Creating content material takes loads of planning, manufacturing, and publishing exercise. From the individuals creating it to the instruments they use and the processes they observe, manufacturing schedules can go from manageable to chaos in a matter of days.
Content material operations templates and methods provide help to outline processes, decide schedules forward of time, handle duties, and in the end make it simpler to scale.
Listed below are one of the best free templates that gained’t really feel like a waste of time.
monday.com: Inventive processes template
monday.com is a versatile relational database device for work administration and group collaboration. As soon as you identify primary content material operations, you should utilize it to handle your full content material manufacturing cycle.
Whether or not it’s weblog posts, customized pictures, podcasts, movies, or a combo of all of them, you’ll don’t have any drawback managing manufacturing schedules with monday.com.
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monday.com’s inventive processes template is a good possibility as a result of it acts as a single supply of reality for each operations and manufacturing.
Due to built-in undertaking administration options, you’ll get Kanban boards, Gantt charts, calendar views, timelines, and extra. This offers everybody in your group the chance to see all the pieces in a manner that makes essentially the most sense for them.
This template additionally features a full digital asset administration (DAM) element that makes it straightforward to connect directions and specs to every merchandise.
Except for the template itself, monday.com affords a variety of configurable automations so you may simply streamline each step of the method. For instance, you may robotically connect related directions and course of documentation to a process based mostly on its content material sort.
ClickUp: Content material operations template for SOPs
Whether or not you’re working with a couple of individuals or a number of dozen, customary working procedures (SOPs) are an important piece of your content material manufacturing machine. With out them, you could sacrifice high quality, effectivity, value, or the entire above.
This content material creation SOP template from ClickUp comes with all you want to create and retailer your documentation.
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Not like different SOP templates, this one is constructed particularly for content material. You gained’t must make many adjustments earlier than including your content material operations framework and documentation.
It lets you outline the aim of your processes, the scope of your initiatives, and step-by-step directions for all the pieces you’re producing.
The template works very well for explaining tips on how to do issues inside a specific device, like Canva or WordPress, in addition to pointers, stylesheet info, and finest practices. There’s additionally a spot so that you can hyperlink to different sources as wanted.
Wrike: Full content material operations system
If you happen to handle a number of initiatives concurrently, Wrike makes it straightforward to plan and execute these plans throughout the identical platform. It’s significantly helpful for undertaking portfolio administration and tying undertaking particulars into higher-level enterprise objectives.
Though Wrike’s free plan is proscribed in comparison with different platforms, groups utilizing it are doubtless in a position to justify paying for it.
That stated, lots of its templates can be found on the free plan, together with its content material operations template.
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Not like different templates, this one’s a whole system with a number of modules that can assist you streamline operations.
To start out, you may add your group and set roles, making it clear who’s answerable for what.
There’s additionally a piece request type others can fill out once they want one thing from the content material group. It’s absolutely customizable to match your workflow and helps management how requests are added to your backlog.
Except for that, you should utilize the system to create content material briefs, distribute them, and handle approvals with big-picture knowledge a couple of clicks away.
Every person has a personalised productiveness dashboard that outlines their to-do record, necessary paperwork, and progress on owned initiatives.
Airtable: Content material monitoring and operations template
Airtable is one other nice possibility to think about when dealing with content material operations at scale.
As a robust relational database answer, it’s nice for organizing complicated content material methods that don’t match into different templates. It has a sturdy automation engine and loads of customization alternatives to show it into precisely what you want.
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From summarizing campaigns and filling your content material pipeline to monitoring workload and monitoring key metrics, this template has a little bit of all the pieces.
Not like different Airtable templates you will have seen, this one consists of pre-built interfaces with modular entry controls. As an alternative of accessing your entire base knowledge, customers can solely see and work together with the weather you need them to.
It additionally comes with content material request kinds, content material marketing campaign administration capabilities, a calendar view for big-picture operations, and AI-powered instruments that can assist you make data-driven selections.
I personally use Airtable for managing a lot of the workflows throughout my enterprise and might truthfully say it’s a greater match for individuals who wish to get their fingers soiled.
Stackby: Content material operations template
Like Airtable, Stackby is a no-code on-line spreadsheet and database answer for companies. It’s similar to Airtable in loads of methods, albeit a bit extra user-friendly for many who don’t wish to customise each single component.
The platform has greater than 500 templates for nearly each use case you may think about.
Stackby’s content material operations template is an all-in-one answer for planning, administration, and content material creation.
What’s distinctive about this template is the truth that you may sync knowledge from completely different campaigns, instruments, and process boards for high-level outcomes monitoring in a single view.
Say you’re managing content material in your weblog. In a single click on, you’ll be capable of see vital KPIs like the common time guests spend on the web page, estimated variety of guests, and precise guests when you’ve hit publish.
There’s additionally a pre-built tab for outlining and monitoring advertising and marketing targets, together with which kinds of content material you’re going to make use of to attain them.
The true-time knowledge syncing is a key element of this template, making it an ideal selection if you need that degree of element at your fingertips.
Smartsheet + Excel: Fundamental operational plan template
Smartsheet has almost a dozen content-specific templates in addition to operational planning templates that you could both use instantly inside Smartsheet or obtain for Excel.
Excel is the best way to go if you happen to don’t wish to pay for Smartsheet as there is no such thing as a free plan.
Nonetheless, you’ll be capable of simply create a high-level operational plan throughout your content material group, division, or complete enterprise with both model.
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Though this template is fairly generic, it’s straightforward to customise it and make it work for content material operations. You may as well simply adapt it to incorporate content material operations as part of a bigger operational plan.
It leaves loads of room so as to add your individual contact to match your wants. The draw back of utilizing it with Excel is that you simply’ll miss out on Smartsheet’s built-in undertaking administration instruments.
However you may nonetheless handle primary duties and initiatives in Excel if you happen to want.
SmartSuite: Advertising and marketing plan and useful resource administration template
SmartSuite is a collaborative work platform that’s versatile sufficient to assist groups maintain observe of absolutely anything. Along with having undertaking administration options, it’s also possible to use it to handle customers, bills, plans, sources, and extra.
It ought to come as no shock that SmartSuite has some helpful content material operations templates that mix many of those parts collectively.
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The advertising and marketing plans and sources template is likely one of the finest due to its clear and intuitive dashboard. It gives an at-glance-look at your most necessary info. You may as well see what’s energetic, the duties completely different groups are engaged on, what’s full, and work within the pipeline.
There are separate areas for roles, picture requests, social media account info, instruments and login knowledge, model belongings, company contacts, and extra.
Each sort of merchandise allows you to set an proprietor, connect hyperlinks and different sources, monitor the standing, and take notes.
Not solely do you get high-level stats, you additionally get all the pieces you want to handle the main points.
Asana: Excessive-level operational plan template
Asana is a extra conventional undertaking administration device, making it nice for people or companies in search of one thing less complicated with much less room for error and customization.
As an added bonus, it has top-of-the-line free plans available on the market. You’ll get limitless duties, initiatives, and messages plus the power to collaborate with as much as ten group members without charge. Each plan additionally consists of Kanban view, calendar view, and record view of all of your duties.
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Asana’s free operational plan template is nice for goal and strategic alignment. You’ll be able to take it a step additional and observe objectives, initiatives, and duties, multi function place. One of the best half is that you could join all of those parts collectively for a completely synced content material operations system.
Constructed-in kinds make it straightforward to standardize content material requests, manufacturing, and information sharing throughout your group too.
Past content material, this template consists of instruments for KPI reporting and common evaluations, making a real operational plan answer for groups that want to remain organized from the highest down.
BONUS Template (Paid): Notion content material operations for businesses
This Notion template is constructed particularly for businesses. If you happen to’re managing content material for a number of purchasers, you may simply create a brand new area for each and customise their client-specific wants from there.
Then your group can shortly confirm the particular operational necessities based mostly on which content material they’re producing content material for.
For instance, one in all your purchasers may need you to quote sources a particular manner and solely use knowledge from the previous yr. One other shopper could particularly ask you to publish three new posts on LinkedIn per week, and a 3rd shopper might not be tremendous explicit about something.
Irrespective of how huge you get or what number of purchasers you begin working with, your group can proceed counting on this template as their centralized supply of reality for any particular necessities.
You may as well use the template to plan objectives and measure KPIs to your purchasers. There’s even a spot so that you can maintain observe of upcoming conferences and handle timesheets for hours spent engaged on completely different initiatives.
Not like the opposite templates, this one isn’t free. It comes with way more options and capabilities than all the opposite templates and the $75 price ticket is well justified if that is one thing you want. This template can be often maintained, which may’t be stated about most free choices.
How to decide on the correct content material operations template
There’s loads of variation from one template to the following. Some are easy and light-weight, others are extremely customizable methods with dozens of views and tables to maintain observe of several types of objects.
Maintain the next standards in thoughts as you make your ultimate choice:
- Operations complexity: Easy content material operations can doubtless be outlined in a one or two-page template, whereas complicated flows want one thing extra superior.
- Constructed-in undertaking administration: Decide if you happen to simply wish to use a one-off template to stipulate your operations or if you wish to proceed managing content material manufacturing from the identical platform.
- Crew measurement and scalability: Some templates are high-quality for people and small groups, and others are constructed for a number of departments that collectively work on content material at a excessive quantity with loads of transferring elements.
- Consumption requests and content material briefs: Not each template comes with consumption kinds and/or undertaking briefs, each of that are good to have — particularly if you happen to often get content material requests from exterior groups or purchasers.
One of the best ways to be sure you have the correct one is to shortlist a couple of, obtain them, and check out them out. A variety of the choice comes down to private choice, so it’s a good suggestion to see them in motion earlier than selecting.
What’s the distinction between content material operations and content material technique?
Operations and technique are necessary items of creating an efficient advertising and marketing plan. Though they sound related and are intently associated, they’re not the identical factor.
A content material technique identifies big-picture objectives and plans to your content material itself. Content material operations refers to the way you’ll get the work finished. Going after natural site visitors to drive conversions could possibly be a part of your content material technique whereas operations consists of the group, instruments, and sources you’ll must make that occur.
What’s the content material operations lifecycle?
The content material operations lifecycle defines your course of for all of the content material you produce. It’s sometimes damaged down into 5 phases:
- Planning: Aligning ideas together with your total technique.
- Creation: Processes for writing, recording, designing, filming, and modifying.
- Distribution: Channels you’ll use to get your content material in entrance of the correct individuals.
- Evaluation and optimization: Monitoring key metrics and iteratively making updates.
- Archiving: How and the place you’ll retailer outdated, legacy content material.
Content material operations templates provide help to streamline and arrange enterprise processes all through all the operations lifecycle. Some could give attention to particular phases whereas others are all encompassing.
One of the best for you will depend on how detailed you wish to get, how superior your operations are proper now, and the place you wish to go from there.
How you can create a content material operations framework
A content material operations framework — additionally referred to as ContentOps — outlines official documentation for creating, managing, and distributing content material for what you are promoting. It covers all the pieces from the individuals concerned to the instruments you employ to execute your technique.
Utilizing a proper content material operations framework ensures your group is aligned and your processes are simply repeatable, regardless of who performs them.
I’ve constructed and scaled content material operations for a number of companies, and that is how I method a ContentOps framework.
Roles and duties
Step one is defining roles for each particular person concerned. place to begin is answering the next questions:
- The place are new content material concepts coming from?
- Who’s answerable for creating what kinds of content material?
- Who owns all the course of from begin to end?
- What’s the chain of command?
It’s necessary for everybody to know their roles and duties. This additionally means figuring out how content material flows via your system and what they need to or shouldn’t be doing at each step of the best way.
For instance, can a author request a customized picture from a designer? Is the particular person filming your movies answerable for modifying them and importing them to YouTube?
All of these things ought to clearly be communicated and simply accessible to your group.
Processes and workflows
There ought to be a transparent, linear path for all the pieces you produce.
An editor ought to know precisely what to do with an article as soon as they’re finished with it, for instance. They need to additionally know tips on how to edit it, together with type information necessities and different parts they should search for.
Writers ought to understand how a lot time they’ve to jot down a publish as soon as it’s been assigned.
The identical is true for whoever handles content material when it’s prepared. What occurs after it’s revealed? Does it should be added to your weekly e-mail or promoted on social media? What about content material updates? Who decides when these occur?
There are loads of completely different workflows you must clearly outline. It’s okay if you happen to miss some — if you happen to’re doing issues proper, you most likely will.
When you attain a second of uncertainty, you must doc it and make clear what your group ought to do.
Expertise stack
Your group must know what instruments you’re utilizing to supply content material and talk with one another.
For instance, your ContentOps tech stack might look one thing like this:
- Slack for inside communication.
- ClickUp for undertaking administration.
- Airtable for monitoring income.
- Google Workspace for cloud storage.
- Notion for sustaining your SOPs.
- WordPress for distributing weblog posts.
Rinse and repeat for each device you employ and anticipate your group to make use of as effectively.
Ideally, a content material operations template helps you consolidate your tech stack. Switching to a sturdy undertaking administration device may also help you handle your workflows, facilitate inside communications, and retailer paperwork in a single place.
Ensure you maintain this up to date and keep on prime of customers so that you don’t find yourself paying for a bunch of seats you by no means use.
Governance mannequin
This side of the framework is usually missed, nevertheless it’s arguably crucial — particularly for bigger organizations with a number of decision-makers.
Executives and division leaders ought to often come collectively and agree on high-level technique, your method to content material, the way you deal with discrepancies, and the way usually you evaluate all the pieces collectively.
This ensures your group doesn’t must have each piece of content material authorised. As an alternative, they’ve a set of finest practices they’re anticipated to observe.
So long as these necessities are met, execs and leaders shouldn’t be questioning micro-level selections. It’s a win-win for everybody.