Each party needs exactly one point of contact.
Daily operational coordination is not obstructed when both sides clearly define who takes over and who coordinates right from the kickoff.
Each side should have a designated point of contact. The executing side needs someone who deeply understands the brand and is directly responsible to you throughout the collaboration. You should appoint an internal brand manager with sufficient authority. This person gathers needs from various departments and prioritizes without needing to escalate to higher-ups each time. This pair of contacts helps departments avoid placing disjointed requests, and you won’t have to describe your requirements from scratch every time.
- multiple departments need publications or priority graphics
- A small team with moderate workload, where the marketing head has multiple roles.
- the large volume requires a second backup person
- to let many people place orders directly without going through a point of contact
- Assign someone without sufficient authority as the point of contact.
This question often arises after a few weeks of collaboration when things start to slow down without anyone knowing why. The most common cause is the lack of a process keeper, not a lack of process. When both sides have not clearly established who the fixed point of contact is, each request becomes a small negotiation about how to communicate.
What is the coordination point role?
The coordinating contact, often referred to in English as a traffic manager or single point of contact, is the person who oversees the workload between both sides. This person does not necessarily make creative decisions. Their role is to receive requests, route them to the appropriate department, and ensure that the workload is not concentrated in one place.
Distinguishing these two roles from the outset avoids a common mistake. That is when the coordinating contact gets pulled into the creative review process, or conversely, the creative decision-maker is defaulted to being the daily task receiver despite not having time for it.
How the executing side arranges
For long-term outsourced brand operations, a good practice is to have a dedicated contact person on the executing side for each client. This person is the sole point of contact through a private communication channel, understands your brand's history, and is directly responsible for progress. When you inquire about a publication created three months ago or want to adjust the tone for a new campaign, the contact person doesn’t need to be briefed from the beginning.
A contingency mechanism should also be established from the kickoff, not left until the responsible person is absent to find a solution.
Who you need to appoint
The executing side needs an internal brand manager, meaning someone who gathers needs from all departments and prioritizes without needing to escalate to higher-ups each time. The practical criteria include three points:
- You have enough authority to say, "the sales department must wait, marketing is prioritizing this month's campaign" without needing further permission.
- Allocate time to check progress regularly, not just when someone is busy enough to respond to messages only when free.
- Understanding enough about the brand to describe requirements clearly, not just relaying someone else's requests without filtering through the brand lens.
A dedicated brand manager is suitable when multiple departments are placing requests and often competing for priority. Internal costs are higher, but it significantly reduces the situation where the executing side receives conflicting requests from multiple sources.
Common mistakes when lacking clear leads
- Delegating to unauthorized individuals: every decision must go up the chain, causing delays not due to capability but due to this.
- To allow multiple people to address issues directly: the executing party receives conflicting requests and has no basis to judge the client's internal priorities.
- Not preparing a backup person: when the point of contact is on leave or leaves the company, the entire coordination process comes to a halt. The process only resumes when you appoint a new person who understands the context.
- Confusion between coordination and approval: the point of contact gets pulled into every creative review round. This person spends time on overall coordination and becomes a bottleneck instead of a clear path.
Clearly define who approves what right from the kickoff meeting. Do not allow habits to form organically, as they often serve the quickest person, not the true priorities of the brand.
Swydo, Client Onboarding Best Practices
Questions to finalize at the kickoff
Three questions are enough to clarify the roles: who is the point of contact, who is the backup, and who has the authority to prioritize. If the answers are unclear, it’s best to clarify before officially starting work. Changing roles midway takes much more time than establishing them correctly from the beginning.
Decision checklist
Topic: Who is the fixed point of contact in the brand project. Sinh Vũ guide, sinhvu.com
Tick each item that applies or that you can already answer, then print or save as PDF to take with you.
If you have marked most of the signs above, this is the time to discuss in more detail. Sinh Vũ can help you review and propose a direction.
References
Atlassian, What is Creative Operations; Lytho, Traffic Manager vs Project Manager; Asana, How to Manage Creative Requests; Sinh Vũ, documentation for outsourced brand operations.
Frequently asked questions
Does the internal point of contact need to be the marketing head?
Not necessarily. What’s needed is someone with sufficient authority to gather requests from various departments and prioritize without needing additional approvals. If the marketing head can meet that requirement, that’s great. If not, you should appoint someone else or grant more authority to that person before starting.
What happens if my contact leaves or goes on a long business trip?
You should appoint a second backup person right from the kickoff meeting. When the main contact is absent, the backup takes on temporary coordination authority. If there is no backup and the workload is still ongoing, the process will come to a halt because the executing side cannot independently assess your internal priorities.
Can the executing party work directly with each department without a point of contact?
Technically, it’s possible, but it shouldn’t be done. When multiple departments place requests directly, the executing side will receive conflicting requests and have no basis to judge which one is a priority. The result is delays or you having to resolve conflicts instead of the contact person. A single point of contact protects both sides.
This article is for reference. The scope, pricing, and specific commitments of Sinh Vũ are detailed in the proposal and signed contract.