You’re a social media master and have lots of things to do.
Create posts for different social media platforms. Come up with a strategy fit for your company. Get feedback and approval from your stakeholders.
Just thinking about it makes you want to pack your bags. And go on a vacay in The Bahamas. Anything but go through that again.
Because you know how it’ll go.
You chase the people involved to ask for their opinion. They’re never around when you need them. And you’re on a tight deadline!
Even if you find them on time, another problem arises. You have to deal with different opinions.
Great. 🙄 Now, you have to change your post multiple times.
The cherry on top? When you finally post it, you see a spelling mistake.
But don’t pack your bags just yet.
There’s a better way to do all this: through a social media approval process. It makes your life easier, your workflow more efficient. Enables you to collaborate better with team members.
Buuuut, we don’t want to spoil the article for you.
Keep reading to find out how a social media approval process helps you. 😉
Table of contents
What is a social media approval process?
What is an example of a social media content approval process?
What are the benefits of an approval process for social media?
What are the different types of social media approval workflows?
How do you build a social media approval process?
When is social media content approval necessary?
Best practices to follow during the approval process
3 top social media approval tools to use
What is a social media approval process?
A social media approval process is a series of steps involving multiple team members. When it’s done, it means you can publish a social media post.
Basically, you get the green light to post a certain piece on the brand’s social media channels. Like when you were a kid. And got your mom’s approval to hang your drawing on the fridge.
The social media process gives you confidence. It tells you that, “Yes, you can go ahead and post this. I like it.”
But it doesn’t work without your marketing team.
The workflow involves multiple people, including content creators, editors, and managers. All have to gather together to review and approve your post.
But what if you’re a social media marketing agency? Well, then, you also add external stakeholders and clients into the equation.
The social media approval flow documents every step.
Think about who gives the final approval. Who does what. Or when someone made a change.
All mixed together to make sure your post relays your brand’s message in the right voice.
To really drive the point and make the concept clearer to visualize (as well as highlight the benefit of having a streamlined approval process), let’s look at an example.
What is an example of a social media content approval process?
Okay! What does a social media content approval process look like, you ask?
It’s nothing scary, promise.
Think of it like a monster in a Scooby-Doo episode. There’s always something less scary behind the mask.
Plus, you don’t need a talking dog to solve this mystery. We can show you a step-by-step example right now!
- First, create your content. Think of which social media platforms you’re going to post on. And write compelling copy.
- Then, involve a graphic designer in the process to add some enticing visuals. (Psst, here are great tools for design and artwork approval.)
- When finished, send it to your manager for review.
- They give you feedback. You implement it. Send it back for final approval.
- Is it perfect? Then, send it to your clients or stakeholders (if applicable). Wait for their feedback. Implement the changes.
- Schedule the post in your social media content calendar.
- Finally, post it! 🎉
See? It’s not so scary. Quite the opposite. You should embrace it.
Read on to discover why.
What are the benefits of an approval process for social media?
Oh, there are plenty of reasons to invest in a social media content approval workflow.
Here’s why you should count it as your new bestie:
Reason #1: Brand consistency
Ever been on a brand’s Facebook page? And they’re kinda boring?
But surprise, surprise! The same company is tons of fun on Instagram. You’d be confused, right?
A social media approval process makes sure that doesn’t happen. It’s about gathering the expertise of your whole social media team. And ensuring your content is always on-brand.
This means you get your brand’s voice and style right.
Reason #2: Compliance
Social media might be fun but it has laws. Yep. And most of them relate to the use of personal data.
Think of GDPR and how it affects Facebook. Companies that post ads on the social media platform must comply with the GDPR rules, such as ensuring the truthfulness of the claims or what you do with the user data you gather.
For instance, let’s take a heavily regulated industry like healthcare, with strict rules when it comes to promoting medication.
You have an allergy medication you want to sell; you first need to have a legal team that reviews potential side effects, usage instructions, and all the necessary disclaimers before you even talk about it.
Failing to do so can risk non-compliance fines and other legal issues, especially if someone has an adverse reaction to the medication.
A social media approval process makes sure your piece of content complies with the guidelines.
Reason #3: Improved quality. You know the saying, “The more, the merrier.” It’s a nice way to describe a social media approval flow. Why?
Putting your heads together means you can draft more high-quality content. People with expertise and knowledge can review the content. And ensure there are no typos, errors, or mixed messages.
Reason #4: Team collaboration. A social media strategy helps your team work better together. How? By letting everyone involved know what’s up.
After all, it requires multiple people from different departments and stakeholders to give approval, which fosters a sense of responsibility among team members.
For example, you want to launch a fitness app. This requires it to go through various departments, such as marketing, legal, and customer support. The content team creates engaging copies, the legal team makes sure the tool is compliant with local regulations, and the customer support team makes sure to answer user questions and pain points.
Plus, it streamlines the approval and review of any content. And makes the process a thousand times easier.
Overall, a social media approval flow makes the content creation process less time-consuming. Instead, it’s a lot faster.
But, like ice cream, a social media approval flow has different flavors.
What are the different types of social media approval workflows?
Choosing ice cream flavors depends on your taste. 🍦
You’d always go for chocolate. Yum! But you frown when you see caramel in the shop’s window. Yuck!
Unlike ice cream, the type of social media approval workflow doesn’t rely on your personal taste.
It depends on factors such as the size of your organization. Or on what your client wants and needs.
Here’s a list of the different types of social media approval workflows:
- Optional approval: This one is not mandatory.
Maybe your stakeholders don’t have time to leave their thoughts. Or they won’t do it on time. It happens. We’re all busy. What this means, basically, is that you publish a post with or without approval, especially if it’s not a time sensitive post.
So, you’re free to publish without their approval. It might sound weird, but it’s great for small businesses that don’t want to build an entire creative workflow from scratch. This gives them control over their social media presence, which helps them build trust and credibility.
It’s a flexible option that gives you more space to breathe, but it can lead to inconsistencies and errors.
- Required approval: If optional approval is the relaxed type of parent, required is the stricter sort.
Here, every post needs approval by someone authorized to do so before going live. If that person doesn’t give the A-OK, then you don’t publish the content. Period.
This process helps maintain brand consistency across all platforms, compliance with regulations, and content quality. While it sounds nice, it can slow down your posting schedule, especially if someone fails to review the post on time.
- Multi-phase approval: It’s all about layers with this one.
A multi-stage approval process means the post must go through several departments or levels of authorization before publishing, including content creation, editing, etc.
At every stage, you have a stakeholder who gives their approval. For instance, you need approval from the marketing team, then from your legal team and finally, from your superiors.
It’s tedious and long, yes. But it’s often used by large companies that want to ensure the content is high-quality and meets all standards.
- Parallel approval: Don’t waste time. Make your different teams work together on the project simultaneously.
What this process means is that multiple reviewers can give feedback on a piece of content simultaneously, independently of each other. It’s a process that focuses on speed, giving you the flexibility and efficiency you need to reduce bottlenecks and adapt to changing demands.
Once everyone gives their approval, you can start scheduling content. And publish it on different social media accounts!
So, you know what a social media approval process is and its benefits. You want one now. You know your goals and your needs, but how do you build your own approval process?
Let’s go through the process step-by-step in the next section.
How do you build a social media approval process?
Building a social media approval process is like Play-Doh.
You have a red blob in your hand. You need to mold it until it’s ready for you to create a wonky figurine.
So, you start by putting differently-colored pieces together. And knead it till you bring your idea to life.
A social media approval process is similar. Let’s look at the steps:
Step #1: Create your social media documentation
Do you love lists? ‘Cause we sure do! So, grab your pencil and paper. It’s time to make your own list!
First of all, think of the steps each piece of content needs to go through.
Your approval process can include steps like brainstorming, creation, review, approval, and publishing. But not all flows work in the same way.
Add steps you consider necessary for your process to run smoothly.
Then, think of the resources your marketing strategy needs. Like:
- Client names — Who should you speak to for approval? Think of who’s in charge to make the process easier to handle.
- Scope — How big is your project? How many deliverables do you have to send to the client per month? These aspects help you figure out how much time you have to do it all.
- Deadlines — Of course, you can’t forget about deadlines. Add a time frame for each step. And stick to them: it will build trust.
- Platforms—Where do you want to publish your social posts? The format might look different on Reddit than on TikTok.
There is plenty of stuff to think about that we didn’t include.
Things like the type of social media approval. Or who your target audience is. It’s important to add them all. And make sure they fit your brand’s needs.
Step #2: Assign roles and responsibilities
Every soccer team has members with different roles.
You have the coach, which leads the team to success. The forwards and midfielders that create opportunities to score. And lastly, the goalkeeper that makes sure nothing slips through the cracks.
A social media approval process must be like a soccer team. Each team member has a role.
So, the second step is to assign roles and responsibilities.
How your family looks depends on what you want to achieve. However, it’s important to think:
- Who creates the content (writers, designers, video editors, etc.)
- Who edits the content for quality and consistency
- Who approves and publishes the content on social channels (social media managers, etc.)
Keep in mind: this is just an example. Your approval workflow can look totally different.
Step #3: Set style guidelines
You know what a style guide is?
The yin to your yang. The fries to your burger. The spice to your nice.
It’s a thing you can’t live without.
And it greatly helps your quest for crafting an excellent social media approval process.
Style guides are documents outlining how your social media content should look and sound, including the tone of voice, writing style, branding colors, hashtag use, etc.
The main advantage is that it maintains consistency.
Whenever someone publishes content in your name, they post something in tune with your brand’s style. Is your tone playful or more serious? Do you use a certain font?
These things matter. A style guide ensures all involved in the workflow meet brand standards and guidelines.
Making their lives waaaay easier. 😉
Step #4: Decide how you’ll give feedback
Look, we understand.
No one likes criticism, especially on their creations. You’re proud of what you made. And you should be!
But, as much as you’d like to keep that idea, someone else can barge in. And ruin everything. Hearing that can be disheartening.
We feel you. Sometimes, feedback has us feeling like this…
…but we push through. It helps us create amazing content that brings many people together.
So, think positively! You can’t run away from it. Not if you want to create a good social media approval process.
In this phase, think about how you’ll share your doc with your peers. Will you use a tool? Send them emails? Or maybe talk with them in person?
We’ve got a better idea. Try MarkUp.io!
It’s a collaboration tool that helps you gather feedback in a single place.
Here’s how to use it:
First, sign up for your account by clicking the button in the top right corner of the homepage.
Then, upload your content. Click on the ‘Upload’ button to get started.
Lastly, open your doc.
In this workspace, you can add comments wherever you like. Invite your stakeholders. And get to commenting!
Sounds easy? It is easy! Sign up today for a free 30-day trial.
Step #5: Set deadlines
Deadlines. No one likes them. But everyone needs them.
And a social media approval workflow definitely needs a timeline. Your team members should know how much time they have to do their part.
So, think about how long your team members take to do certain tasks.
For example, writers need to make six posts by the end of the month. Then, editors must review the latest batch by the 15th of every month. Until the month ends, the person responsible for publishing must post them regularly.
You should think about these aspects before starting. You know your team best. And their work style.
Setting a deadline will prevent bottlenecks. And last-minute panic.
Tip: Set a regular schedule and deadlines. It helps people deliver content on time. However, keep in mind that social trends appear every day. Be ready to tackle them whenever necessary.
Step #6: Review and revise
Everything looks great on paper. But sometimes, the reality is different.
Think of the social media approval process like a custom dress.
You see it, you like it. But it doesn’t fit. So, you must take it to the tailor. And make adjustments. Then try it out again.
You should revise your workflow as needed. Give it a test. See how your team reacts to it. If they like it. Or if it’s just cumbersome and time-consuming.
Discuss any snags. Listen to their feedback. And find ways to improve it.
If it doesn’t work, take a new approach. A social media approval flow should simplify your team’s work, not make their lives harder.
***
Awesome!
You know all there is about building a social media approval workflow. But when exactly do you need it?
You asked; we have the answer.
When is social media content approval necessary?
If you’re wondering when you need social media content approval, ponder no longer.
You use it to get:
- Approval from clients: Here, the client is king. They have the final say in everything you create.
A person from your social media agency usually interacts with the client. They invite them to collaborate directly on a social media management tool.
Or have it sent to the client’s social media specialists for approval.
- Approval from legal: This is where things get serious.
It applies to industries like finance, banking, etc. with strict regulations.
So, most content needs to be compliant with legal requirements. To ensure regulatory compliance, you need to conduct business through secure channels.
- Approval from managers: Managers often give the final approval for most projects. Especially in-house. They speak with your boss’s voice and make sure all content fits the tone of the brand.
Plus, they can approve each post individually. Or in batches. This depends highly on the volume of work. Or the urgency of the post.
- Approval from external partners: Your company also brought external consultants to the firm at some point.
These people offer specialized advice for social media campaigns that require niche expertise.
What do these consultants do? Check that your post meets specific business goals. Or the industry standards.
Want to make sure your social media approval flow is as smooth as butter?
Let’s get cooking!
Best practices to follow during the approval process
You know how we add salt to soup to bring out the flavor?
Apply this to your social media approval process! Of course, it won’t make it taste better. And it’s not salt. Just some best practices.
But it’ll make the flow infinitely easier to handle!
Here’s what you need:
Always check off resolved comments
Don’t you love it when you make a list of tasks? And start solving them one by one?
With a swoosh of a pen — or click of a button — you simply…
Gosh, it’s so satisfying to see that box ticked! Doesn’t it give you a sense of accomplishment?
Then, we have some good news for you.
Because our first best practice involves ticking off comments as you resolve them.
Doing this gives you a clear picture of what you still need to do. And helps you keep track of feedback.
Plus, it prevents you from forgetting something vital. No more setbacks!
If you don’t do this, you’ll have a bunch of confusing comments from your stakeholders. And you may get lost in the maze of feedback.
Keep all feedback in one place
How do you collect feedback? Wait, don’t answer. Let us imagine it for you:
You sent your post for review via email. Cool. Your client responds promptly in the same thread. So, you start working on it.
But then, another person contacts you on Slack. And leaves some comments, too.
They might conflict a li’l with the client’s feedback. But you shrug. Maybe they talked with each other about it. You apply that person’s feedback.
Later, you find out that your team works on another platform. And there’s some feedback on there, too!
You:
“What is even real anymore?!” you cry out.
What’s real is the feedback you collect with MarkUp.io. 😉
Hi, it’s us again! Here to save you headaches. And make your life easier.
We keep feedback in one single Workspace. You have all your stakeholders’ comments on the same doc. And you can even check them off! But wait — that’s not all!
MarkUp’s latest features include statuses, sign-offs, and pausing comments that allow you to leave confusion behind and embrace clarity. AKA, you make communication more streamlined.
Sounds like a good deal? Sign up today!
Feedback must be as descriptive as possible
You created a social media post you adore. It has pizzazz. It has humor. Nice visuals.
*chef’s kiss*
But then you get feedback like…
I like it, but it’s not there yet…
It needs something. I don’t know what.
Not what I had in mind. I made you a sketch.
General and vague feedback makes you hate your life. It’s simply the worst type of feedback you can get.
Why? Because it gives you nothing to work with. How are you supposed to know what it needs? In your eyes, it’s perfect.
Make sure your reviewers give descriptive and to-the-point feedback.
Take control of your feedback loop by:
- Implementing a creative brief.
- Follow up with questions.
- Jump on a call.
***
We talked about steps, best practices, all that jazz. But you can’t pull a social media approval flow out of thin air!
You need a magic wand. 🪄 A top hat. And probably a rabbit.
3 top social media approval tools to use
A social media manager is like a magician.
They use words, actions, and visuals to enchant the audience. The goal is to elicit a collective ‘Oooo!’ And make them crave more.
But magicians are nothing without their tools.
So, let’s talk about the wand (MarkUp.io), the top hat (Asana), and the rabbit (Hootsuite).
MarkUp.io
A magician needs a wand to perform tricks. In social media terms, that’s MarkUp.io.
MarkUp.io is the perfect place to collect your feedback. Just say the magic word (“Pleeease!”).
And ‘poof!’ You’ll be able to create a social media approval flow that’s easy, simple, and convenient. All you must do is upload your files (PDFs, images, videos, etc.) into the platform. And invite users to leave their comments.
The feedback process is more streamlined. And you’ll get to posting in no time!
Guess what? MarkUp introduced new features in its arsenal which can help you improve communication even further and optimize team collaboration.
With status updates and sign-offs, you can clearly indicate your project’s status, while pausing comments help with controlling the flow of feedback by addressing comments before new ones are added.
Plus, MarkUp.io has different pricing plans that are affordable for everyone.
Asana
A magician without a top hat? Preposterous! It’s their signature look.
And you can’t be a social media wizard without Asana. You’ve surely heard of it before. But let’s talk a bit about it.
Asana is a work-management solution that helps your team organize their projects.
It improves the efficiency of your organization. So your team can deliver quality work faster.
Why is it great for social media? Because you can build workflows, no matter how complex. Without coding!
Hootsuite
Have you ever heard a rabbit hooting like an owl? Probably not.
But you’ve never seen a magician pull an owl from their top hat either. Hey, there’s an idea!
Anyway, the rabbit, in this case, is Hootsuite.
Hootsuite is a good social media management platform that’s great for any social media needs.
It handles every mundane task on a daily basis.
Curating content. Scheduling and publishing. Measuring ROI through social media analytics. Even helping you craft social media approval workflows.
With Hootsuite, you’ll just wing it.
***
In the words of Porky Pig, “That’s all, folks!”
Now over to you
How do you create the best social media approval workflow? The only right answer is MarkUp.io!
We talked a lot about it. By now, you know what MarkUp.io is capable of.
It’s simply a better way to cut through the noise. And get clear feedback that won’t give you headaches. Or cost you sleep.
Let’s shake on it. You won’t regret it.
