The need for lots of content in your digital campaign also means getting lots of approvals. In political campaigns, approval processes can be tedious and slow things down, but it doesn't have to be this way. Constructing an efficient approval process is key to having your content approved swiftly, reaching voters, and allowing you to focus more on essential tasks rather than internal bureaucracy. In this blog post, we break down strategies to ensure your brilliant ideas survive the approval process.
Design Your Ideal Process
Start by designing your ideal approval process. Ensure you're not adding too many decision-makers, as each added individual may feel compelled to leave their mark, even if they lack strong opinions. Begin by outlining who should approve what and under which circumstances. These roles should be clearly defined, agreed upon by campaign decision-makers, and then adhered to. Clarity and consistency provide reassurance to those involved in the process.
Show, Don’t Tell
Enhance your approval process's success by showing rather than telling. This means providing a clear demonstration of the content you're seeking approval for, and how it will appear once live. Using tools to mock up a Facebook post or a Tweet can be extremely beneficial. If you merely provide the approval team with a set of text without context or graphics, they might scrutinize it more heavily.
Provide Context
Giving additional context about the target audience, where they'll encounter the content, and what inspired you to create the post will provide the team with better understanding. Remember, not everyone on your campaign may be as digitally savvy as you are, so provide as much information as possible.
State the Objective
Clearly state the objective of your post. Campaigns should only focus on earning votes, raising money, gaining attention, or upsetting their opponents. Your post should align with one of these four goals. Be clear about this when submitting it for approval, so decision-makers have the right information to evaluate the content they're approving.
Keep Track
Maintaining a record of approvals is critical. You need a clear process for monitoring what's been approved and what still needs to be approved, to avoid confusion. Whether you use a spreadsheet, project management software, or even Slack, choose the system that works best for you and your team, and keeps your content flowing.
Set Deadlines
If there are people in the approval chain who are hard to reach, set deadlines for when you plan to post something. This way, they can prioritize their tasks. You can also implement procedures like "if we don't hear from you within an hour, we will go ahead and post."
Be Consistent
Having a consistent process is vital for maintaining trust within the team, ensuring smooth content flow through the approval process. An erratic process can lead to tighter restrictions and potential mishaps.
Conclusion
Following these steps will help establish an effective approval process that encourages good ideas to thrive. However, it all starts with ensuring that digital content creators are kept in the loop regarding campaign priorities, key messages, and the overall campaign status. Effective digital content that can navigate the approval process with minimal headaches is possible, provided there's open communication across teams, silos, and consultants.
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