Below are six small tips I\u2019ve been told, read, or developed for myself that have been useful in my day-to-day work. Likely, they\u2019ll be some help to you as well.<\/p>\n
My first tip is the easiest: Have all of your to-do tasks in one place. Be able to see everything that\u2019s on your personal list in a single glance. Whether you do this through a task management system like\u00a0Basecamp<\/a>,\u00a0Evernote<\/a>,\u00a0or\u00a0Trello<\/a>, or you take my route and paint a 50 square foot dry erase board on your wall, make sure you have a grasp of everything that\u2019s on your plate. I\u2019ve found having this view is very valuable when it comes to determining what you\u2019re going to tackle on any given day.<\/p>\n Every job, including that of a PPC manager, has tasks that can be classified as small, medium, and large. Small might be responding to an email or running account projections. Medium tasks can be pulling together notes for a client call or starting a new ad copy test. Large tasks might include pulling an assisted conversions report in Google Analytics or building out a new group of campaigns around a new product line. Put a little of each of these categories into every one of your work days. Give yourself at least a couple quick wins every day so you feel a sense of accomplishment, but also a couple bigger tasks so you\u2019re making good strides in your accounts. Building an account can be really rewarding, but can also take long stretches without really finishing anything. With this system, you\u2019ll be able to work on large and medium tasks, while also being able to cross multiple little things off of your list. The best feeling is crossing something off your list.<\/p>\n This is a little metaphor I use for myself: coffee = morning, Coke = afternoon. Well, Diet Coke is really more appropriate for me. Basically, know which part of the day you\u2019re most effective. Personally, I\u2019m a coffee person. I do much better work, and am more eager to work, on tasks that require high amounts of thinking in the morning. I try and schedule investigatory work, research, and creative work in the morning. By the afternoon, my Diet Coke time, I become a little more of a drone. I prefer to schedule tasks that don\u2019t require as much brain power as will power in the afternoon. That\u2019s when I tackle bid changes, budget shifts, reporting, etc. Know when you\u2019re at your best during the workday. Make sure you\u2019re not just scheduling the right task, but the right task at the right time.<\/p>\n Working at an agency requires you to shift your thinking for different clients. Each account has a different product\/service as well as unique KPI goals. Going back and forth with work from Client A to Client B and then back to Client A throughout the day forces you to change your mindset each time you shift from client to client. Staying in one account for multiple tasks before moving on to the next client will allow you to focus and keep the right KPIs in mind.<\/p>\nBig & Little Tasks<\/h3>\n
Coffee vs. Coke Hours<\/h3>\n
Don\u2019t Break Up Client Work<\/h3>\n
Some Tasks Need Limits<\/h3>\n