Saying YES to the PROCESS
OPERATIONS header image. It's time to talk ops!
Process is the underrated backbone of a marketing function that not only delivers but lends itself to iterative improvement.
A while back, I was keeping an eye out for Content Creator tips and how some of my recent favorites were managing to stay in that sweet spot between visible and obnoxious. Initially, that caused me to be preoccupied with one of the biggest pieces of advice the gurus give out:
Find Your Voice. Repeat, Repeat, Repeat.
Now, it is my own belief that if you’re doing it right, your message can and will evolve over time while your voice stays consistent and grounded in your truth. So that advice is both correct and a little too simple.
For the beginning of my MarOps Connection blog, I had in mind to restart my posting routine in step with a reignited Linkedin presence. Then to produce a core set of blog feature images, which I can rotate between both platforms as an added layer of self-branding and voice.
A particularly resonant post by a content creator who evolved their personal platform into a small media agency was talking about a simple process to produce posts in batches – which reminded me…
Before Re-starting the Press, We Need to Re-plot the Process.
-- Process meets the Why with the Who, What, How, When, and Where.
-- Process gives you a baseline, feedback cycle, a steady operational rhythm.
-- Process sets up context for Data, KPIs, and a basis for SMART Goals.
Put another way, process sets the guardrails that provide space for creativity to thrive.
Far from being "locked into" a routine, teams and individuals are empowered to explore both the fullness and the boundaries of their niche through process.
Process is not Rigid - It Responds to Feedback.
Since we marketers facilitate and produce such creative work, process can be left out of the conversation on smaller marketing teams, both internally and with the rest of the org. But wow, is it the key to unlocking the ability to scale what's working and move on from what's not.
Process is underrated because it's so ubiquitous on dynamic, innovative marketing teams to integrate processes, that we can forget it's a major milestone for gut-guided teams to implement them.
Once you get into process thinking, it’s a natural scale-up to begin thinking in systems. Then what was a daunting goal can begin to look more achievable by the day.
Next thing ya know….you’re PLANNING!
