How to Start a Proofreading Business

Business Overview:

If you are a grammar god or goddess with excellent organization skills wanting to be your own boss, you should find out how to start a proofreading business. Proofreading in its most simple form is the correction of grammar and spelling mistakes. These days, however, the demand is high for other types of proofreading services such as technical proofreading and legal proofreading. Here is where you can apply your skills and turn a great business idea into a lucrative business venture. But before you start calling around for business, you should work on a business plan to outline the types of services you will offer and what your pay scale will look like. You should decide whether you’ll only focus on one aspect of proofreading (legal documents, for example) or if your service will include all types of proofreading. If you have a medical background, you may want to start out proofreading medical documents. Then, as your workload increases, you can hire proofreaders with other specialties to cover a wider spectrum of clients’ needs. Perhaps the best thing about the proofreading business is that it is a terrific online business idea. Thanks to the Internet, your clients can live anywhere in the world. They’ll get the documents to you through email or file sharing, you (or your staff) will make the corrections and return them to the client. You will need to have a solid marketing plan worked out in order to spread the word about your new business. You’ll want to send marketing materials to businesses related to your area of expertise—or to reach them with tour online presence. If you have a legal background, get the word out to lawyers’ offices, both private and government. When you add more proofreaders, you will need to do another round of marketing to target the new group of potential clients. Before long, you will be able to handle every type of proofreading and will have enough work to keep your staff busy.

A Day in the Life of a Proofreading Business Owner:

Your day will begin with a check of any ongoing projects and their deadlines. You will need to finish up any work that has an upcoming deadline and get started on new projects. If you have a staff working for you, make sure their projects are completed on time and assign any new work that comes in. You will spend a portion of your day updating your Internet and print ads if your business can handle more proofreading areas. Finally, you will check your finances to make sure everything is in order.

About Your Customers:

Your customers will be individuals or businesses who need high quality proofreading services. They can range from college students needing their term papers reviewed to corporations needing help with technical manuals.

What You Need to Start:

• Solid proofreading skills
• Business plan
• Marketing plan
• Computer with word processing and finance software
• Staff (if desired)

The Good:

• If you enjoy working on the computer, this is the perfect business for you.
• You can work when and where you want to; you can take vacation or run errands any time. This is one of those great online businesses that you truly can do while sitting on the beach.
• Start up costs are low; you can charge top dollar for your services.
• If you’re good at it, proofreading can be an easy way to make a good living.
• You get to work with a variety of topics and learn while you proofread.

The Bad:

• It can take some time to get your first few clients.
• Deadlines can mean late hours from time to time.

Resources:

• Editorial Freelancers Association
• Association of Freelance Editors, Proofreaders and Indexers
• Bureau of Labor Statistics on Proofreaders and Copy Markers
• Wikipedia on Proofreading

About The Author

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