Optimizing Marketing SharePoint for a Professional Services Firm
By applying marketing operations principles to knowledge management, the SharePoint environment was transformed from cluttered and confusing into a structured, governed, and user-friendly hub. This improves efficiency, collaboration, and the firm’s ability to support client-facing work.
Situation
A national B2B professional services firm relied on SharePoint as its primary hub for marketing materials, internal resources, and client-facing documents.
Over time, the workspace became cluttered with inconsistent folder structures, multiple versions of key assets, unclear ownership, and outdated permissions. This led to confusion, duplicated work, and delays in accessing accurate materials.
Task
Our marketing operations team was engaged to streamline the SharePoint environment by auditing the existing structure, implementing a clear taxonomy, establishing governance, and enabling long-term adoption.
The goal was to increase efficiency, ensure content accuracy, and improve collaboration across marketing and practice teams.
Action
1. Capture (Audit & Assessment)
We conducted a comprehensive audit of the SharePoint environment, including:
Cataloging 1,200+ folders across multiple business units
Identifying redundant files, outdated collateral, and version-control issues
Reviewing access rights and uncovering inconsistent or outdated permissions
Evaluating usage patterns to distinguish active content from stale materials
2. Connect (Design a Standardized Folder Taxonomy)
Using insights from the audit, we designed a function-first structure aligned with how professional services teams work. Key categories included:
Marketing Collateral (proposals, decks, case studies)
Thought Leadership (white papers, research, webinars)
Campaigns & Initiatives (events, programs, email campaigns)
Internal Resources (brand guidelines, templates, SOPs)
Archives (historical and sunsetted materials)
We also introduced standardized naming conventions (e.g., YYYY_MM_Project/Asset_Type_Version) to improve searchability and consistency.
3. Clarify (Establish Governance & Best Practices)
To ensure clarity and long-term consistency, we implemented:
Role-based access permissions aligned to marketing and practice teams
A centralized Resource Hub with SOPs, naming guides, and tutorials
Quarterly content review and archiving workflows to maintain cleanliness
4. Control (Enablement & Rollout Support)
We delivered live trainings, recorded walkthroughs, and easy-reference guides to support adoption. These enablement activities ensured that teams understood the new structure, followed governance standards, and felt confident navigating the updated system.
Result
Faster Access to Materials: Teams can now quickly locate collateral, significantly reducing duplicated work
Improved Accuracy: Standardized naming and structured folders ensure the latest versions are consistently used
Higher Adoption: Users report a more intuitive and reliable SharePoint experience
Future-Ready Structure: The system is now scalable to support growth and cross-functional collaboration