If working from home doesn’t look like this, you’re doing it wrong!
In all seriousness though, if you want to be like this guy ☝️, you should consider automating your tedious, repetitive tasks.
Are you in?
If you answered YES, here’s what you need to do:
- Read our guide on workflow management software.
- Choose a solution and automate your workflow.
- Sit back and enjoy your free time.
The faster you get through this post, the sooner you can take your iced coffee outside while your workflow is taken care of what can only be described as magic ✨
Let’s see what workflow management is all about.
Disclaimer: The information below is accurate as of September 14, 2022.
Table of Contents
- What is workflow management software?
- Best workflow management software tools, compared
- Tool #1: MarkUp.io
- Tool #2: Kissflow
- Tool #3: Monday.com
- Tool #4: Process Street
- Tool #5: Backlog
- Tool #6: ClickUp
- Tool #7: Hive
- Tool #8: ProofHub
- Tool #9: Nintex
- Tool #10: Fluix
- Tool #11: Smartsheet
- Tool #12: Airtable
- Tool #13: Scoro
- Tool #14: Asana
- Tool #15: Miro
What is workflow management software?
Workflow management software is a digital tool that helps businesses standardize the breakdown of projects into logically sequenced tasks. Simply put, workflow management software enables teams to replicate tasks for each new project in the production pipeline.
Let’s say your job is to make breakfast fruit bowls each morning. For this activity, your workflow always looks something like this:
- Wash the fruit
- Peel the fruit
- Cut the fruit
- Put the cut-up fruit into a bowl
Each morning, you follow the same tried-and-true strategy to make your fruit bowls efficiently. One day, your job changes to making salads. That doesn’t intimidate you! You already know you don’t have to worry about how to order your tasks to successfully complete the new project — you can apply your existing workflow for making breakfast fruit bowls to your new project.
Even though workflows are not this simplistic in a business setting, the idea is the same: workflows need to be reusable templates that can be applied across similar projects.
Standardized workflows automate business processes and minimize some of the confusion that comes with new projects as they offer team members a clear overview of their roles, responsibilities, due dates, and reporting hierarchy.
The bottom line here is that workflow management software makes repetitive tasks easier to coordinate. That’s why workflow automation software solutions are ideal for teams that have to complete similar projects on a daily basis. These professions include:
- Marketing agencies
- Content creators
- Designers
- Creative agencies
- Advertisers
- Content writers and copywriters
- Web devs
Chances are that people in these positions already rely on project management software for task management. So why the need for an additional collaboration tool?
Project management software vs. workflow management software
Creative professionals can certainly use project management (PM) software. However, the PM app they’re using should feature automated workflows for smooth task management.
You see, the difference between PM and workflow management is right in the name:
- Project: The PMBOK® Guide—Fourth edition defines a project as “a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique project service or result.”
- Workflow: The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines a workflow as “the sequence of steps involved in moving from the beginning to the end of a working process.”
Basically, each project requires a workflow. But the same workflow can’t be used for multiple unique projects.
Therefore, workflow automation is a viable option for teams whose daily workload involves the same types of projects, such as:
- Content writers crafting search engine-optimized blog posts
- Digital marketers who specialize in Facebook ads
- Designers creating graphics for websites
Why should creative teams use a workflow management tool?
Even though many projects will follow the same process, most have different requirements.
However, all projects typically need to undergo specific business processes before they are approved.
For instance, for designers and content writers, deliverables always go through:
- Internal review
- Proofing
- Client review
- Approval and sign-off
How can automation help with this? An automated creative workflow can look like this:
- A designer completes a task and submits the deliverables for review via the team’s workflow platform
- The workflow platform automatically notifies the designated reviewer, who then requests edits
- The designer is notified that their work requires iterations
- The designer implements the feedback and submits the task for review again
- This time, the deliverable is approved and the task is marked as done
- The reviewer forwards the final draft to the client for their review and approval
These repeatable processes are part of a team’s standardized workflow. It makes sense, then, that a workflow management solution can be programmed to automatically create standalone tasks for each project.
Plus, workflow management software allows creatives to set up triggers and actions for different situations (i.e., notifying a reviewer when a task has been submitted for review).
So, automating your creative workflows helps by:
- Bringing clarity and promoting transparency. Standardized workflows take the guesswork out of project planning and task management. Every team member knows what their role is, what’s expected of them, how their work impacts others, etc.
- Saving time. Workflow automation helps team leaders speed up the process of adding new projects to the pipeline with templates, automatically filling in fields, etc.
- Boosting productivity. With all that manual work eliminated, professionals have more time to focus on value-added tasks (i.e., instead of manually copying and pasting the task sequencing for each project, you can respond to emails, have a meeting with a co-worker or client, etc.).
What does a good workflow management system offer creative teams?
In theory, any workflow management system should enable businesses with repetitive tasks to enjoy the benefits of workflow automation.
In practice, creative teams need specific workflow management features to ensure smooth team collaboration, avoid silos, and minimize bottlenecks.
For example, a team of designers needs a workflow management tool that supports:
- Custom workflows: Adapting workflow templates to any creative project no matter how complex the project scope is.
- Proofing: Submitting designs for proofreading and internal reviews without leaving the workflow management platform.
- Annotation tools: Eliminating email feedback loops by allowing reviewers and other stakeholders to add concise and contextual feedback right on the project files.
- Integrations with popular design tools: Streamlining file sharing with coworkers.
The same goes for the rest of the creatives: they need functionalities that are uniquely suited to their jobs.
That’s the main reason it can get so difficult to choose the right workflow management software for a creative team.
But don’t get discouraged!
We made it our mission to help you find the right workflow tool for your unique creative needs. 😉
Best workflow management software tools, compared
We looked at 15 of the best workflow management solutions and compared them so you can make an informed decision without hours of research.
Here’s an overview of our findings.
Have a coffee instead of getting stuck in an infinite loop of software reviews! Life’s too short to have your head buried in software comparison sites.
Let’s dive deeper into the features, integrations, use cases, and pricing structures of each solution.
We’ll start with MarkUp.io. 😁
Tool #1: MarkUp.io
Although not a workflow management tool, MarkUp.io can be used to automate and streamline an important part of the workflow process for teams of all sizes.
The platform focuses on making the review process frictionless so teams can sign off on projects faster and easier.
A visual feedback platform, MarkUp.io enables creatives to request and collect pixel-accurate feedback on deliverables in a wide range of file formats, including:
- Images: .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .gif
- Design files: .psd, .ai, .eps, .tiff
- Text documents: .txt, .docx, Pages
- Video files: .mp4, .wmv, .avi, .mov
Plus more!
It features link-enabled file-sharing that optimizes creative collaboration while also simplifying proofing and project approval workflows.
So, instead of submitting creative work for feedback via email attachments, you can simply share a link with your MarkUp (the virtual copy of your project) with reviewers via the communication tool of choice.
Even though this platform is a proofing tool, we decided to feature it in our list because it can work in tandem with workflow management software that doesn’t support in-app proofing.
Integrations
MarkUp.io features a Loom integration that allows users to record Loom videos directly from within the platform. This attachment enables reviewers to provide feedback on project files more quickly and add clarity to their comments.
Common use cases
MarkUp.io is used by over 277k creative businesses across industries, including:
- Getty Images: Stock media
- Mastercard: Financial services
- Hilton Hotels & Resorts: Hospitality
- Dolby: Audio technology
To sum it all up: MarkUp.io is a powerful tool for any business that regularly approves and reviews creative work.
Pricing
Individuals and teams that have a small creative output can use MarkUp.io for free. The free version comes with one Workspace, 20 MarkUps, and 10GB of storage.
For larger businesses with more complex workflows, MarkUp.io features two paid plans:
- The Pro plan: $49 per month for one Workspace, unlimited MarkUps (including private MarkUps, Folders, and 500GB of storage.
- The Enterprise plan: Custom pricing available upon request.
The Pro plan offers users the best bang for their buck as it fits the complex needs of large, busy teams at a low price point. When billed annually, MarkUp.io Pro users get 17% off.
Tool #2: Kissflow
Kissflow is a no-code, drag-and-drop workflow software that helps users automate processes, manage tasks, and collaborate seamlessly.
It supports end-to-end workflow management for both structured (tasks not involving decision-making, like solving support tickets) and unstructured workflows (tasks involving discussions and approvals, like graphic design projects).
Kissflow can be used to automate workflows for:
- Payment process and invoice approvals
- Vacation request approvals
- Purchase requisition approvals
- Human resources processes (i.e., employee onboarding)
Integrations
Users can establish an automatic data flow between Kissflow and third-party apps using webhooks and REST APIs. With this method, users can integrate Kissflow with any tool in their digital workspace.
Common use cases
Kissflow is used by companies in varied industries worldwide for workflow automation. Kissflow’s customers include Domino’s, Pepsi, Uber, Casio, and other corporate giants.
Moreover, according to Trustradius.com, Kissflow is predominantly used by mid-sized businesses in IT or services.
Pricing
Kissflow offers three paid plans that cover the needs of small businesses, corporates, and enterprises. The plans start from $10 per month.
Kissflow doesn’t have a free version but offers free demos on request.
Tool #3: Monday.com
Monday.com is a collaboration platform equipped with project management, workflow automation, customer relationship management (CRM), reporting, bug tracking, and progress tracking features.
The workflow management capabilities supported by Monday.com allow users to automate repetitive tasks and deadline notifications for each project milestone.
What makes Monday.com a good choice for creative teams is its image annotation features that enable professionals to pin comments to deliverables within the platform. This ability helps streamline review cycles and eliminate the constant back and forth that comes with email conversations.
Other useful Monday.com tools include:
- Dashboards with real-time insights
- Kanban boards that help teams better manage resources and task priorities
- Gantt charts that offer an overview of project milestones and dependencies
Integrations
Monday.com integrates with multiple communication, file sharing, and social tools, including Adobe Creative Cloud, Slack, Dropbox, Microsoft Teams, Outlook, Zoom, Google Drive, Excel, and Zapier.
Common use cases
Monday.com is suitable for any business size. It facilitates distributed work and helps sales, marketing, HR, dev, and IT teams stay productive in a remote-first work environment.
Its customer base includes companies like Hulu, Coca-Cola, Canva, and the NHL.
Plus, we know for a fact that the platform is used by creative teams as well since Monday.com is frequently requested as an integration with MarkUp.io.
Pricing
The pricing for Monday.com ranges from $11 to $22 per seat per month. The Enterprise plan is customizable, which makes its pricing available only on request.
Monday.com is also offered as a free version for up to five seats.
Tool #4: Process Street
Process Street is a business process management (BPM) and workflow management platform developed to simplify the way teams manage recurring checklists and procedures.
With Process Street, users can:
- Create no-code checklists based on conditional logic
- Use plug-and-play, customizable workflow templates
- Build a process from scratch
- Assign tasks to team members
- Schedule workflows
What’s more, this platform allows you to add rich media attachments to documents, which can help clarify ideas.
Integrations
Process Street users can integrate the platform with popular tools via Zapier, webhooks, and API. Other possible integrations include Gmail, Slack, HubSpot, Google Drive, and more.
Common use cases
According to Trustradius.com, Process Street is suitable for small businesses in marketing and advertising.
However, Process Street is used by professionals across multiple industries, including:
- Customer success
- HR
- IT
- Sales
- Marketing
Its portfolio of customers includes Salesforce, Spotify, Facebook, and Airbnb.
Pricing
Process Street offers two paid plans starting at $25 per month, as well as a free version.
Tool #5: Backlog
Backlog is a bug-tracking and project management tool that allows creatives to centralize workflows, assets, and feedback.
Backlog enables users to:
- Track project milestones and progress
- Manage design requests
- Collect feedback (not contextually)
- Share project files
Integrations
Backlog features multiple native integrations with tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, Jira, Webhook, and Google spreadsheet importer. Plus, Backlog users can use the platform’s API to create custom integrations.
Common use cases
Backlog is suitable for businesses of all sizes with teams of:
- Developers
- Designers
- Product Managers
- IT
- Sales
- Marketing
Pricing
Backlog features a free version and three paid plans ranging from $35 to $175 per month.
Tool #6: ClickUp
ClickUp is a collaborative PM solution equipped with workflow automation features.
ClickUp’s automation can be set up to:
- Assign tasks to people
- Switch a task’s status to high priority around its due date
- Tag team members when the status of a task changes
Plus, ClickUp allows users to create their own customized workflows from scratch or using templates.
Integrations
ClickUp connects with over 1,000 tools, including Slack, GitLab, GitHub, Webhooks, Dropbox, Google Calendar, Figma, Loom, Intercom, Zendesk, and Trello.
Moreover, users can use Zapier to connect the platform to various third-party apps.
Common use cases
TrustRadius says that ClickUp’s customers are mainly small marketing and advertising businesses.
But ClickUp can also be useful for teams in:
- Engineering
- Design
- Product management
- HR
- Operations
In fact, some of their customers include Hawke Media, Samsung, Booking.com, and IBM.
Pricing
ClickUp features a free version along with four paid plans that range between $5 and $19 per month.
Tool #7: Hive
Hive is a PM platform that helps users streamline collaboration, task assignment, and workflow automation.
The automations offered by Hive can be programmed to create tasks, assign team members to tasks, change task statuses, and more.
With Hive, users can either use other users’ workflow templates or create their own customized recipes with drag-and-drop simplicity — no coding needed.
Integrations
Hive offers over 1,000 integrations such as Zoom, Box, and Microsoft One Drive. Plus, the platform features an API for custom integrations.
Common use cases
Hive can be used across different departments, including
- PM
- Marketing
- Business operations
- Education
According to TrustRadius, most of Hive’s customers are represented by small businesses in higher education.
Pricing
Hive is offered both as a free and premium version. Its pricing starts at $12 per user per month.
Tool #8: ProofHub
ProofHub is a collaboration and workflow management tool developed for creatives.
It features:
- Project templates
- Customizable workflows
- Request forms
- File sharing
- Time tracking
Additionally, ProofHub allows users to annotate deliverables using collaborative markup tools. This feature makes the review and approval process more quick and simple.
Integrations
ProofHub supports various app integrations, including Slack, Box, Google Drive, and QuickBooks.
Common use cases
Some of the most prevalent industries and professions ProofHub is used for include:
- Social media management
- Real estate
- HR
- Marketing
- Design
Most frequently, ProofHub is used by mid-sized businesses in marketing and advertising.
Pricing
ProofHub’s pricing starts at $45 per month. The platform doesn’t offer a free version but a demo can be requested.
Tool #9: Nintex
Nintex is a workflow automation system that offers users a visual approach to streamlining business processes.
The platform can be set up to send automated messages based on different triggers (i.e., a task was marked as done). Plus, it offers features like:
- Process management and automation
- Real-time, one-click feedback
- Feedback log
- Analytics
Integrations
Nintex integrates with SharePoint Online, Dynamics CRM, Dropbox, Twilio, Azure AD, SQL, and more. It also enables users to create their own connections using its Open APIs.
Common use cases
Nintex’s client portfolio contains banks, governmental institutions, and large enterprises. But, according to TrustRadius, the majority of Nintex’s customers are in the IT and service industries.
Pricing
Nintex doesn’t feature a free version. Its pricing starts at $910 per month.
Tool #10: Fluix
Fluix is a no-code workflow automation tool built to help businesses automate routine tasks.
Suitable for both office and field teams, Fluix has an intuitive interface with drag-and-drop functionality that allows non-tech-savvy users to automate workflows and manual tasks.
Features include:
- Form filling
- Approvals
- Document statuses
As part of their project documentation feature stack, Fluix also supports annotations by enabling the mark up of documents with highlights and notes. For this reason, we considered it a good fit for creatives. 🙂
Integrations
Fluix can integrate with multiple third-party apps for cloud storage, resource planning, customer relationship management (CRM), data analytics, etc.
Some of the most relevant integrations include Airtable, Shareable, Power BI, Trello, Procore, and Wrike.
Common use cases
Fluix was developed to help bridge the communication and collaboration gap between mobile workforce and headquarters. With that in mind, its functionality and benefits also transfer to remote environments.
The industries mentioned on the Fluix website include construction, renewable energy, marine, insurance, and healthcare.
On specialized software comparison platforms, Fluix has reviews from professionals in creative industries, including marketing and advertising.
Pricing
Fluix’s pricing starts at $30 per 10 users per month. Their pricing is structured around core features to which users can add packages for different tasks (i.e., conditional logic, power analytics, document prefill, etc.).
Tool #11: Smartsheet
Smartsheet is a work management platform that makes remote collaboration easier.
The platform can be used to automate task assignments, project progress tracking, calendar management, and other repetitive tasks.
Plus, it features file-sharing and contextual proofing. The platform supports a wide variety of file formats including text documents, images, 3D renderings, and even 8K video files.
Integrations
The most relevant third-party apps Smarsheet can connect with include Adobe Creative Cloud, Lucidspark, Sharepoint, Tableau, and Zapier.
Common use cases
Smartsheet can be used across industries like:
- Marketing
- Design
- Higher education
- IT
- Media and entertainment
According to TrustRadius, Smartsheet has an IT-dominant client base.
Pricing
Smartsheet’s pricing starts at $6 per month. Free trials are available for the paid plans; however, a free version is not available.
Tool #12: Airtable
Airtable is a cloud platform for building custom workflows and collaborative apps.
With Airtable, users can:
- Create automated multi-sequence workflows
- Leverage real-time collaboration and commenting
- Share deliverables
Plus, the platform also offers various workflow templates for diverse use cases like project tracking, marketing campaign tracking, digital video production, and product launches.
Integrations
Airtable integrates with tools like Google Workspace, Facebook, Slack, and Twitter.
Common use cases
According to Enlyft, Airtable’s customers are primarily software, higher education, and marketing businesses. Airtbale’s client portfolio includes companies such as Shopify, Zendesk, and Equinox.
Pricing
Airtable pricing starts at $10 per seat per month. The platform also offers a free version.
Tool #13: Scoro
Scoro is a work management software system created to streamline projects and automate manual tasks.
It offers features such as:
- Time tracking
- Scheduling
- Task prioritization
- Resource management
- Project management
- Task automation
Using Scoro’s collaboration features, users get automatic notifications and deadline alerts, implement customizable project templates, and receive accurate price estimates of billable activities.
Integrations
Scoro integrates with a wide range of third-party apps for time management, productivity, accounting, marketing, sales, file management, and support.
Relevant examples include:
- Basecamp
- Mailchimp
- Pipedrive
- Facebook Lead Ads
- Google Analytics
- LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms
Common use cases
Scoro is best for marketing agencies, IT, educational institutions, and multiple other industries.
Its existing customers also include creative agencies (i.e. Nosuch) and digital marketing businesses (i.e. WorldLight Media).
Pricing
Scoro’s pricing ranges from $26 to $63 per user per month. A free version is not available, but free trials can be requested.
Tool #14: Asana
Asana is a cloud-based work management platform that helps teams manage tasks, establish custom workflows, collaborate, and communicate.
Asana enables users to:
- Break down projects into sub-tasks
- Assign tasks to team members
- Establish task priority
- Automate project updates and notifications
- Approve creative work
- Track progress and productivity
The platform also features multiple workflow templates for use cases that include project planning, work requests, goals and objectives, and meeting agendas.
In addition to its web-based platform, Asana is offered as a desktop app for Mac and Windows, as well as two mobile apps for iOS and Android. The cross-device usability makes Asana a great tool to keep remote teams flexible and connected at all times.
Integrations
Asana connects with tools like Splunk, Okta, Adobe Creative Cloud, Microsoft Office 365, Zapier, Vimeo, and Figma.
Common use cases
Thanks to its ease of use and versatility, Asana is popular among global brands like Disney and Verizon. Its customer base also includes tech companies like Uber and Pinterest, as well as organizations like NASA.
Popularity aside, Asana’s functionality makes it suitable for design, content creation, marketing, software, and IT.
Pricing
This platform features a free plan as well as two paid plans ranging from $10.99 to $24.99.
Tool #15: Miro
Miro is a collaboration platform with an online whiteboard that offers users a visual way to manage tasks and workflows.
The platform offers a library of ready-made workflow templates for workshops, event planning, customer touchpoint maps, mind maps, research, user personas, and more.
Additionally, Miro supports contextual feedback, enabling creatives to capture feedback right on their designs.
Miro is also available as an iOS and Android mobile app and a desktop app for Mac and Windows.
Integrations
Miro integrates with collaboration tools like Slack, Asana, and Airtable. It also connects to design tools like Figma.
Common use cases
According to Enlyft, Miro is used by businesses in IT, banking, software, education, and marketing and advertising.
Pricing
Miro’s pricing ranges from $8 to $16 per member per month. The platform also features a free version.
You made it! Miro was the last tool on our list. 😅
As you can see, not all workflow management software feature proofing capabilities. And as a creative, you know you need contextual feedback instead of long emails with impossible-to-understand revision requests.
What is there to do in this situation?
Over to you
We know there are many options but we have an idea 💡to help you decide.
You can choose whatever workflow management software floats your team’s boat and use MarkUp.io as part of your review and approval workflow.
It’s easy to use and implement. You just drag and drop, click, comment, and share. That’s all that is to it.
If you’re on board, start your free 14-day trial with MarkUp.io for smoother and faster creative workflows!
