Business book

Copyediting case study

Marketing personalization expert Rasmus Houlind is the author of three books: Make It All About Me (LID Publishing, 2019), Hello $FirstName: Profiting from Personalization (Omnichannel Institute, 2023) and a 2025 update of Hello $FirstName that expands its scope to include AI. Read about how we worked together on both editions of Hello $FirstName to hone the structure and ensure the final result was clear and polished.

Copyediting the 2023 edition of Hello $FirstName

In 2023, Rasmus Houlind, founder of the Omnichannel Institute and CXO at the Danish martech firm Agillic, got in touch looking for a copyeditor for his upcoming book, Hello $FirstName. The book would distil over ten years of his expertise and practice in digital marketing, especially around personalization. It would contain numerous images and references, and these in turn would support the book’s explanation of two innovative new models.

We discussed the work on Zoom and by email, and I quoted Rasmus a fee range based on my impressions of the project. I also recommended several potential proofreaders for Rasmus to check out. After a couple of months, in which Rasmus finished writing, it was time for the editing to begin.

I conducted an initial check of the text and assembled a list of questions for Rasmus. At this stage, these were about overarching matters, such as how images would be mentioned and his preferences around key terminology. Once these queries were resolved, I started to work my way through the manuscript sentence by sentence.

Additionally, although Rasmus already had a carefully constructed organizational scheme for the book, he had asked for feedback on the overall flow, so I looked out for opportunities where this might be tightened. As agreed, I also researched and completed references where needed, to ensure other authors’ concepts and words would be properly credited.

Rasmus said:

‘I’m not a native English speaker – so my English, albeit quite good, is far from that of a native English speaker. Hazel helped to make the manuscript more easily accessible and understandable than it would have been. She’s also razor sharp in having an eye for the structure and flow of the text. Which terms have been mentioned and explained in which order? For an author who edits their manuscript back and forth many times, this can be super-tricky. So Hazel provided invaluable help here.’

I tracked all my changes within the text and provided detailed comments in the margin for Rasmus to consider. Some of these comments were explanatory notes (because sometimes the reason for an edit isn’t obvious in isolation) and some were queries on the meaning or flow.

An example of tracked changes in a copyedited file, also showing three comments containing copyediting queries

An extract from the edited manuscript showing some of the kinds of changes I suggested

I sent the manuscript back to Rasmus with a handover document containing additional general notes on what I’d done, suggestions on things to watch out for as the project progressed, and responses regarding some specifics he had asked me to look out for in the text. I also sent details of the styles (spellings, capitalization, etc.) I had implemented throughout the book, so Rasmus’s proofreader could continue to ensure consistency.

It was then over to Rasmus to work through the editorial feedback. He said:

‘It’s always tricky to handle criticism. But Hazel’s suggestions and critique are … super-relevant and she always conveys her thoughts in a pleasant and well-argued manner.’

We had agreed a one-stage editing service, where I would provide my editorial feedback and Rasmus would finalize the manuscript himself. However, as is very common as projects evolve, it ultimately made sense for the manuscript to come back to me for a few final checks.

On the final result, Rasmus said:

‘There were specific parts of the manuscript where I was in doubt of whether I had explained myself properly – and parts where I surely knew I hadn’t. Hazel helped sort those parts out so I could rephrase and rework them. Those were very crucial parts of the manuscript, so I feel it became so much better and more congruent. I’d recommend (and have done so already) Hazel to anyone seeking an editor for their book project!’

Into the AI era: copyediting the 2025 edition of Hello $FirstName

In 2025, Rasmus decided an update of the book was needed to incorporate changes to personalization resulting from the growth of AI.

Generative AI had also given Rasmus more options on the editing front, and he did briefly consider using AI to help him update the book. However, he quickly found that the human touch was indispensable. He said:

‘AI can provide input on how to update a manuscript and help write small passages of a book – but…

AI is inconsistent.

AI is not true to what else is in a large manuscript.

AI doesn’t take any responsibility.

So, while it may be good for some degree of sparring, it doesn’t give you the quality needed for a book that people will ultimately trust.’

Rasmus and I swiftly picked up where we’d left off after the 2023 edition. It was important for me to understand what he wanted to achieve with the new edition, so we began with a brief Zoom call. We discussed how I could most usefully contribute, discussing questions such as:

What had changed
What I should focus on in depth
What only needed a brief check
How much I should check the new and revised text against the old text to ensure consistency and smooth transitions

I then got started, tracking my edits and adding comments as I had in 2023. As I proceeded, it emerged that some of the formatting had dropped out. With Rasmus’s approval, I additionally checked and updated the formatting throughout the book, so that it would properly feed into his chosen publishing platform.

A screenshot of part of a Navigation Pane in Microsoft Word showing a series of headings properly formatted

An extract from the Navigation Pane in Word for the 2025 edition: once I’d tidied the formatting, the headings appeared in the correct hierarchy, meaning they would flow accurately into the publishing platform Rasmus had chosen

When the work was complete, I asked Rasmus whether he was glad he’d chosen to stick with a human editor:

‘100% yes! It was a huge relief – especially mentally, knowing that a responsible and skilled human being had taken a thorough look and that changes had been made accordingly. I’ll do it again and advise anyone else to do so too.’