Creating Marketing Program Workflows to Align Teams

Summary

Structured marketing program workflows align subteams and streamline operations, ensuring everyone works towards common objectives. These workflows detail each step in a marketing initiative, including tasks, timelines, stakeholders, and tools, to improve communication, efficiency, and accountability. Key steps include identifying objectives, mapping processes, assigning roles, setting timelines, and selecting tools. Align subteams with clear hand-offs, communication strategies, centralized documentation, feedback loops, and training. Measuring impact through KPIs and regular reviews ensures workflows remain effective and adaptable.

By Win Salyards, Senior Marketing Consultant at Heinz Marketing

In large organizations, misalignment of marketing goals and objectives can lead to wasted resources and missed opportunities. Creating structured marketing program workflows is a proven method to align subteams and streamline operations, ensuring everyone works towards common objectives. In this post, we’ll explore marketing program workflows, how to create them, and how to use them to bring together diverse subteams in your marketing department.

Understanding Marketing Program Workflows

A marketing program workflow is a detailed plan that outlines each step in a marketing initiative, from conception to completion.

Potential components of a workflow include:

• Tasks: Specific activities required to complete the program.
• Timelines: Deadlines and schedules for each task.
• Stakeholders: Individuals or teams responsible for each task.
• Tools: Software and platforms used to manage the workflow.

By implementing a well-structured workflow, teams can improve communication, increase efficiency, and ensure accountability. For instance, a clear workflow helps avoid duplicative efforts and ensures all team members know their responsibilities.

Steps to Create Effective Marketing Program Workflows

Identify Objectives: Start by defining the objectives of your marketing program. Are you looking to increase brand awareness, generate leads, or drive sales? Ensure these goals align with your overall business objectives. I’ve found workflows are essential for outlining account-based marketing strategies, especially with limited or no ABX tools available.

Map Out Processes: Detail each step in the process. For example, a content marketing campaign might include ideation, content creation, editing, publishing, and promotion stages. Use visual aids like flowcharts or diagrams to illustrate these steps. However, be careful not to restrict yourself too much to a mapped-out process when it’s clear there may be a better way to do things. This is precisely why it’s essential to have a feedback process.

Assign Roles and Responsibilities: Assign tasks to team members. For example, the content creation phase might involve writers, editors, and designers, each with specific responsibilities. This avoids overlap and ensures accountability.

Set Timelines and Milestones: Establish deadlines for each stage. For example, the ideation phase might need to be completed within two weeks, while the content creation phase might take a month. Use project management tools like Trello, Asana, or Monday.com to keep track of progress.

Select Tools and Platforms: Choose the right tools to support your workflow. Popular project management tools include Trello, Asana, and Monday.com. Ensure these tools are compatible with your organization’s needs and are easy to use across all teams.

 

Aligning Subteams with Workflows

Clear Criteria for Hand-Offs: Your team needs to know what criteria should be met before a project, deliverable, or task is handed off to the next team or stakeholder. Establishing those definitions and sticking to them is critical for a successful implementation.

Communication Strategies: Regular check-ins and status meetings are crucial. Use tools like Slack or Microsoft Teams to facilitate ongoing communication. Establish a communication tree to clarify who communicates what to whom and how. This will ensure all team members are kept in the loop and can easily access the necessary information.

Centralized Documentation: Keep all workflow-related documents in a central location accessible to all team members. A single source of truth helps prevent miscommunication and ensures everyone is working with the latest information.

Feedback Loops: Establish feedback loops where team members can provide input on the workflow and suggest improvements. This encourages a culture of continuous improvement and ensures the workflow remains practical and relevant. Once a project is completed, meet to review processes as part of a post-mortem meeting. These types of meetings help to reflect on what was successful, what wasn’t, and how to improve a process for next time.

Training and Onboarding: Develop comprehensive training programs to ensure all team members understand the workflow. This is especially important for new hires. Provide resources and support to help team members get up to speed quickly.

 

Measuring the Impact of Marketing Workflows

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Track KPIs such as project completion times, team productivity, and campaign ROI to measure the effectiveness of your workflows. For instance, shorter project timelines and higher ROI indicate a successful workflow.

Regular Reviews: Conduct regular reviews of your workflows to identify areas for improvement. Use data to make informed decisions about adjustments. This ensures your workflows meet your organization’s needs and adapt to changes.

Effective marketing program workflows can transform your marketing operations by aligning subteams and improving efficiency. Start creating your marketing workflows today to see these benefits in your organization.

Ready to take the next step in upping your marketing orchestration game? Request a free brainstorm call here.