How to Streamline Marketing Agency Task Management

Task management is one of the most tedious and time-consuming aspects of managing a marketing agency. Juggling client needs, project management, communication, reporting, billing, invoicing, and campaign optimization can be overwhelming!

This article discusses tips on how to streamline task management in your agency and keep on top of everything without bogging yourself down.

Imagine this scenario: You've worked hard to scale your marketing agency by offering in-demand services such as PPC management, search engine optimization, or social media influencer campaigns.

You've just cracked a milestone - 50 agency clients! However, things start slipping through the cracks with all the tasks on your to-do list. Now, you're dealing with angry clients because of incomplete deliverables and missed deadlines.

Suddenly, your client churn rate skyrockets. That milestone you were proud of slips through your fingers. Now you've lost five clients, and six more are threatening to cancel their contracts if you don't get your act together.

Lousy time management leads to wasted time and frustration on both the agency and the client side. Here are some of the common consequences of improper task management at a marketing agency:

All of these mishaps can be avoided with proper task management. And almost all of the above comes from making one (or more) of the three basic mistakes that plaque far too many marketing agencies:

These are just a few examples of bad time management at a marketing agency. Implementing the tips outlined in this post helps to avoid these mistakes and streamline task management.

Why Task Management Is Important at a Marketing Agency

As a marketing agency, you constantly balance multiple clients with different needs and objectives. Depending on youragency niche, that could run the gambit across dozens of various campaigns and platforms. It is vital to have a system in place to keep track of all the tasks that need to be completed for each client. This helps ensure that deadlines are met and that nothing falls through the cracks.

A sound task management system will help you to prioritize your time and resources. With so many demands on your attention, it’s easy to lose sight of what is most important. A clear understanding of what needs to be done and when will help you focus on the most urgent and impactful tasks. It enables you to keep track of crucial agency tasks such as:

Finally, an effective task management system will help you to bill your clients accurately. You can avoid overcharging or undercharging for your agency's services by keeping track of the time spent on each task.

What Are The Most Common Time Wasters at a Marketing Agency?

There are a few typical time wasters that tend to plague marketing agencies. One of the biggest is project management (when it's not done correctly). It can be very time-consuming to manually keep track of all the moving parts of a project and ensure everyone is on the same page.

If you find yourself saying things like, “I know that I wrote that down somewhere…” you probably need a better task management system.  

Another big time waster is client communication. It is crucial to stay in touch with your clients, but getting caught up in back-and-forth emails and phone calls can be all too easy. Try to limit communication to only what is necessary and schedule regular check-ins so you can batch your correspondence. What’s the best way to avoid that? Keep clients in the loop about what’s happening automatically! 

Finally, reporting and billing can also take up a lot of time if they are not adequately streamlined. Keep accurate records of your time on each task to quickly and easily generate reports. And make your invoicing process as efficient as possible so you can get paid promptly.

The Benefits of Streamlined Task Management

There are many benefits to streamlining task management in your marketing agency. Perhaps the most obvious benefit is that it saves time. When you have a system in place to track and manage tasks, you will no longer need to waste time searching for lost files or trying to remember what needs to be done. This will free up weekly hours that can be better spent on revenue-generating activities.

In addition to saving time, streamlined task management can also save money. Improve your bottom line by keeping track of billable hours and avoiding issues with incorrect client billing. In addition, by reducing the number of missed deadlines and forgotten tasks, you’ll improve your client satisfaction and retention rates.

Finally, streamlined task management simply makes life easier. When everything is organized and under control, you relax and focus on doing what you do best–growing your agency and delivering outstanding results for your clients.

How to Get Your Agency Task Management on Track

The first step to streamlining task management is to get organized. This may seem like a no-brainer, but it's crucial in keeping your agency running smoothly. Keep a master list of all the tasks that need to be completed, and break them down into smaller, more manageable chunks. 

Assign each task to a specific team member or department, and set deadlines for completion. This will help you keep track of everything that needs to be done and ensure that nothing falls through the cracks.

Another important tip is to automate as much as possible. Some great software programs can help with task management, communication, client reporting, billing, invoicing, campaign optimization, and more.

Workast's Slack integration, for example, allows you to quickly and easily set up projects, generate tasks, archive notes, establish due dates, and assign work, all from within your Slack conversation. Spending hours copying and pasting results from various social platforms? A social media reporting tool automates that task and frees up your time. 

Finally, don't be afraid to delegate. You can't do everything yourself; trying to will only lead to burnout. Delegate tasks to other team members or outsource them to third-party providers. This will help lighten your load and allow you to focus on the most critical tasks. Want to test your delegation skills? Assign someone on your team to download the free version of Workast to try out the task management capabilities.

Following these tips will streamline task management in your marketing agency and keep on top of everything without becoming bogged down. Running a successful agency is all about being efficient and organized, so put these tips into practice and see how they’ll help you succeed.

Summary and Key Takeaways

A marketing agency must have a system for managing tasks and meeting client needs. Using a task management system, an agency streamlines its processes and focuses on the most critical tasks. Delegating and automating tasks will also help lighten the workload.

There are a few key things that help to streamline task management in your agency:

Task management isn't just another task to tackle; it's a way of creating a better, more streamlined, more scalable agency.