“What on earth does an ad agency editor do?”
I’ve been asked countless times about what I do as an editor at Jacht. Many people think an editor is someone who works for a newspaper, magazine or some other copy-based business. Little do they know that ad agencies also need an extra set of eyes to look at content. What mostly shocks people is that an ad agency editor goes beyond looking for grammar, punctuation and style errors. As an editor at Jacht, I fulfill many roles to ensure the content we are providing for our client’s audience meets its full potential.
Deadline Enforcer
An editor has the last set of eyes that looks at copy before it’s put out into the world. This creates a time demand to make sure I see something ahead of its deadline. It’s important to ensure I get a good amount of time with the content before giving it the green light. This means I have to touch base with the creatives to make sure they get content to me ahead of the deadline. This puts me in the position of communicating the need for an editing deadline before the client deadline.
Fact Checker
Being a fact checker is one of the many hats an ad agency editor wears. Often times, ad agency research is done and presented to clients through research documents. It is crucial that the information is accurate and fact based. My job is to double check with the researcher to make sure the numbers are adding up.
Writer
Editing and writing go hand in hand. In order to be a good editor, you have to be a good writer, and to be a good writer, you have to be a good editor. When a copywriter is out of office, the editor is next in line to fill in their spot. The other day I found myself in a copywriter’s position writing the tone of voice for one of our clients. Being able to fill in for a writer is a crucial part of being an editor.
Adviser
Often times when someone in the agency needs a second opinion, they come to me. Editors have an eye for detail and are always prepared to give advice. I often get asked questions like: “Which word sounds better?”, “What name do you like?”, “What’s the best way to write this?”, “What is the AP rule for this?”, “What do you think of this post?”, etc.
Creative
As an editor, I am a part of the creative team. Not only do I think about editing efficiently, I also strive to edit creatively. It is important for me to use creativity in my work. While editing I keep in mind, “How can I help make this more creative and relative to the brand?” As a creative editor, I have helped come up with name ideas for a brand, written copy for a creative brief and helped choose a logo design for a brand.
Tone of Voice Maintainer
Not only do I look at how the copy reads, I look for how it aligns with the brand’s tone of voice. All of the copy used in any campaign needs to be consistent with the brand’s voice. I do this by looking at the creative brief’s tone of voice, then I make sure it is applied to any copy that goes out. Every single word needs to be looked at. I always ask myself, “Does this word sound like what (insert brand name here) would say?”
These are just a few of the things I do as an editor for Jacht. I fulfill many roles and find this position to be a very flexible one. For example, the other day I found myself putting together a filing cabinet to store our creative content. This is what it’s like being an editor for an ad agency, and I’ve loved every minute of it.
