What Qualities Should You Look For in a Content Editor?

At first glance, hiring a content editor for your project might seem simple.

You just need to find someone with a good grasp of spelling and grammar—how hard could it be?

You could hire the first eagle-eyed language nut you run across, but if you go this route there’s no guarantee you’ll find a competent editor.

But it turns out it’s not as easy as it seems.

Sure, you could hire the first eagle-eyed language nut you run across, but if you go this route there’s no guarantee you’ll find a competent editor. That English-language rock star might just be lacking in the ability to communicate well, use your workflow tools, or complete work on time, for example.

There are actually a number of traits to look for when seeking out a quality editor. In this post, we’ll go through some of the most important qualities you need to be aware of.

Technical Ability

The baseline for anyone you hire as a content editor must be the ability to find and fix every error.

(It’s the “you must be this tall to ride” sign for our industry.)

On top of that, you need someone who can also spot stylistic issues related to wording and overall flow.

And you’ll get bonus points if you hire an editor who knows all the SEO tips and tricks to help your blog attract more readers.

You will benefit from hiring an editor who already understands basic task management programs like ClickUp, Asana, or Basecamp.

But in addition to all that, content editors need a thorough understanding of Google Docs and Microsoft Word too. They must have the ability to track changes, edit formats, and share documents—without needing to be trained by you.

Additionally, if you hire a freelancer through a site like Upwork, they should know how the site works—how to communicate with you, how to track time, and how to submit milestones, for starters.

You will likely also want to include your new editor in your business’s existing workflows. This means you will benefit from hiring a person who already understands basic task management programs like ClickUp, Asana, or Basecamp.

People Skills

Even though editing is often a solitary job, people skills are still vitally important.

When hiring for an editor, you need to consider how well the potential candidate communicates.

There are too many good editors out there to settle for someone with poor people skills.

Are they positive and upbeat? Do they converse with you in a way that makes it clear they are focused on what you, the client, need to be successful?

Or are they terse and overly blunt, or come across as focused more on collecting a paycheck than providing value?

Obviously, in this example, the former is the better choice. There are too many good options out there to settle for a freelancer with poor people skills.

Efficient and On-Time Work

The old adage is still true: time is money.

If you get a document back that is corrected to perfection but delivered too late to meet the publication window, it does you no good. A quality editor will understand this and make meeting deadlines a top priority.

The best will meet your deadlines with room to spare.

Quality Deliverables

Efficiency doesn’t mean turning in shoddy work as long as it’s ahead of schedule, however.

Top-tier editors provide both efficient and quality work.

If you want quality work delivered back to you quickly and efficiently, you’ll need to have an appropriate pay range in mind. Editing is one area where you don’t want to go with the lowest bidder!

But it’s important to remember the three constraints of any project: cost, time, and quality. You can choose any two of these to be a priority—but not all three.

Hiring a content editor is no different. If you want quality work delivered back to you quickly and efficiently, you’ll need to have an appropriate pay range in mind.

Remember, though, that your written content reflects on your business, so this is one area where you don’t want to go with the lowest bidder! Instead, be willing to pay a professional at or near market rates to ensure you get the best service possible.

Professional Attitude

Attitude is always important.

As you no doubt know from your own experience, working on a team with someone who has a professional attitude is light years better than working with someone who just can’t get along with the rest of the team.

Quality editors come to work knowing there’s a job to do. They take their work seriously, they speak and act with respect, and they take pride in their work.

And most importantly, they make your success their top priority.