A content workflow is the sequence of stages a piece of content moves through and the people responsible at each step. A typical workflow runs from idea to brief, draft, reviews, final approval, publication, distribution and later maintenance. Defining it makes clear who has to do what next, which removes most of the delays and confusion that slow content teams down.
A typical workflow and its owners
The exact stages vary, but every stage needs one clear owner and a definition of done.
- Idea: anyone submits; content lead approves into the backlog
- Brief: strategist or SEO writes the content brief; content lead signs off
- Draft: writer, with SME input
- Review: editor, then expert reviewer for accuracy
- Approval: one named final approver
- Publish: editor or content ops, including metadata and links
- Distribute: owner of each channel
- Maintain: page owner reviews on a schedule
Where briefs fit
The content brief is the handoff between strategy and writing. The workflow should state who writes briefs, who approves them and what happens when a writer finds the brief is wrong. Briefs that change after drafting starts are a common source of rework.
Tooling
Workflows can be tracked in a project board, a spreadsheet or a CMS with workflow features. Statuses in the tool should match the defined stages, so anyone can see where each piece is and who it is waiting on.
Example
Fixing an unclear handoff
At hypothetical company Wrenmoor, briefs were written by the SEO lead but writers often discovered the product team disagreed with the angle. The workflow is changed so a product manager approves each brief before drafting starts. Rewrites at the review stage drop.
Common mistakes
Shared ownership
When two people own a stage, each assumes the other will act. Name one owner.
No maintenance stage
Workflows that end at publication leave content without an owner for updates.
Questions
The workflow is one part of content operations: the stage-by-stage process. Content operations also covers tools, standards, governance and measurement.
