The Pursuit of Lean Content Production: Streamlining Processes for Efficiency
Welcome to the content universe!
In this blogpost, I will dive into something that’s been on my mind for quite some time – the need to clean up and optimize my content production processes.
As the founder of Montanus, a content agency producing podcasts, blogs, videos, and social content, I’ve seen the need to cut redundancies and remove non-essential tasks. This has pushed me to adopt a leaner, more efficient approach.
Redundancy of Tasks: A Vicious Cycle
One of the most glaring issues I’ve encountered is the redundancy of tasks involved in producing content.
For instance, when we create social media content, we often find ourselves duplicating efforts across multiple platforms. First, we design graphics in Canva, export them, and then import them into a PowerPoint presentation, along with the accompanying text. This process alone involves two redundant steps, as we could have simply invited our clients directly into Canva for feedback.
But the redundancy doesn’t stop there. After receiving client feedback, we move the content over to a platform called SocialBee, where we manage all our clients’ content. Again, this step doesn’t add any value – it’s merely moving the same content from one place to another. And ironically, SocialBee also allows clients to provide feedback and make corrections directly within the platform.
All these redundant steps not only waste time but also create unnecessary complexity. It’s a vicious cycle that we need to break free from this year.
Duplicates and Version History: A Digital Nightmare
Another area that demands our attention is the issue of duplicates and version history.
In the past, we established a system where every new version of a piece of content, be it a blog post or any other type of file, would receive a unique version number as a prefix (e.g., v1, v1.1, v2, etc.). While this approach seemed logical at the time, it has become increasingly cumbersome, especially with the introduction of Microsoft 365‘s automatic versioning and saving capabilities.
Maintaining multiple versions of the same file not only consumes valuable digital storage space but also creates a layer of complexity that hinders our workflow. This problem is amplified when dealing with large video files, where redundant versions can quickly become a massive drain on resources.
File Management: Streamlining the Process
File management is another area that requires optimization.
Currently, we have files scattered across various locations – our internal working space, project management system, SharePoint, and client-facing servers. This duplication not only wastes storage but also introduces unnecessary steps, such as moving files back and forth, remembering to update version names, and repeatedly uploading and downloading large files.
While these tasks may seem insignificant individually, when dealing with files that can reach 150 GB or more, the cumulative impact on time and resources becomes substantial. We need a leaner strategy that minimizes file management while still maintaining the necessary backups and safeguards for our production process.
Redundant Communication: Streamlining Conversations
Effective communication is the lifeblood of any organization, but redundant communication can be detrimental. Previously, we used Slack channels for client-specific conversations, which often led to duplication of information across multiple platforms, including email and our project management system, ClickUp.
In an attempt to address this issue, we briefly experimented with centralizing all communication within ClickUp, as most of our conversations revolved around specific tasks. However, this approach lacked a dedicated space for non-task-related discussions, leading to fragmented conversations across various platforms like Facebook Messenger, text messages, and even phone calls.
Moving forward, we plan to reopen our Slack account but restructure it to facilitate more organized communication. Instead of client-specific channels, we’ll create channels for general discussions, quick questions, and random banter, while keeping task-specific conversations within ClickUp.
This approach aims to eliminate redundant communication and ensure that information is easily accessible and contextualized.
Embracing Consistency with Templates
The final area I want to address is the inconsistency in our use of templates. Currently, we have a pool of templates that we modify extensively from project to project, resulting in varying content packages for the same client from one month to the next. This approach not only creates additional work for us but also adds unnecessary complexity for our clients, who need to re-evaluate the content package every time.
Furthermore, this inconsistency fails to provide a cohesive experience for the end-users of our content. Just like viewers appreciate the familiar style and universe of their favorite Netflix series, our target audiences benefit from recognizable and consistent content formats.
Over the coming months, we’ll be focusing on streamlining our template usage, ensuring a consistent and high-quality content experience while minimizing the additional work required on our end and our clients’.
The Path to Lean Content Creation
After reflecting on these various areas during the summer, I’ve realized the importance of implementing leaner processes to enhance efficiency, profitability, and the overall quality of our work. By eliminating redundant tasks, minimizing duplicates and version histories, optimizing file management, streamlining communication, and embracing consistent templates, we aim to create a more agile and value-driven content production environment.
This pursuit of lean processes is not just about cutting costs or increasing profits; it’s about delivering a superior content experience for our clients and their audiences while fostering a more sustainable and efficient workflow for our team.
If you have any thoughts, suggestions, or experiences to share on this topic, I’d love to hear from you. Feel free to reach out to me at podcast@montanus.co – this email goes directly to my inbox, and I’m always eager to engage in fruitful discussions within the content universe.
Until next time, keep exploring and refining your content creation processes.
Together, we can shape a leaner, more efficient, and more impactful content universe!
