The EOS Core Process for Marketing: A Marketer’s Guide to Creating Calm in the Chaos

Being the only marketer at a B2B startup can be hectic, to say the least. I’ll switch from writing blog posts to managing social media to analyzing campaign performance to doing event prep — all before lunch. 

To prevent myself from running around like a chicken with its head cut off (at least most of the time), I use the EOS core process framework to create marketing core processes to stay on track for our goals — and keep me calm.

The Problem: Marketing Without Process is Marketing Without Peace

Many marketers — especially in scrappy startup environments — wear every hat imaginable. Content creator, social media manager, email marketer, event coordinator, graphic designer, data analyst, SEO manager, copywriter, media buyer — the list goes on. I’m constantly context-switching between different channels, campaigns, and shifting needs and goals from my team. Because if there’s one thing I have to be above all, it’s nimble.

But here’s what the data says about this approach: less than half (44.6%) of marketers agree marketing is a well-defined function within their business, with a clear structure, chain of accountability and detailed processes in place. Meanwhile, 83% of marketing leaders now consider demonstrating ROI as their top priority, up from 68% five years ago.

The disconnect is clear: we’re under pressure to prove our value, but we’re operating without the processes that would actually help us deliver consistent, measurable results.

I learned this the hard way when I was preparing to go on maternity leave last year. I wanted to make sure we didn’t lose the momentum I had built, at a minimum. Ideally, processes around lead generation would continue without me, so we would continue to build.

That’s when I realized pretty much everything marketing was living in my head instead of in documented, repeatable processes. Talk about an “oh s***” moment! 

Luckily, I had EOS core processes to guide me and an awesome EOS software tool (can you guess which one??) to help me document marketing core processes for my team. (You can check out my blog on planning for maternity leave here.) 

For more details on how to get your marketing core processes organized, including marketing core process templates you can start using today, read on.

What Makes a Marketing Process “Core”?

In EOS, core processes are the essential, step-by-step ways your company consistently delivers value to customers. They’re your “secret sauce” — the repeatable methods that drive results.

For marketing, core processes are the critical workflows that keep your business growing. They’re not every single task you do (nobody needs a documented process for checking your inbox), but the high-impact activities that directly contribute to revenue and brand growth.

Think of core processes as the difference between a short-order cook without a menu, frantically juggling orders and scraping for ingredients, versus a chef in a well-stocked kitchen who has perfected their signature dishes. Both are food, but only one is scalable, consistent, and stress-free.

Five Core Marketing Processes Every Marketer Needs

After implementing EOS in my own marketing operations, here are the five core processes that I feel form the backbone of any effective marketing function:

1. Lead generation and nurturing
2. Content creation and distribution
3. Campaign planning and execution
4. Brand management and messaging
5. Performance tracking and reporting

These processes work together like a well-oiled machine. Content creation feeds lead gen. Brand management ensures campaign consistency. Performance tracking informs future content and campaigns. When documented properly, they create a sustainable marketing system — one that will run without you being the single point of failure.

(One day I’ll get to an event planning as well, but that’s been a bit more ad hoc for us so far, and generally is heavily supported by the above 5 core marketing processes.))

How to Document Marketing Core Processes + Templates

The EOS framework uses a simple Three-Step Process Documenter:

1. High-Level Steps (5-8 major phases)
2. Detailed Steps (The specific actions within each phase)
3. Accountability (Who does what, when)

Here are templates for each of these 5 marketing core processes using this framework:

Marketing Core Process Template: Lead Generation and Nurturing 

Marketing Core Process Template: Content Creation and Distribution 

Marketing Core Process Template: Campaign Planning and Execution

Marketing Core Process Template: Brand Management and Messaging

Marketing Core Process Template: Performance Tracking and Reporting

Getting Started: Your Four-Week Marketing Process Documentation Sprint

The thought of documenting all your marketing processes might feel overwhelming. Trust me, I get it. But you don’t have to do everything at once. Here’s how I recommend approaching it:

Week 1: Process Audit 

List everything you do on a monthly basis. I literally kept a time log for a week, noting every marketing task. Then categorize each activity by frequency and importance. Your goal is to identify the 5-7 most critical processes that drive the biggest impact.

Week 2: Documentation Sprint 

Start with your most frequent process — for most of us, that’s content creation. Use Strety’s Playbook feature to document each step. Include templates, checklists, and links to resources. Don’t worry about making it perfect; focus on getting the knowledge out of your head and into a shareable format.

Week 3: Testing and Refinement 

Run through your documented process as if you’re training someone else to do it. Note every gap, unclear step, or missing resource. This is where you’ll discover all the “obvious” things that aren’t actually obvious to anyone but you.

Week 4: Team Training and Handoff 

Even if you’re a team of one, find someone — a colleague, your boss, even someone on another team — to walk through the process. Create practice scenarios and establish clear ownership. The goal is to prove that someone else could execute this process successfully.

The Marketing Process Mistakes That Will Drive You Crazy

I’ve made every process documentation mistake in the book, so let me save you some pain:

• Don’t make processes too rigid. Marketing requires creativity and adaptation. Your processes should provide structure while allowing room for creative decisions and market changes.
• Don’t over-document simple tasks. You don’t need a 10-step process for posting on LinkedIn. Focus on the complex, high-impact workflows that really benefit from documentation.
• Don’t create processes in isolation. Get input from anyone who touches the process, even if it’s just your sales team or CEO. They’ll catch blind spots you’ve missed.
• Don’t set it and forget it. Schedule quarterly process reviews. Markets change, tools evolve, and your business grows (hopefully!!). Your processes need to evolve too.

The best processes feel like helpful guardrails, not restrictive rules. They should make your work easier, not more bureaucratic.

How You’ll Know Your Marketing Core Processes Are Working

The true test of good marketing processes isn’t how pretty they look in your documentation (though we do love a pretty playbook!) — it’s how they change your daily experience. Here are the signs that your process documentation is actually working:

Time saved on routine tasks. You’re not reinventing the wheel every time you launch a campaign or create content.

Consistency in output quality. Your brand voice stays consistent, your campaigns follow proven frameworks, and your content maintains professional standards.

Team confidence. New team members (or existing team members taking on new responsibilities) can understand the marketing process and where to turn for questions.

Reduced errors and rework. You’re not forgetting steps or having to redo work because something was missed.

But the biggest indicator of success is what I call the “calm growth” test: Can you take a vacation without marketing operations stopping? Does marketing quality remain consistent even when I’m pulled into other priorities?

When you can answer yes to these questions, you’ve moved from chaos to calm growth.

Changing Marketing From Reactive to Strategic

Implementing core marketing processes didn’t just make my work more organized — it fundamentally changed how I approach marketing. Instead of being reactive, constantly putting out fires and responding to urgent requests, I became proactive. I could see patterns, plan ahead, and focus on strategic initiatives that actually move the needle.

The documentation process also revealed how much of my “strategic thinking” time was actually spent on remembering and organizing tasks. When I freed up that mental bandwidth, I had space for the creative, high-level work that actually excited me about marketing.

Most importantly, I stopped being the single point of failure for our marketing operations. Our processes became part of our organizational knowledge, not just my personal expertise. This didn’t make me less valuable — it made me more valuable, because I could focus on strategy and growth instead of being buried in operational details.

Marketing processes aren’t about creating bureaucracy or stifling creativity. They’re about creating the foundation for sustainable, scalable growth. They’re about moving from working in your business to working on your business.

For solo marketers trying to do everything, processes are about finally getting some well-earned peace of mind.

Why Strety Makes Marketing Process Documentation Actually Work

Time for some marketing here 🙂 

When I first started at Strety, I tried documenting processes in Google Docs. Though I am a big fan of Docs, they had a big problem: they lived in isolation, separate from my team’s daily work. Team members would forget they existed, and processes would quickly become outdated.

Strety solved this when our dev team released Playbooks in Strety, so we could start integrating processes directly into our workflow. When I create a Playbook in Strety it’s not just a static document — it’s connected to our Rocks, generates To Dos for team members, and shows up in relevant L10 meetings.

Plus, the cross-departmental visibility means our marketing processes integrate seamlessly with sales, product, and customer success. The whole team has visibility into what I’m doing to create visibility for Strety in the market. That’s right: visibility into visibility 😎

Ready to Create Your Own Marketing Process Documentation?

Start small. Pick one core marketing process that you do regularly — maybe it’s how you create blog content or how you plan campaigns. Spend an hour this week documenting it step-by-step in whatever tool you’re using now. Once you get comfortable creating a process, check out the marketing core process templates above and start adapting them for your own use.

If you want to see how Strety can make this process documentation actually integrate with your daily workflow, start a free trial or book time with our team for a personalized tour of how people are using our platform.

Remember: you don’t have to keep everything in your head. Your future self (and your future team) will thank you for taking the time to document what you’ve learned. Because the best marketing isn’t just effective — it’s repeatable.