What Your Business Needs After a Brand Launch, Website Launch, or Workflow Rollout
When I first started consulting a few years ago, I designed several branded assets for a team and became so focused on delivering impressive work that I overlooked what they would need afterward. It was like giving someone a finicky plant without care instructions and assuming they had a green thumb. The calls kept coming for weeks after the handoff. That experience taught me to put as much thought into helping people use and maintain the work as I put into creating it.
A useful handoff gives you and your team instructions you can return to months later. Here are six steps to prepare for it.
Six Steps to Prepare Your Team for the Handoff
Assess your team’s skills. Identify the experience and confidence levels of everyone who will use or manage the work. Share this with your service provider so they can tailor the training.
Choose an internal go-to person. Select someone who can learn how to manage the work, has time for the responsibility, and is willing to help colleagues. Assign a backup when possible.
Train by responsibility. Tell your provider which tasks each person will handle, then arrange for the right people to attend the relevant training. Not everyone needs to learn every feature.
Request a reusable guide. Agree on documentation as part of the project scope. Ask your provider for a step-by-step document, presentation, or visual walkthrough covering routine tasks. Keep it somewhere your team can easily find it.
Clarify maintenance and support. Decide who on your team handles updates and questions. Confirm with your provider what follow-up support is included and when additional help requires a separate agreement.
Practice independently. Have your team complete everyday tasks without the provider stepping in. Use the walkthrough to identify and address remaining gaps before wrapping up the handoff.
You may need more support as your business grows. But when tomorrow’s proposal is due or Monday’s request comes in, you should already know where to start.
Comment Below
What do you wish had been explained before you took over a new tool, process, or set of brand assets? Share your experience in the comments below.
