Someone's Getting Fired: Totally Avoidable Marketing Mistakes That Will Make You Cringe

Marketers, you have a tough job to do. You have to be edgy enough to stand out in a crowded market and attract attention — but not so edgy you embarrass yourself, attracting the wrong kind of attention.

And if you screw up, there is no, “Quick, take it down before someone notices!” Not only has someone noticed, they’ve likely shared the photo or screenshot on Twitter, posted it to Facebook, and submitted it to Reddit. All you can do is pray you haven’t inspired a trending hashtag, and hope customers have short memories.

So, how do you push the envelope, without pushing it so far that your PR team gets called in for emergency damage control? It can feel like an impossible balance to achieve. Creativity alone doesn't cut it, you have to be smart — and you have to have the right process in place to protect yourself and your brand from any embarrassing gaffes.

Is process the kiss of death for creativity?

As tricky as it is to walk the line between creative genius and career suicide, it’s just as tough to strike the right balance between a thorough approvals process and one that's overwrought. That's why, for many marketers and creatives, process just means more stress. Extra hoops to jump through, complicated reviews involving too many people and opinions, and an endless cycle of revisions, until all that’s left is an overworked mess of a marketing system and a burned out team.

But the right process isn’t just extra red tape — it’s a safety net. It means you can take the risks that are necessary to stand out and win the market, and rest easy knowing that all the right checks are in place and your brand is safe.

Here are 3 costly process mistakes to avoid, plus tips for a streamlined marketing workflow that will set you up for success without slowing you down.

1. Vague creative briefs

70% of designers say that marketers submit unclear creative briefs for new jobs. This means designers are either forced to chase down the details they need to begin work, or guess and fill in the blanks themselves. Either way, you're looking at a lot of wasted time, and a much higher chance that mistakes will be made or key details overlooked.

Workflow tip: Every efficient marketing and creative process starts with an effective creative brief. Take the time to establish standardized creative briefs and work requests, complete with fields for campaign goals, file formats and dimensions, related assets, and due dates. It will save your team valuable time (and unnecessary stress) by ensuring expectations are clear and no guesswork is required.

[Download a free creative brief template here: The Creative Brief Template: Elements of an Effective Creative Brief]

2. Ambiguous approvals

At one point or another, most marketing and creative professionals have heard someone in the C-suite say, “Why did you use this? I never approved this!” There’s nothing quite like the sinking feeling you get in your stomach.

And yet the approvals process is often a confusing mess. If the CMO and Creative Director give conflicting feedback, whose comments do you follow? If one person gives their stamp of approval, and another asks for edits, does the first person need to look at the revised version again? And if you send something out for review and approval and don’t hear anything back, does that mean there aren’t any edits or just that everyone’s been too busy to look at it?

Creative teams say their #1 collaboration challenge is too much feedback from too many people, so the last thing you want is a drawn out review process with too many voices weighing in. But you do need to bring some order and transparency to the review and approvals process.

Workflow tip: Use an online proofing tool that lets people leave comments directly on digital images and documents, so that feedback is precise and all reviewers can see which revisions have already been requested. Plus, approvals can be assigned to specific people, so the author can clearly see who’s given their approval, who’s requested edits, and who hasn’t reviewed yet (and they can send friendly reminders).

3. File version mix-ups

When it comes to creative collaboration, your revisions, drafts, and mockups often result in dozens of versions of the same file. When files get sent out for review and approval, consolidating documents with everyone’s feedback and updates into a single definitive version is a tricky task. And when it comes time to print, publish, or upload the final file, it’s all too easy to mistakenly choose the wrong version. After all, you’re probably navigating a mess of files with names like, “final-draft-campaign-Oct-17.jpg,” “last-complete-final-Final(V20)_copy.jpg”, and “Final-ad-USETHISONE.jpg”. Keeping everything organized so that old, unapproved versions aren’t accidentally used in final campaigns is unnecessarily stressful.

Workflow tip: Gathering everyone’s feedback doesn’t mean you’re doomed to disorganized files. Simplify your digital asset management by limiting the number of revision rounds. Since every revision results in new files, streamline your current process by eliminating unnecessary steps. Then, use an online proofing and approval tool that supports file editing and versioning. Instead of being emailed, forwarded, and copied, all edits are made to a single file — and everyone on your team can clearly see which version is most up-to-date.

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3 Disastrous Marketing Horror Stories to Avoid

Marketing teams battle chaotic workflows, long review & approval processes, and poor cross-team communication, not to mention changing priorities and ever-growing workloads. Read our cautionary tales of killer marketing catastrophes, and learn how to avoid them yourself. Chapter 1: Bad process purgatory Vague requests, muddled processes, and confusing priorities kill Kate’s genius marketing campaign stone dead. Everything’s due yesterday and it’s all mission-critical priority — that’s the typical day in the life of marketing manager Kate. Deadlines and priorities change hourly, as if someone’s purposely testing her just to see if she can keep up. Kate’s pretty capable, but she’s so constricted by red tape and convoluted business processes that it’s impossible for her to juggle incoming work, meet every changing deadline, or jump on fleeting opportunities. 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To set up workflows for your team, start by: - Listing your major project types - Documenting the steps, responsibilities, and necessary approvals - Creating those steps in a work management tool - Using the tool to monitor progress and get status updates via notifications - Eliminating unnecessary status request emails and meetings so you can get more done. Tip 3: Save your sanity with a shared digital workspace. Real-time messaging, file sharing, task management, and an accessible knowledge base free you from searching for project information and sending time-consuming emails — which can be easily lost, overlooked, or buried in an overflowing inbox. Chapter 2: Work requests roulette Marco frantically tries to respond to every new request, and ends up totally losing sight of top priorities and deadlines. Marco’s a brilliant marketing manager, and he’s just landed on a genius idea for a new paid ad campaign. He’s pumped to roll up his sleeves and dig in… when he gets a new email notification. And then an incoming Skype message. Marco understands that it’s all about teamwork — and his colleagues are wonderful designers, developers, and product marketers. But when they need something from him… well, they quickly start to resemble children begging for candy. Soon, he’s fielding a swarm of incoming requests, shifting gears to accommodate new priorities, and scrambling to meet changing deadlines. His own high-priority projects are suddenly being pushed farther down his to-do list. Don’t make the same mistake! Tip 1: Give your teammates an easy tool for submitting new work requests, so that even the summer intern knows how to initiate new projects, and no one can submit a vague request that requires you to chase them down for clarification or redo completed work. Use Wrike Request Forms, Google Forms, or Wufoo. Tip 2: Consider implementing Scrum. It's a popular Agile project management methodology with defined work sprints, daily standup meetings, and a public “to-do” list Backlog where new tasks and requests are logged and prioritized. While it takes effort and patience to implement, you'll soon wonder how you managed to survive without it. It could save your time, resources, campaign deadlines — and nerves. Tip 3: Schedule, prioritize, and adjust your entire campaign plan to ensure you stay organized and focused on your most important projects, even when new requests come in. With online Gantt chart software, you can quickly adjust your plan to accommodate inevitable surprises and incoming tasks while making sure you'll still hit important deadlines. Gantt charts visualize your project schedule, display the sequence of tasks and milestones, note task dependencies, and show when work is on track or overdue. Chapter 3: Digital assets anarchy Nadia is about to send the final, fully designed campaign files to the printer for production. But which document is the latest, approved version: “complete-Final(V8).jpg,” or “final-draft-campaign-Oct-17.jpg”? Stefan, the marketing director, feels like banging his head against the wall after receiving yet another “final” design that completely disregards both the creative brief and his latest round of edits. Nadia, the designer, nearly strained a muscle rolling her eyes at Stefan’s vague feedback. She can’t understand why he insists on needlessly complicating the original design plan. Creative collaboration inevitably involves rehashing and revising work, resulting in dozens of files and a complicated mess of drafts, mockups, and version histories. Keeping everything organized so old, unapproved versions aren't used accidentally in final deliverables can feel like an exercise in futility. Don’t make the same mistake! Tip 1: Improve your creative briefs. Add all the relevant details, including clear objectives and full context so that designers understand your marketing goals and can support them. The creative department should know exactly what you expect from them and when, with no guesswork. Provide examples of similar projects or samples of your likes and dislikes: share Behance portfolios and/or Flickr images to create a clear picture of what you're looking for and save designers from producing work that misses the mark. Tip 2: Simplify review processes by limiting the number of revision rounds your teammates can request. Start by listing all your current steps, then decide which are truly necessary and which you can eliminate. Then build a repeatable workflow that your team members can follow every time they start creative asset production. Don’t compromise your productivity by not having a defined approval process in place. Tip 3: Name your files properly — let drafts stay drafts, and mocks be mocks. Then make sure your teammates can access all the files they need in one place, ideally a shared work environment or file repository that supports file editing and versioning. That way you'll achieve one 'Final' file nirvana across the team. Achieve happily ever after with your marketing team Share your tales of marketing madness in the comments below, then start a free trial to see how Wrike can help your marketing team coordinate efforts, adjust to changing priorities, and keep every campaign organized.

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The Most Common Marketing Mistakes: How to Avoid Them

There is so much involved in starting a business, it’s understandable when things fall through the cracks. Unfortunately, marketing is one area that many new business owners neglect or treat as more of an afterthought. Developing a marketing strategy is just as important as developing a budget. It is a key element in growing a customer base and generating revenue. This is not a simple process; mistakes are often made.

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Viral Marketing Strategies from Crazy Successful Campaigns

It's the holy grail of online marketing: the campaign that goes viral. Massive numbers of views, a staggering amount of social shares, and the kind of brand awareness money simply can't buy. But crafting a successful viral campaign is no easy feat; in fact, most experts say you can't really plan it with a marketing strategy definition at all — it either happens, or it doesn't, and luck is no small factor. But that doesn't mean you can't craft your campaigns to increase your odds of viral success. The key is to tap into your audience’s "lizard brain." “Stories that evoke very primal emotions tend to work best,” says Neetzan Zimmerman. He should know: during his time at Gawker, he generated an insane amount of traffic — more than all of his other colleagues combined. So which emotions do you target? How do you start? By getting to know your audience and understanding what makes them tick, first and foremost! Then, try these three proven viral strategies to help your next campaign spread like wildfire. 1. Make them laugh. Why it works: Funny marketing videos downplay the hard sell and instead go for "surprise and delight." They make people say, “I have got to see that again!” This cranks up the view count, and makes people want to share a laugh with friends. Positive emotions like joy are much more likely to trigger an action like social sharing. (Check out our recent work humor video, "Beware the Managers from Hell!") 2. Make a bold statement. Why it works: These campaigns go for the gut, tapping into powerful emotions. People connect to your message on a deeper, "Me too!" level and genuinely want to spread the word or share your cause. 3. Make their jaws drop. Why it works: The awe factor. These are the videos that make people turn to their friends and say, "You gotta see this!" Everyone wants to be the first person to share something cool or amazing with their friends. Warning! Don’t get so wrapped up in achieving viral status that you stray too far and your campaign ends up having nothing to do with your brand. If people remember your campaign but can’t remember what company or product it’s associated with, your efforts are wasted. Follow the DroneCo Comic for More Startup Fun! Browse previous episodes of Welcome to DroneCo in the comic archive, and subscribe to the strip to get each new episode. Then follow DroneCo on Twitter to keep up with the gang all week long. Share the comic on your own site with this embed code: Webcomic brought to you by Wrike

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Someone's Getting Fired: Totally Avoidable Marketing Mistakes That Will Make You Cringe