Agency hacks to help you work smarter, not harder

As a full-service communications agency, supporting clients both big and small, we’ve learned a thing or two about producing and managing our work in an efficient way.

With team members working both remotely and from our Brisbane office, it’s important we are working smarter, not harder when collaborating. But most importantly, we’re delivering efficient, quality work to our clients. Because efficiency is not just a goal. It’s a necessity in our industry.

Here are our tips for the best ways to ensure you’re not wasting unnecessary time when managing your workload day-to-day.

Hint: these tips are great no matter what industry you’re in, where you’re working, or what you’re working on!

Tip #1. Boost your productivity with these free content creation/editing programs

Efficiency is the name of the game here. Here are our favourite programs that help us make content creation and editing a breeze.

🎨 Canva for basically everything!

When it comes to content creation and design, it’s no secret that Canva should be your go-to. Not only is it extremely user-friendly, with a vast library of templates and customisable elements, but it’s also got a bunch of collaboration features, so your team can always be on the same page. At Pitch, we seamlessly collaborate on designs, share feedback, and maintain version control on Canva, all of which streamlines our design process. We also love that the paid version of Canva offers the ability to upload brand kits and style guides, which is a great bonus for agencies managing multiple brands at once.

🔤 Grammarly for spelling and grammar control

If you haven’t already added Grammarly as an extension to your Chrome browser, you need to do so. Now. This platform not only provides live spell checking but also offers writing guidance across documents and browsers. Remember, the key here is to enhance your productivity and consistency and Grammarly is just the program to help you do this.

Tip #2. Optimise your workflow with these systems and processes

To us, optimising workflow is all about enhancing collaboration, streamlining communication and improving task management. So, without further ado, here’s what platforms we use!

✅ Asana for task and project management

Sick of the scavenger hunt for lost post-it notes? Or perhaps, your handwritten to-do list constantly resembles abstract art? Cue Asana, your task management wizard, providing a collaborative space for your team to coordinate, assign and prioritise tasks as well as track the progress of your goals. With Asana, you can drive clarity and accountability within your team by using goals and assigning tasks to keep everyone focused on the work that needs to be prioritised.

Our team also loves using the calendar tool to manage team schedules, client deadlines and track important events.

💻 SharePoint for file management and sharing

This platform goes beyond mere storage and offers a collaborative space where team members can centralise information, share documents, track edits, review changes and control access. In our eyes, it’s a game changer for enhancing workflows and ensuring everyone is on the same page (quite literally!). With our team members working in the office and remotely, SharePoint allows us to access all the information we need from any device, making working from various locations seamless. Plus, the collaborative editing features allow multiple members of our team to work on documents simultaneously.

💬 Microsoft Teams or Slack for instant messaging and meetings

Say goodbye to cluttered email inboxes and drowning in emails and say hello to quick, easy conversations with your colleagues. Microsoft Teams or Slack is your new best friend. Need to share a file? Attach it in the chat. Need to ask a one-liner question? Send a message. Need to have a meeting with a team member working remotely? Video call them. Everything you need to communicate with your colleagues or clients from external organisations is easily accessible and all in the same place.

With the right systems and processes in place, you’ll be smashing through your workload in record speed. We promise you’ll thank us later.