Organization Tips for Digital Marketers

There are dozens of qualities that a digital marketer must have to be successful. Integrity, excellent leadership qualities, communication skills, transparency, and professionalism are among the most important. The top skill that any digital marketer must have, of course, is organization. This is the foundation of your entire position no matter what role you play on your team. Whether you’re content creation, PPC, SEO, or social media, it’s important to make sure that you find ways to remain organized, otherwise, it will be easy to fall behind on your day to day tasks. Follow these organization tips for digital marketers to make sure that you’re ahead in the ever-changing digital sphere.

1. Keep a Checklist or Notebook of Weekly Tasks

While you rely on technology throughout your day to day tasks it’s important to take the time to write out a checklist of your weekly or daily tasks. Your devices can be distracting. Especially because, as a digital marketer, you rely so heavily on tools like apps and computers to send and receive communication. Often times, it’s hard to stay on top of your daily tasks if you’re likely to be interrupted by a text, an email, or some other notification. If you take your to-do list offline, you’ll find that you’ll be able to focus more on organizing and achieving your goals.

With a wall or desk calendar, planner, or notebook, you’ll find you can stick to your day to day checklist more easily. You will also be able to stave off information overload. Writing lists helps you focus your mind and schedule your day by priority. Your workload can be daunting, but making note of everything that you need to finish and achieve (and updating it once you’ve finished a task) can actually boost your brainpower and increase productivity.

2. Keep Your Desk Clear

You know the saying, a clean desk is a happy desk. Not only will your space look more aesthetically pleasing, but you’ll know where everything is. Get rid of things that are non-essentials. Clutter can become a major distraction if it gets out of hand and the more functional your workspace is, the more productive you’ll be. Find a place for paperwork – create incoming and outgoing filing systems to stay on top of tasks. Once your projects are complete, go through your file to get rid of anything that isn’t necessary to keep.

Additionally, keeping your desk organized can also help to calm your mind. Office clutter directly affects productivity and motivation which means that when you’re stressed about the state of your desk, you can’t focus on the work in front of you. Take some time at the end of each day to clean off your desk and get prepared for the next day.

Organize Your File Manager

Your email is a workstation of its own. Just as you would keep your desk clean and organized, it’s also important to file your emails and electronic files as well. Create folders within your email and filter your inbox accordingly. Apply the one-touch method to answer emails or file them away for when you have more time. Find a method that works for you and stick with it to stay up to date on your online communication.
Find a numbering convention or sortation method that works for you and organize your tasks by folder and date created or date due. For social media, file things by client and subfolders dedicated to the month your schedule will be posted.

3. Create Agendas and Recaps

Never come unprepared to a meeting again by taking copious notes before and after. Agendas keep you on track and make sure that you touch on every topic that you’re looking to discuss. If you want your meeting to be productive, you should come in with a detailed, clearly defined plan of action that has been shared with your colleagues in advance. Before client meetings, schedule about thirty minutes to an hour to go over your action-item list with each member of the team to make sure that everyone is on the same page.

Additionally, make sure that you take meeting notes during the meeting. You should be taking your own, but often times people designate someone specific to make notes. If you find yourself without anything, take some time after the meeting to note major points. When will you follow up or speak next? What are your goals moving forward? Which problems were solved or raised throughout the meeting? What tasks were assigned and who will be taking the lead on making sure they are completed?

4. Make Sure to Take Breaks

Taking breaks makes you far more productive. It helps you manage stress and time. Most Americans believe that taking breaks throughout your work shift will limit the amount of work that you get done. This isn’t true. That 30-minute lunch break will keep you sane and organized and taking a moment to daydream allows you to open your mind and get rid of any workday distractions.

5. Be Realistic

This is the most important of these organization tips for digital marketers: be realistic. It’s easy to get ahead of yourself when you’re really excited about a project. It’s also easy to overestimate results and set unrealistic deadlines. Use prior experience to set guidelines that make sense for your team and yourself. If you have 7 blogs to get done by the end of the week, pace yourself and schedule one a day. In the event that you get more than that done, that’s great! If not, you’ve planned accordingly and made time for any other thing that may pop up. Because digital marketing is such a fast-paced industry it’s important to leave room in your daily schedule for last minute projects that may come up here and there.

In order to keep a level head and strong work ethic, it’s important to remain organized. This will help you keep calm when last minute changes and adjustments come down the pipeline. Digital marketing is a fast-paced industry that is always growing. By following these five organization tips for digital marketing, you’ll be ahead of the curve when things get stressful. Are you an aspiring digital marketer? Take a look at our career page to see where you fit at Colossus Media Group.