know the answer, ask them who does or if they can find out.
3. Write up what you have and show it to everyone in draft form. Make sure they understand that you want more sug- gestions and any corrections.
4. Write up their replies. Create a final project overview.
Resolve any disagreements.
5. Get approval.
If you do this, your Quick Project Overview (QPO) will look something like the top half of Table 5-3 (pages 79-84) which is a QPO for a quarterly newsletter for a small business.
We complete the QPO by creating the work plan and then estimating our budget.
Project Name:Customer Delights! Newsletter Project Requested by:Owner
Project Manager: Customer Service Manager Imposed Budget: $500
Underline One: desired limit Imposed Delivery Date:10/1/2003
Underline one required Estimated Cost: $ not yet set Estimated Delivery Date:9/25/2003 Purpose (Justification):
We can increase sales by letting our customers know what we are doing and by telling them about our new decorator items and servic- es. Employees coming into the company don’t understand our cus- tomers and need to learn to focus on the customer. Having them read (and contribute to) Customer Delights! will help.
Initial Situation:
We are growing quickly as a company.The owner used to know every customer personally and call each one two or three times a year.
Now, we are too big for that.We need a way to remind our cus- tomers of the beauty we bring to their lives so they will come back again. Also, some employees are still learning to keep a focus on delighting our customer.We want them to see success stories and get ideas in how to serve our customers better.
Current Situation:
August 11, 2003: We’ve decided to create the newsletter.The customer service manager has talked to everyone, gotten in touch with our advertising designer, and found a printer.This plan has been prepared.
Goal (Detailed Description):
On October 1, our customers will find our beautiful four-color, 16- page, 5”x8” Customer Delights! magazine in their mailbox or pick one up when they come by any of our three stores.They will see photos of other customers’ homes (or maybe their own home) made beauti- ful by our decorators.They will have a 10% discount coupon for any- thing they buy before December 15 and a preview of our holiday gift items. Every employee will receive a copy with a note hand-signed by Table 5-3. Sample quick project overview for Customer Delights!
first issue (continued on pages 80 to 84)
Budgeting for Managers 80
the owner asking them to read the newsletter and think of new ways of delighting our customers. A new edition will come out the first of February, May, August, and October every year.
Work Plan Concept:
Interview owner, get core idea Talk to all managers, add new ideas
Talk to favorite customers (friends of the store) and get their reaction Draft top half of QPO
Run it by managers for suggestions Revise QPO
Approval
Present QPO to owners Answer any questions Make revisions Owner approves plan Analysis
Look at our other advertising for ideas
Look at competitors’ mailings, newsletters, and catalogs Meet with advertising consultant, build a mock-up
Create feature article title and outline Create two short article titles and ideas Find possible writers
Select sample images (just to get general idea—may change later) Make a list of departments (1-2 paragraphs)
Convince managers to write department articles Show mock-up and QPO to managers
Revise
Show mock-up to friends of the store Revise
Prepare distribution plan
Discuss printing and delivery schedule with printer Arrange for bulk mail
Write distribution plan
Meet with business manager to go over QPO, distribution plan, and mock-up in detail
Proofread and revise all items Approval
Present entire package to owner
Revise if necessary Get approval from owner Design
Make an exact list of articles and departments Include these items on the list:
Title and outline or description Length (in words)
Author
Alternate author, unless first is committed Compose a writing tip sheet
Plan artwork
Go through mock-up, define size and topic of each image Decide color schemes for each 2-page spread
Create list of requirements for images
Review with advertising consultant, revise with him Proofread and finish artwork plan
Plan schedule
Complete Work Plan (using WBS method later in this chapter) Estimate time for each task
Check with graphic artist, advertiser, and printer; confirm they can meet schedule
Estimate cost
Work out prices with Graphic artist Advertiser Printer
For materials For printing For bulk mail For delivery
Prepare budget (Follow Budgeting for Managerssteps) Approval
Bring entire package and plan to owner Get suggestions for improvement Revise
Get approval from owner Development
Inform all vendors and authors we are going ahead Call them (increases enthusiasm)
Budgeting for Managers 82
Follow up by e-mail or inter-office mail, delivering detailed instructions from work plan
For each article:
Assign to author, sending article description and writing tip sheet Author drafts
Review draft
Revise (or have author revise) Get author’s approval
For feature and two major articles Check with owner
Revise if necessary
For images (split the work with advertising consultant and check each other’s work)
Select a range of images from our photo collection Create 2-page layouts with montages
Coordinate colors
Check image with text, if text is ready Mark for cropping
Graphics art preparation Crop images
Adjust shading and tone Newsletter layout (graphic artist)
Enter all articles in word processor
Deliver all articles to graphic artist in electronic form Lay out text and graphics
Prepare camera-ready copy Print galley from camera-ready copy Check galleys
Proofread text
Advertising consultant check images and overall look and feel Review with some managers, whoever is available
Make final changes Prepare final mock-up
Have accounting cut down payment check for printer Approval
Show final mock-up at managers’ meeting Get revisions (if any) from owner and managers Make changes (if any)
Get owner’s final approval
Transition to Production Send to printer
Camera-ready layout Schedule
Down payment Approval Prepare mailing
Prepare final mailing list (include self to make sure it went out) Review and revise
Send to printer in electronic format, per printer’s bulk mail specification
Send list of store addresses and shipping quantities Printer prints
Review printed catalog Check one thoroughly
Check several from different parts of run for color consistency, depth of color
Request reprint or approve shipping Take one box back to headquarters Printer ships
Completion
Receive newsletter in mail Pay
graphic artist
advertising consultant printer
Write up suggestions for doing a better job next time
Prepare brainstorming meeting for new ideas for the newsletter Share at managers’ meeting
Call everyone and thank them, asking friends of the company what they think
Prepare plan for next issue Production
Keep in stock at stores Get employee comments
Over time, design methods for evaluating effectiveness, change as needed
Help managers improve writing skills
Follow up on these ideas (suggested, but not included in first issue):
of an accurate budget and a schedule we’ll be able to keep. If we want to deliver good results on time and within budget, a written project plan is essential!
A work plan, technically called a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), is just a very good to-do list for everyone on the project.
Some people find it easy to make a good to-do list; others can’t even write a shopping list. It doesn’t matter. We will show you seven steps to creating a great to-do list, steps that work for anyone. (I’ve used this system for over four years and I’ve tested it on my wife, who is a wonderful person in many ways, but couldn’t keep a shopping list or make a list of what she needed to do before leaving for vacation. Now, she’s a college professor, she’s planning courses for her students, and she doesn’t even mind planning for our vacation while I write this book!)
Budgeting for Managers 84
E-mail version
Large print version for visually impaired
Custom versions for different audiences through smart printing Decommissioning
Each issue is decommissioned in 3 months
Customer Delights! will continue in production as long as it helps sales more than it costs to produce.