The differences between proofreading, language planning and language revision may seem minor, and terms are easy to confuse. All of these services aim to ensure consistent quality in the finished text by fine-tuning the grammar, spelling and formulation of the content. Proofreading is a lightweight service that primarily seeks to address writing errors. Language management and revision are more akin to text editing.
When you have important texts verified by a proofreader, you can rest assured that the text is correct, readable and fluent. Language revision is particularly important for academic publications, technical documents and other texts that are intended to serve as official sources of information. For a text to be credible, readable and trustworthy, it must also be fluent and error-free.
By checking and fine-tuning your texts, you can help to minimise the potential of excess risks and misunderstandings and ensure that your text benefits the target audience. Making an effort to put the finishing touches on your text is also a mark of respect for the reader.
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What is proofreading?
Proofreading is a lighter-weight intervention than language planning. Proofreaders primarily correct errors of spelling and grammar: punctuation, word forms, capitalisation, units, plurals and tenses If necessary, minor corrections may be made to the word order to ensure that the text is fluent. It is essential to fine-tune your texts because even the smallest errors can dent the credibility and readability of the text.
What are language planning and language revision?
Language planning (also known as language revision) is a more in-depth measure than proofreading, involving adjustments to the content and structure in addition to error correction. For example, the vocabulary may be altered to make it more suitable for the target audience, and sentence structures may also be changed for improved fluency and ease of reading. Language revision is often necessary when texts are intended for publication in several channels and, potentially, in several languages. Language revision is also advisable when the author is not a professional writer or is writing in a language other than his/her mother tongue.
Language revision by a native speaker
Text revision assignments are always handled by native speakers of the target language. This ensures that the text is grammatically correct and appropriate for its target audience. Native speakers master the critical nuances of language and culture so that your texts can be as easy to read as possible in the target area.
All of VK Global’s revisers and proofreaders are experienced professionals with a robust understanding of grammar and the application – and scope for flexibility – of grammatical rules to suit the context of the text. Using an external reviewer is often much more effective than trying to identify spelling errors, Anglicisms and repetitions in your own texts, as an outside party is often less “tied up” in the writing process.
Translation memories are important tools as partnerships develop
We use translation memory tools that save translated texts and customer-specific terminology. There are numerous benefits to using translation memories: they help to ensure that all future translations are consistent with the first translation. The longer our partnership continues, the cheaper it becomes to order new translations, as we can make use of a larger amount of data from the translation memory.
Localisation means making a text native
Text localisation is an important factor, particularly for language planning. Localisation seeks to fine-tune the nuances and cultural features applicable in the target language and the area where the text will be used. Text localisation makes the translation natural and easy to access.
Request a quote for revision or find out about other services that may suit you
Contact us to discuss your revision needs, and we will tailor a solution and quote for future work. We fine-tune and edit texts in dozens of languages.
You may also be interested in localisation, official translations and specialist translation services. Find out about our other services below.