Delayed timelines and procrastinated approvals are common in every industry, and they often have a profound impact on marketing. A missed milestone or lack of focus from leadership can turn a simple task into a year-long project. Below are four fixes we recommend implementing to get your message to marketing faster:

1. Consider 80% done.

   Stop striving for perfection. Perfect marketing that is never seen produces zero results. If you’ve done your research, marketing materials at 80% will have the messaging, imagery and call-to-action needed to inspire change among your target audience.

2. Appoint a project lead.

   If the team is lacking focus and nothing is getting accomplished, appoint a leader who can wrangle the troops, define the goal, assign tasks and manage the project. It is much easier for one person to “own” the project milestones, as they can check in with the right team members, supply resources when needed and stay on top of upcoming due dates. Additionally, grant the leader permission to approve. When they say the project is at 80%, it’s go time.

3. Find another way.

   Your standard process that once served you well may not work anymore. There is likely a better, faster, more efficient way to get your slow-moving project out to market. Hold a strategy session with the team where no idea is off limits. Siloed in your sector of the company, it’s hard to come up with a new way to do something. But when the entire team is taking on one task, the ideas broaden, and the possibilities are endless.

4. Block your schedule.

   In the book, The 4 Disciplines of Execution, author Chris McChesney talks about the “whirlwind” – the everyday to-dos, emails, meetings, etc. that keep us from reaching our big goals. If there is a big project that needs to be completed, big time and big energy are required. Consider blocking off large chunks of time to dedicate to finishing the project at hand. During that time, there is no email, no phone calls, no texts, no distractions. You will end your day (and the project) with a sense of true, earned accomplishment.

If your marketing projects continue to be slow moving, it may be beneficial to hire additional staff or outsource projects to a reputable marketing agency. Contact Big Buzz today to learn more.

Big Buzz is a marketing agency delivering a steady stream of move-in-ready leads to teams serving the senior living industry. For more than 15 years, Big Buzz has helped senior living marketing and sales teams nurture leads to increase occupancy, grow and scale. CEO Wendy O’Donovan Phillips is the author of the book Flourish!: The Method Used by Aging Services Organizations for the Ultimate Marketing Results, has been published in McKnight’s, has been a regular contributor to Forbes, and has been quoted in The Washington Post, ABC News and Chicago Tribune. The Big Buzz leadership team regularly lectures in front of audiences ranging from 25 to 3,000 attendees, including at Argentum and various LeadingAge chapters. Agency awards and accolades include recognition for excellence by the American Marketing Association, Gold Key Award Winner by the Business Marketing Association, HubSpot Academy Inbound Marketing Certification, and Top Advertising and Marketing Agency by Clutch.