People Notice Process

At the FishBowl, we have a weekly meeting every Monday morning. It’s our team’s opportunity to connect, share, brief, and learn.

A couple weeks ago, we discussed a particular tidbit of wisdom from agency coach David C. Baker.

David said, “Remember, too, that clients are far more likely to notice deficiencies in the process than they are to notice deficiencies in the quality of the work.” 

Understandably, this sparked an interesting conversation amongst Team Fisheye. 

Now, maybe my Project Manager bias is showing, but I love processes. They help provide organization, give form to creative tasks, and put the whole team on the same page. 

This quote felt especially relevant in the season of building partnerships with new clients. As we look at beginning new client relationships, we realize how the process is much more noticeable than the product.

In our case, a new client is less likely to point out flaws in the layout of their email newsletter design. However, if communication is lacking, team members are confused and clients have no idea what’s happening.

That they will notice. 

So maybe your business isn’t service based like Fisheye. 

Regardless of what good or service your business provides, process matters.

Within an organization, processes are just as essential as core values and a mission statement. Processes are a tool that allow team members to maintain cohesion, replicate tasks with quality, and generally keep everyone on the same page.

Now, building processes comes with its own set of questions, like:

How do I decide which processes to adopt?

I don’t have a Project Manager, when am I supposed to do this?

What’s the best way to record these processes?

Let’s break  down each question individually. 

How do I decide which processes to adopt? A good rule of thumb is, if the task needs to be done more than once, create a standard operating procedure (SOP). 

I don’t have a Project Manager, when am I supposed to do this? I hear you there. And many small businesses don’t. Recording these SOPs does take more time up front, but it saves lots of time when growth arrives in the form of a new hire. 

The time taken up front to record the process is a long-term investment.

What’s the best way to record these processes? Don’t overthink it. For any task, record the process  in a step-by-step, basic format. Keep it consistent.

These are all basic organizational ideas, but the main idea is this: People notice processes. 

Whether they’re a client, employee, or other partner, they observe your processes — good, bad, or otherwise. 

Build good processes.

They may leave a more lasting impression than you think.