Isles" instead of the "Isles of Scilly". The Guardian style book gives the correct version which was written by Bill Bryson when he worked on the paper.

 

[Ashley_Price]

One example is starting a sentence with a conjunction (such as "and" or "but").

I used to read a newspaper, and once they were having a go at a politician,who had been silly enough to leave their papers on view as they were approaching 10 Downing Street. The paper seemed to make fun of the MP for using "And" at the beginning of paragraph... of course, in other articles in the same paper, they were doing it themselves.

 

[Ashley_Price]

I understand that written text can be a fluid thing, but there are still plenty of instances where the spelling or grammar needs to be correct for the sentence to work and be understood, or they will just look amateurish...

Local estate agent: "Many our properties are sort after"
(yes, an estate agent did have this on their literature)

And of course the confusion people have over you're and your... or there, their and they're... and so on.

Of course, these days split infinitives are not so important, and even sound "wrong" in most situations. There's also the argument that "Well, everyone knows what I mean" when someone has written something incorrectly. However, there are times when, what seems like a very minor issue can actual have huge ramifications... like when an "Oxford comma" was missed in a state law document led to a court action with the outcome potentially worth millions.

 

[menetworkjadaltd]

Times change. Languages are fluid. People absorb information differently than they used to. It's therefore more important to use grammar and syntax to make text easier to digest instead of worrying about rules that are often archaic.

Great work!

 

[Ginger Egg]

lots of freelancers offering this kind of service on sites like People Per Hour.

 

[Ashley_Price]

As I said in my OP, this is something I have been thinking about as my audio typing service seems to be dying...

However, on Thursday I am off to France (only until Monday), and in the last three working days (Friday, yesterday and today) I've had more typing quote requests than I have had in the last three months!

 

[Alan]

(And @Alan, your signature has a split infinitive - just saying. )

Educate me, I had to look up split infinitive, but it says where an adverb is put between 'to' and a 'verb'. Now I can only see one 'to' and it is followed by 'put' which in my very basic (O - Level C grade English ) is 'to' followed by a verb.

Just asking as I really don't know.

( I also can spot any error let alone 5 in your signature, well maybe one as I don't think present owns anything )

 

[Ashley_Price]

@Alan - I'll DM you.