The workflow revolution will be automated

Is complexity in advertising hindering creativity? Advertising as we know it is super creative, yet delivering a campaign can be cumbersome, with a very complex workflow commonplace. 

Compared to the simplicity of over 20 years ago, the industry is now heavily reliant on a multitude of assets, choice of platforms, and data - with an increasingly fragmented media landscape underpinning it all. This complex creative workflow all to commonly presents errors and delays, reducing campaign delivery and effectiveness.

So how do you communicate the value of processes that are simple, streamlined, well-organised and accessible? An ideal workflow allows for trackable movement of information and assets, and creates an environment in which well-identified stakeholders can communicate clearly with one another. Sadly, as valuable as a streamlined creative workflow is, it is still rare.

Growing Pains, a report we at Peach produced in partnership with CoLab Media Consulting in 2021 revealed the variety of pain points plaguing media, creative, and production agencies today. We’ll look at them in more detail below - they include:

• Incomplete asset requirements 
• Tracking status of creative asset delivery 
• Finding up-to-date, accurate file specifications
• Assets delivered by multiple channels
• Number of campaign assets 
• Technical quality of assets
   

Can you measure your pain points?

The results of our survey paint a picture of convoluted workflows that leave staff fighting multiple fires simultaneously. For example, 64% of respondents told us that incomplete asset requirements were causing them trouble. Virtually half (49%) noted that finding up-to-date and accurate file specifications was a cause for concern. And precisely one third faced problems caused by manually moving data between systems.

What’s noteworthy about these results is how their implications spill over into different parts of the modern industry workflow. Issues with the technical quality of assets (cited by 38%), for example, will often spark a domino effect which causes assets to be rejected by media owners (identified by 31%). Ultimately, that confusion is likely to result in a loss of media space due to delay (37.7%), resulting in pain all across the board. At that point, the damage can really spiral. Delayed campaigns can result in reputational and economic blows to agencies, and diminished revenues for publishers who are left with the task of reallocating the lost premium ad space - often at the last minute.

This industry has an interconnected ecosystem - any strains at any point along the creative workflow process will easily and often spiral into further pain later down the line. 

More content, more problems

Choosing to muddle along with the present status quo is likely to cause even more problems. One clear take away from our research was that respondents working on larger campaigns with a greater number of destinations were more likely to encounter more problems, frequently. 

This is particularly troubling given that the number of streaming services - and the number of ad-supported membership options within those streaming services - has been increasing significantly and is set to continue doing so. That’s on top of OTT video offerings and video banners, two destinations which we’ll likely see expanding as high-speed internet becomes ever-more accessible. 

In short, that means more destinations cropping up day-by-day and, along with them, more workflow-related pain points to contend with. It’s becoming increasingly obvious that something needs to be done. 

Is automation of the creative workflow the solution?

Now for the good news. While the problems marketers face are numerous and diverse, their solutions needn’t be - the time to reach for a solution is now. Another finding from our survey was an overwhelming agreement (77%) that current processes are more complex than they need to be. But, even more universally, 94% agreed that “automation which reduces complexity would be a significant benefit”. And, sometimes, the right answer is the most obvious one. 

Consider how automation could impact the pain points we’ve identified. At a stroke, asset requirements would no longer be a headache for marketers freed from the task of manually moving files and data between systems. And ensuring specs remain accurate and up-to-date would also be a breeze with automated checks and updates. 

Talk before automating

Don’t forget staff morale - an issue acknowledged by 30% of our respondents. Additional time to focus on higher-level and higher-value tasks would be an enormous help. Talking to staff is an essential first step too, as it is vital to get a read on which tasks are the most tedious or causing the most issues directly from those who complete them on a daily basis. 

Perhaps best of all, an automated and fully-functioning workflow would not only solve these pre-launch pain points. It would also allow for greater visibility into the entire digital advertising supply chain, allowing for more transparency and more insight. Our understanding of campaign performance on a macro level would be transformed by the knowledge that all elements of a campaign were delivered correctly and on-time. 

With such an evident solution available, it’s easy to imagine that the status quo isn’t going to hold for much longer. Given the pace of media fragmentation, there’s a fair chance that the workflow revolution will not be televised - but it will be automated.