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As marketers, we all have a lot on our plates. If only there was a way to be more efficient and effective. A recent article makes the case for using editorial operations as a guideline for improving marketing operations.

Here are seven tips from the editorial world to guide marketing teams:

• Learning on the job. Because of the nature of the job, editorial teams rely on strong feedback loops. After an editorial-produced piece is released, strong teams will work together to determine what did and didn’t work and how to improve in the future. While marketing teams certainly have digital dashboards and other tools to obtain feedback, the intuition inherent in editorial teams can be a vital skill for making the most of feedback from marketing tools.
• The ability to let go. There’s a saying in the editorial world: “Get it right and get it away.” How many times have you seen a seemingly endless circle of reviews before releasing a new marketing piece? If it’s taking forever and a day to get something right, perhaps it wasn’t ever going to be right in the first place. Another component of this tip is having the right content people in place and getting out of their way.
• Respect for the deadline. In digital, we often have a bad habit of allowing deadlines to become flexible. Sometimes it’s for good reason, but more often, we just didn’t stay on top of things. In editorial, deadlines are sacrosanct. And let’s face it: there’s nothing like a hard deadline to help you get your priorities in order, make decisions and focus on the job at hand.
• Endless ideation. Brainstorming is a constant for editorial teams. Because they get a lot of practice, these teams develop a sense of which ideas will work best for a given project or goal. And these teams tend to be very democratic – they want what works, not what the senior member of the team thinks will work.
• Logistical pragmatism. Editorial teams recognize that the impossible is not going to happen, so they go with ideas that are workable and affordable. These teams develop workable sign-off processes and approval responsibilities that are not dependent on a single person.
• A ruthless streak. Editors go with the strongest content or the most current. Just because something has been completed does not mean it should be used if there is something better available.
• Courage. Editors often have to show their mettle when making quick decisions about timely and relevant content. Not everyone will always agree with editorial decisions. Yet, these decisions must be made.