DIGITAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT. WHO TAKES THE KICK-OFF?

Working in both sides of a marketing consultancy, for a 360-degree communication agency in Europe and then for corporates and NGOs in Asia, provided me with useful insights on how to effectively design a project flow in the space of digital content.

Early in my career, as I approached a digital project, let’s say a new website, as their lead, I would request the agency team to design the content architecture of the upcoming platform after client’s briefing. Only when the draft of the website map and draft of content architecture was ready, I would seek the client’s feedback. It worked, almost all the time with not too many back and forth.

Now with some years of experience as a project manager and having experienced first-hand both agency and corporate’s perspectives, I have realized that the most effective and cost saving approach is actually the other way around. Let the client start the content architecture.

Both flows work; however, there are quite a few reasons why the latter works better. Let me share two among many.

First, the effort of conceptualising and structuring the content makes the client clarify communication goals of the website as well as business targets of the project. Having more clarity on Key Performance Indicators ensure the consulting team delivers a better performing tool.

Secondly the psychological benefit of team building comes into the picture. Launching a website deals with creativity and technology but it’s essentially a marketing project. And it’s not a secret that agency folks struggle to be seen as marketing consultants working alongside the company, by the employees. More often agency folks are still seen as nerds, creative heads, tech savvy consultants, if they are lucky. So, making the corporate side of the project team kick it off, makes it clear that both the agency and the company strive for the same - a performing communication tool designed and developed to achieve marketing targets set by the company. As simple as that.

And what about those company teams who seek for suppliers’ expertise in order to be less hands-on as they can in content production? Perfectly reasonable question. Blunt answer - those company teams lie to themselves and those professionals who have strong ethics should make it clear from the beginning that in marketing and communication industry there is (or better, should be) only room for consultants and not for suppliers. It seems meaningful to me that suppliers are commonly referred as “vendors” in some Asian countries. So, how much is it for a website with some whipped cream on it?