Key takeaways
- A working approval workflow has four stages — draft, internal review, client approval, schedule — each with one clearly named owner.
- Set a review deadline for every stage (e.g. 2 business days for client approval) with a default action if it passes, so silence does not stall the calendar.
- Batch a week or month of content into one approval round instead of approving post by post — it is dramatically faster for everyone involved.
What is an approval workflow: the four stages
- Draft — the writer/designer produces the content against the agreed content pillars and calendar
- Internal review — a second team member checks it against brand voice and the brief before the client sees it
- Client approval — the client reviews a batch of content and approves, requests changes, or (after a set deadline) is treated as approved by default
- Schedule — approved content moves into SkedCast (or your scheduler) with its final publish date and time
Give every stage a deadline and an owner
The most common reason an approval workflow breaks down is a stage with no deadline and no single owner — content sits in a client’s inbox indefinitely. Set an explicit turnaround (2 business days is a common default for client approval) and state upfront what happens if it passes without a response, so the calendar keeps moving either way.
Batch approvals instead of one post at a time
Sending a client one post to approve at a time multiplies the back-and-forth. Batching a week or a month of content into a single approval round — with the content calendar template as the shared reference — is faster for both sides and gives the client the context of the whole plan, not just one isolated post.
approval workflowtemplateagencyclient management
FAQ
- What are the stages of a content approval workflow?
- Draft, internal review, client approval, and scheduling — four stages, each with one clearly named owner responsible for moving it forward.
- How long should client approval take?
- Two business days is a common default; the key is stating a deadline explicitly and agreeing what happens if the client does not respond in time.
- Should I send posts for approval one at a time or in a batch?
- Batch a week or month of content into a single approval round — it is faster for everyone and gives the client the context of the full plan.
- What happens if a client does not respond by the deadline?
- Agree this upfront in the contract or SOW — a common default is treating an unanswered batch as approved after the stated turnaround passes.
- Does SkedCast support a real approval workflow?
- Yes — SkedCast’s approvals feature routes drafts to a reviewer or client and only allows scheduling once a post is approved.
- Is this template a downloadable file?
- No — it is a structured process outline you adopt directly; pair it with the content calendar template for the actual posting schedule.