The goal of any creative business after producing great creative for their clients is to increase efficiency and profitability of their own business. Whether within an advertising agency, design or marketing company, sustainability of that business is key.
So how do you ensure that you eliminate false starts, inappropriate job initiation, incomplete information sharing, over- and under-cost estimation, and the need for deadline extensions within a creative business?
Firstly we need to address the issue. Without traffic / creative management – the ability to carefully control and document workflow processes – even the most creatively successful agency might find itself in a state of chaos. You have to meet deadlines. You have to stay within budgets. You have to know who’s doing what and when they’re doing it.
The core competency of creative agencies therefore is not simply the production of creative work. It’s the efficient management of that production. And, most importantly, you have to have the tools to help you do so.
There are many project management options available on the market today. But a Traffic System empowers you to break work down into measurable increments and manageable tasks, making information accessible to everyone within your agency whether working in- or outside of the office. A central system such as this fosters a way of doing business that is much more organised than a paper system. It also makes everyone involved in the process more accountable. And getting reports or information out is much easier since it’s not trapped in the minds of the very people who are too busy to give it to you.
As the key driver of a workflow system, the Traffic Manager or Studio Manager ensures the consistent delivery of accurate work on time and within budget parameters. This is accomplished through not only the initiation of project work electronically via a document such as a project estimate, project brief, and schedule but through the constant policing of deadlines and financials using such tools as to do lists, work requests, and time sheets.
The Traffic Manager also ensures that work is accurate through the provision of detailed job requirement information to the appropriate parties via progress reports and work requests. Careful daily monitoring of all jobs through a creative buisness from inception to their completion is the ultimate responsibility of the Traffic Manager / Production Manager.
A central traffic system, overseen by an employee whose sole responsibility is its ongoing maintenance, can save your agency valuable time. By making client information that was once segregated available to all employees from the convenience of their computers, it makes it possible to increase billable time through increased productivity.
Time and expense management, access to all client communication, and the instant retrieval of job-specific information, are among the many key features of a good creative management system.
Every employee within an agency plays an integral role in its workflow processes. Through the combination of an efficient traffic/ creative system, team commitment and management dedication, your creative agency can experience unparalleled efficiency and profitability.
Now that’s why a Creative management system or Traffic management system is so key – makes sense when you see it like that doesn’t it?