Summer is coming... Now is the time when all the hard work your marketing team has done throughout the year rewards themselves with some much-deserved time off. There is nothing wrong with taking a vacation, in fact, American workers don't actually take enough time off when compared to global standards. However, marketing is an industry that lives and breathes moment to moment, so if your marketing department is going to be short-staffed, then proper precautions need to be taken beforehand. Here are four things you should do before anyone leaves for vacation so that your marketing isn’t left to melt in the heat:
1. Schedule postings in advance
If you are strategic about the content that you publish including blogs, social media posts, newsletters, and all of the above, then you probably already have some sort of marketing schedule or calendar in place. If not, now is the time to do so. The benefit of having a blog editorial calendar or a social media calendar is to strategically plan out what kind of content you’re posting, as well as when and where you’re posting it. Not only does keeping active and updated content calendars help you stay organized, but also allows you to plan ahead so that you don’t have to worry about your content marketing falling off the wagon when you’re busy focusing on other areas of your business. There are tons of marketing apps and free software tools that allow you to schedule tweets, blog posts, and newsletters in advance so that you’re keeping your audience engaged even when you’re logged off somewhere on a beach with your toes in the sand.
2. Have a backup for your relevant marketing accounts
Not only are you scheduling marketing content in advance, you still need to ensure someone is aware of what is being posted and how to make changes. Not having someone in place that can go edit or remove postings can really leave a company vulnerable. Before leaving on vacation, all of the account passwords and links should be written down somewhere accessible and given to someone in the office who has the capacity and know-how to take care of these tasks while you are out. (We use a service called LastPass which keeps passwords secure and available for others in our organization.) This goes for any other automated strategies that your business uses to keep the ball rolling; make sure someone is there to get it going again if it stops.
3. Delegate tasks to team members
One of the most important things to manage before leaving for vacation is delegating who is doing what while you are out. For instance, the person that has access to the accounts should be made aware of any and all duties they need to handle while they are filling-in. This person should be a senior level employee because if there is a moment where an executive decision needs to be made, lower level employees typically won't be able to make them. Delegating these tasks to someone that has an important role can save time and cut through the fog of not knowing what to do.
4. Make sure to log off
Turn off your email notifications, leave your laptop at home, do whatever you have to do to enjoy your time off. As long as you prepare and delegate everything that needs to get done while you’re out, take your precious days off as time to breathe, relax, and truly remove yourself from work. Unless your employees are calling you non-stop with an emergency situation, disconnect yourself from work and reconnect with your friends, family, or yourself. Rest assured knowing you left your business in good hands and it will be there when you get back, ready for your refreshed outlook and ideas!
Marketing is something very few businesses can afford to neglect, so be sure to follow these steps in order to enjoy your time off and have trust in your team that they will keep processes and projects running smoothly. If you would like some help on how to get a solid marketing team in place or learn about some tools that will help you automate some of these tasks, please contact us!
Work Habits & Productivity
Jay, the CEO of StringCan, oversees strategy and vision, building culture that makes going into work something he looks forward to, recruiting additional awesome team members to help exceed clients goals, leading the team and allocating where StringCan invests time and money.
.webp)
