Episode 35. How to Create SOPs to Streamline the Backend of Your Business
DEFINING SOPS: STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE
Do you remember being a kid in language arts and learning about expository essays? I can clearly remember writing an essay about how to eat an Oreo cookie. I can hear my teacher reminding me, “Imagine an alien is on earth for the first time… and you are explaining to them how to eat this Oreo cookie exactly the same way you like to eat them.”
Okay, I recommend you keep that exact same energy when you’re writing SOPs!
A standard operating procedure is a step-by-step guide of the recurring tasks in your business that are happening on a daily basis.
BENEFITS OF SOPS
Save time on training
Increase consistency across your brand
Avoid losing knowledge
Use them to inform your team member reviews
WHEN TO CREATE SOPS
I’m a huge proponent of writing SOPs way before you’ll ever need them. Seriously. As a solopreneur the first few months of my business, I had SOPs for podcast post-production, graphic creation, and social media engagement. It’s really helpful to have these queued up and ready-to-go before you need them.
My recommendation is that any time you get a process down pat - create an SOP for it. For me, that looked like finally nailing down my podcast post-production process and doing it consistently… loving the results… and knowing that I didn’t want to change anything until I brought in some podcast genius who knew way better than me! As soon as I got to that point, I planned on creating an SOP during my next editing batch day.
HOW TO CREATE SOPS
Do the process yourself a few times if at all possible
Use a screen recording app like Loom (it’s free!) and capture a video of the process
Create a written document for the SOP
Title of SOP
Publication and/or revision date
Name of the role the SOP is intended for
Description and scope of SOP
Every single step
WHAT TO DO AFTER DRAFTING YOUR SOP
Once you’ve completed your SOP half of the battle is over! But let’s be honest, we tend to miss things. And even if your Polly the Perfectionist, chances are at least one piece of that SOP is hard for someone who doesn’t live in your brain to understand. The solution is simple!
Test the SOP yourself
Have a team member test the SOP
Get feedback and tweak the SOP as needed
Keep re-evaluating! At the end of the day, even our standard operating procedures are fluid. They can and should evolve as your business does. Re-evaluate at least 1/year and keep that SOP library fresh!
