The Benefits of Project Management Software
Nov 01, 2019
When I first started out as a Virtual Assistant, I used spiral notebooks and post-it notes to organize my work. I had six clients and six notebooks and it worked like a charm – for a while.
As my work got more complicated and the number of clients grew, I started to use project management software to stay organized.
At first, I used it to create lists of things I had to do for each client; I would simply check them off as they were complete. It was very gratifying to move to a paperless system.
But somewhere along the way I began to understand the real value of project management software, something that goes way beyond just checking things off a list. What I’m talking about here is the importance of thinking a project through, from start to end, all in one sitting.
Let’s take the example of sending out a client newsletter. Here are the steps:
- Create a test in MailChimp
- Send test and check images and links
- Send test to client
- After client approval, schedule newsletter
Pretty standard stuff. It works great and I don’t miss a step.
But when you think through a project from beginning to end, with the results you want in mind (in this case, having as many people read the newsletter as possible), I could see beyond these four steps.
Now I came up with these ideas as well:
- Post newsletter to WordPress and schedule it to publish at the same time as the newsletter is emailed
- Post the newsletter content to LinkedIn as an article and include client bio and a link to sign up for the newsletter
- Post newsletter to their business and personal Facebook page, linking back to their website in the post
See the difference?
As you grow, you, too, will need to move beyond simple lists. Start thinking now about what project management software you’ll use. (Hint: I like Teamwork).
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