Becoming a Proofreader: What You Need to Know

If you’re looking for a way to expand your skills or become a part of the Topcontent team, proofreading may be the perfect opportunity for you. Proofreading is the process of examining a piece of writing for word choice, spelling and grammar errors, typos and clarity. Two of our Quality Levels include a proofreading phase: Standard and Business Quality.

In this guide, we’ll explain what it means to be a proofreader with Topcontent. We’ll discuss the skills and experience necessary to be eligible, the process for becoming a proofreader, and also define our expectations. If you’re interested in learning more about proofreading and how to become a proofreader with Topcontent, keep reading!

Required Skills and Experience

To ensure our clients receive the best quality, all of our proofreaders are vetted prior to receiving proofreading skills. When evaluating whether or not a freelancer is ready to become a proofreader, we look at both their demonstrated skill set along with previous experience.

Ideally, a proofreader will have the following:

  • 1+ years of experience in proofreading or editing
  • OR 2+ years of experience in content writing or copywriting
  • Mastery of the target language (native-level)
  • Excellent command of grammar and spelling
  • A keen eye for detail
  • Super ability to fact-check (and follow instructions!)

If you meet the above requirements and think you’re ready to become a proofreader with Topcontent, read on to find out how the process works.

How to Become a Proofreader

Currently, Topcontent has no formal process for applying to become a proofreader.

All freelancers entering our system begin with writing or translation skills with the potential to gain more skills later. This is done for two main reasons. The first is to make sure our freelancers become familiar with our system, policies, and the types of content we produce. The second reason is as a quality control measure so that we can ensure a freelancer has the skills necessary.

Proofreading skills are generally added in two scenarios:

  1. A freelancer proves they consistently produce high-quality work in the Writing Phase. In this case, a Project Manager will reach out and add the skill.
  2. If there is a demand for new proofreaders in a certain language. When this happens, a Project Manager will send out an email asking if there are freelancers interested in becoming proofreaders. Previous work with Topcontent and previous experience proofreading will both be taken into consideration prior to granting skills.

If you are new to Topcontent with previous proofreading experience and no interest in writing, you can contact us through our support channels to let us know you’re interested in becoming a proofreader. We will get back to you to let you know if we are currently looking for new Proofreaders.

Are you interested?

Becoming a proofreader with Topcontent is an excellent way to expand your skills and become a bigger part of our team. If you have the required experience, expertise, and eye for detail that we look for, we’d love to have you! With this new addition to your profile, you can expect more opportunities from us here at Topcontent. So keep a look out for future emails and make sure you’re ready when those opportunities come along!

For some extra inspiration…

Check out our blog post from a fellow Writer-turned-Proofreader-turned-Editorial Blogger!

Making the transition from writer to proofreader!

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