Cup of Copy: Death to the Google Doc
“We just shared you on a Google doc that has all of that info.”
Devastating is the word that comes to my mind as currently I have well over 200 Google docs that have been shared with me. Searching through many of these docs that have no use anymore upsets me because most of the titles are similar since we do similar processes for many clients.
Etiquette on Google docs is something that could improve everywhere, whether it’s deleting a lunch order form from October or even a client doc that is no longer relevant. If my Google Drive was a room, it would look like a dorm shared by five different hoarders. Not being the owner of this doc keeps me from banishing it into the deepest depths of the interwebs. [Tweet “If my Google Drive was a room, it would look like a dorm shared by five different hoarders.”]
Furthermore, when people are working on the same Google doc, I often times find myself at war with another person trying to claim a cell on a spreadsheet. I know that they see my color box there, but my presence is less intimidating when that color is lime green. Having important info deleted on a Google doc remains a very real possibility and that’s a scary thought when tight deadlines are in place.
Google docs may end up being the end of me, so CopyPress decided to go on a Google doc killing spree with our new software. This puts client approval of content, connections, curation, and conversion into one place. No more going through 5 to 10 documents to check if something had been approved or edited. The entire content life cycle begins and ends in one place and streamlines a process which can be convoluted when you have anywhere from 10 to 1000 clients.
I like to call our software “the Swiss army knife of content marketing” because it’s an all-inclusive look at how the process works without leaving any room to wonder.
Scalability with Google docs sometimes runs into a problem, the organization of things leaves much to be desired. This is especially true when it comes to content creation. Many times for content to be approved, there are multiple steps in the process. Once an order is received with a specific style guide, the real work starts. Ideation for the topics that are asked for begins – which usually needs to be approved by the client via email and sharing a Google doc.
With our software we can have an idea approved and sent directly off to a writer with an automation message to follow the specific instructions.
Armed with a community of writers that have been tested and approved by our in-house staff, we can produce a large number of content without any hiccups and send it back to a client with lightning speed. Time is money for everybody involved and the streamlining of this process saves both the client and CopyPress money with quick turnaround times. Then in our system, we can have our client approve the content and send it directly into a connector’s hands to get the piece published on a high tier site.
Google docs are an incredible thing overall, but too much of anything tends to become annoying. The acronym KISS (keep it simple stupid) saves money and time, this is why our software was developed and tested with thousands of hours and improvements suggested by those who use it every day.
CopyPress writer
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