The content team is supposed to run a bit of a magic show. Take some boring, broken numbers and words and transform them into beautiful works of art.
But rather than working on a wide open stage, the content team typically works in something that more resembles a cut-throat jungle.
The latest quarterly report needs to be churned out in about four hours or less. The bi-monthly newsletter now has ten different collaborators and has no chance of making it on time. The company overview video needs to be updated for an important client visiting tomorrow, and the website just doesn’t ‘pop’ enough for the CEO.
All this usually means missed expectations and late nights borrowing snacks from the overnight security guard.
You tried to create a form for people to fill out every time they need a new request, but it hasn’t been completed in months. Every time the marketing team comes within 50 feet of your desk you slap in your earbuds and pretend that you are on a call with the UK office.
Is this just the life of the content team? Or is there anything that can help?
Automation may not be a panacea for all of your woes, but it can be a big help as you navigate your way through the jungle. Automation lets you spend less time around the craziness of content requests and more time actually making good content.
What Automation Brings to Content Requests
1. Clarity
Nothing is worse than coming up with a brilliant work of art and then realizing there was a miscommunication about the job in the first place. Your masterpiece goes into the trash. With an automated system, you can ensure you have as much clarity as possible by capturing and validating multiple data points like the purpose, place it will be used, date required by, and sample inspirations.
2. Conditions
One of the problems with content requests is that too many people see it along the way and feel obligated to make their own changes and suggestions. With an automated request, you can control who sees the content at different stages and who has editing permission.
3. Collaboration
Does this job need a designer? Or just a front-end developer? Do we need it translated? All of these questions can not only be answered in the form, but they can also automatically trigger tasks so that individual contributors don’t need to worry about whom to send the project to next.
4. Convenience
Automated requests can be cloud-based which means you can access them from any location. It also means you can rely on the system to notify you when a new project comes up rather than constantly being in fear of a phone call coming in at midnight. The best automation tools also have native mobile apps that keep you informed of the status of requests no matter where you are.
Try Automation Today!
If your content requests are getting away from you and you don’t think you can keep juggling things anymore, then it’s time to check into automation. With the pre-built content management app in Kissflow, you no longer have to run around like a headless chicken. Automated content request apps can be as comprehensive as you need to make sure that nothing gets lost. Spend more time on your content and less time on dealing with the chaos. Try Kissflow Workflow today.
