Project planning has a bit of a reputation proceeding it. It’s kind of like tequila. Those who know the insider tips do well and can make the experience a fun time for all. The others who haven’t had much experience don’t know the best practices — and end up waking up next to a 2. Or 2 bags of Cheetos and no recollection of how they got there.

But, luckily for you, I am well-versed in project planning. I’ve been around the block, got the hangover and the t-shirt, and will help you navigate project planning so you can have a good experience with it.

Sometimes, I feel like knowing what not to do is a valuable place to start, so that’s what we’re going to be talking about today. Let’s dig into 7 project planning mistakes to avoid so your projects are successful, aligned to your brand, and a good time for all involved.

1. Knee-Jerk Projects Without Planning

I’ve seen many business owners knee-jerk “plan” a project. Oftentimes, it’s because a business owner is reacting to something and thinking, “Oh I want to do that, too!” or, “I realized I need to have ABC before we can do XYZ.” And while occasionally, you and/or your team can put together a project on a fast-turn deadline, it’s most likely going to be a skeleton that you’ll need to keep adding to in future iterations to create something truly robust and sustainable. Plus, if knee-jerk projects become a habit (it’s easy to slip into an “everything’s an emergency!” cycle), you’ll end up running your amazing team straight into the ground. 

Having a plan helps you create and keep a schedule so you aren’t burning out yourself or your team. You’ll be able to build in enough time for you and your team to do things well, leave time for revisions, and perform a quality check before it’s launched.

Related Reading: Turn Your Ideas Into Action in 3 Steps

2. Projects That Don’t Align With Your Brand

Another project planning mistake to avoid is creating projects that don’t align with your brand. This goes hand in hand with knee-jerking a project in reaction mode. Putting out something that doesn’t align with your brand will be very confusing for everyone involved, which could lead to inefficient projects and poor sales.

To ensure alignment with your brand, sit down with your brand strategy, audience strategy, and other internal documents that clearly spell out your why and how you help people. Go through your project and look at each piece to assess whether it complements your mission or detracts from it. This step is akin to making sure you have a full stomach before drinking tequila — starting on a responsible, reasonable foot will prevent mistakes from happening later!

Related Reading: Brand Strategy: 8 Reasons Why It Matters Most to Your Brand

3. Not Knowing Your Target Audience

Not knowing your target audience is a big strategy mistake when planning your project. I talked quite a bit about having an audience strategy here, so I’ll keep this short and sweet (but definitely open that post in a new tab to read next because it really is important!)

Having a detailed picture of your audience is the only way you’ll uncover the subtle nuances and desires they have so you can effectively communicate with them. Knowing their pain points, needs and wants, how they talk about it all, and so on will help you build something that they want and tell them exactly how it’ll help them and why this is the right offer for them.

Basically, knowing your audience will help you give them exactly what they want. For instance, you’d never bake your friend a birthday cake when they detest cake. You’d make them brownies or show up with cookies and tequila (ahem, if you’re looking for a gift idea for me, take notes!) The same thing goes for your projects. Don’t give your audience cake if they would never in a million years ask for cake.

Related Reading: Audience Strategy: The Most Important Part of Brand Strategy

4. Not Knowing What Success Looks Like

Now, this may seem like it isn’t that big of a mistake, but it is! Having a general idea (or no idea at all) of what you want to accomplish won’t help you now or as you refine and iterate in the future. You have to know where you’re aiming to create a solid strategy for getting there. Further, if your team doesn’t know what success looks like, they won’t be able to help you build it.

At the beginning of your project, clearly state what success would look like in terms of practical numbers, and also soft data like whether you’re being the leader you want to be, how you feel about the project, and so on. That way, everyone knows what to aim for.

Related Reading: Positioning Statements: What It Is and Why You Need One

5. Unclear Feedback

If you have kids, you understand the absolute hair-ripping frustration you feel when you ask, “What do you want for dinner?” and you hear, “I don’t know…” in return. It helps no one.

In my house, it usually unfolds like this… I cook a meal I think everyone will like. My kids say, “Wait, is that what we’re having for dinner?” I respond with, “Yep, you love this. Plus, you said you didn’t know what you wanted, so I took my best shot.” It’s then that they inform me it isn’t what they wanted and beg not to eat it… and then my head explodes because just once could someone give me useful information to work with so we can all stay on the same page.

This goes for your projects, too. If you’re leading a team, useful feedback on what they’re creating for you is a must. It needs to be objective, honest, and thoughtful so your team can take action to either make it better or do more of what you love.

In short, you can’t just say, “I don’t like this, make it better,” because how can they do that? Similarly, telling them, “I love it!” when you really don’t isn’t going to cut it either.

Tell them exactly what you like/dislike, how you want it to sound/look/feel, what words/colors/fonts you would have chosen, whether it aligns with the creative brief or it doesn’t, etc. We’re all adults here, no one will be upset with you for saying what you honestly feel so the project is improved. And be sure to leave plenty of time in your project schedule — that way, you aren’t forced to run with deliverables you don’t like!

Related Source: Two-Minute Tip: 3 Things You’re Missing In Your Project Schedules

6. Not Sticking To Schedule

We covered this a bit in the section about doing projects without planning them, but this is super-important. (Can you tell I like strategy and details?)

Having a schedule is mandatory. If you don’t, you’ll run into many of the mistakes I’m sharing here, like knee-jerk planning a rushed project that doesn’t align with your brand so it doesn’t help your target audience.

Make sure your schedule includes:

• Each person’s turnaround times
• Review time
• Time for revisions
• Testing and/or final proofing
• Unexpected hiccups (AKA buffer time)

Related Reading: Project Timelines: 5 Must-Have Elements to Include

7. Not Showing Up / Doing Your Part

Whether it’s you as a solopreneur or leading a team, you have to show up and be present for all aspects of the project in order for it to be successful. And that means before, during, and after. You can’t put the thing out there, then ghost on your audience and/or your team and hope they know what to do!

As the leader of your business, you have to lead the vision and the project. You have to do your part with lead generation, marketing, and outreach. And you have to wrap up the project with feedback and analytics to make it better next time.

Related Reading: 6 Simple Steps for Project Management Success

Hopefully you’ve learned some insider tips to make your next project go down smoothly and not come back on you the morning after. When you know what to avoid, you can keep that in mind as you’re planning projects and outlining what you do want to do.