Starting Your Project
Each Marketing and Media project generally has six consecutive stages.
To initiate a project with Marketing and Media, contact our production coordinator at 49-62185 to discuss your job in detail. Please plan to provide the following information when you place your request:
- What is the project’s purpose and target audience?
- What is your budget?
- If your project is a printed piece, do you know what quantity you will need?
- Will the project have other related print or Web elements?
- How will the product be distributed/delivered?
- What is your deadline for delivery?
- Will you provide copy or will you need a Marketing and Media writer/editor to develop content?
- Will the project require photography?
The production coordinator may ask you other questions as well. All potential incoming projects are reviewed and discussed at a weekly management team meeting. You will be notified whether or not your project has been accepted, and if it has, the creative team assigned to work on your project.
After the creative team has been assigned, the project manager (usually the writer/editor) will contact you to schedule a launch meeting. The meeting’s purpose is to clearly define the scope of the project and the roles and responsibilities of each team member. As the client, you are a member of the creative team.
Discussion topics will include many of the same items you discussed with the production coordinator when you called to initiate your project. Points may include:
- The project’s purpose and target audience
- Themes and creative elements (colors, graphic design, size, etc.)
- Copy submission and approximate deadlines
- Budget
- Project delivery deadline and delivery instructions
- Method of distribution/mailing
- Your role as a member of the creative team
- The service you can expect and will receive from your PMC team members
- Photo requirements
- Planning for maintenance of Web sites
Once the launch meeting has been held, the project manager will create and distribute a production schedule to all members of the creative team.
The Marketing and Media team works on the creative development, which can encompass various phases including research, conceptual development, writing, editing, proofreading, design, and photography. As necessary, this stage includes communication and/or meetings among some or all of the creative team.
In the case of a Web site, development will also include writing a scope document that outlines the content and function of each section of the site, creating a site map to show general navigation, programming, and developing a test site.
Production is usually the longest phase of the project and can take anywhere from a few days to several months, depending on the complexity of the product.
As the creative production phase nears completion, the Marketing and Media creative team will prepare a mock-up or test site for review and approval. The mock-up is a close representation of what your product will look like when it is printed (if it is a publication) or launched (if it is a Web product).
The approval stage provides you with the opportunity to make any necessary adjustments. However, with effective and timely communication between you and the Marketing and Media creative team throughout the development phase, adjustments at this stage should be minimal.
Before a project can go to the printer, the following is required from the client:
- A signed “Approval to Print” form
- Confirmation on quantity
- Account information for the printing of your project
- Delivery/mailing instructions for the project
One of the final phases of your print project is the printing and delivery of your final product. Marketing and Media manages this aspect of your project for you by soliciting competitive quotes from a selection of pre-qualified vendors, preparing your project for printing, and monitoring it throughout print production so that you receive a quality product on time.
Once printing is completed, the product will be delivered according to instructions on the “Approval to Print” form. This may mean delivery directly to your area or to Printing Services for mailing.
Once a project has delivered, Marketing and Media will send you a “Service Evaluation” form to complete. We are interested in learning about your experience working with us, and by completing and returning the survey, you can help us improve our processes to produce the best materials possible. Evaluations are shared with all members of the Marketing and Media creative team who worked on that project.