Marketing SOPs Made Easy with AI (Free Template)

Marketers are obsessed with efficiency, because, let’s face it, we have to be.

We’re constantly expected to do more with less, which sends us scrambling for the next tool, hack, or AI feature that might help us stay afloat. But one of the most underrated ways to increase efficiency hides in plain sight, often forgotten like that sad bag of peas buried in the back of your freezer.

I’m talking about SOPs - Standard Operating Procedures. Not to be confused with Suspiciously Optimistic Projections - though both are essential to marketing.

In this post, I’m going to break down everything you need to know about marketing SOPs and show you a smarter way to build them using AI.

Plus, you’ll get a free SOP template to help you streamline your workflow and become a master of efficiency.

What Are Marketing SOPs (and Why Do They Matter)?

Marketing SOPs are simple documents that outline how your team executes repeatable tasks. They help your team stay efficient, consistent, and scalable by cutting out the guesswork, keeping everyone on the same page, and making it way easier to onboard new team members.

SOPs can also help your team identify and address inefficiencies in your workflows, making it easier to reallocate time and resources to higher-impact tasks and reduce mistakes. 

The only problem? Everyone dreads writing them.

They’re tedious, time-consuming and dreadfully unsexy. So, they’re usually left to rot on the proverbial back-burner, or worse, they get dumped on an intern. 

Core Components of a Great Marketing SOP

A good SOP should be clear, repeatable, and easy to hand off.

Think of it this way: if someone new joined your team and you gave them this doc, could they complete the task without pinging you every five minutes? This is a good mental measuring stick to use when putting SOPs together. 

Every team’s SOPs might look a little different than the next. And that’s OK - there are no set rules for what an SOP needs to contain. Here’s what we include in ours: 

SOP Title

Give the workflow a clear, action-oriented name. Think “YouTube Video Publishing” or “Client Onboarding Sequence." Choose something that tells people exactly what this SOP is for at a glance.

Document Details

This is the quick who/what/when of the SOP. It includes when it was last updated, who created it, and who signed off on it. Helps keep everything organized, up-to-date, and accountable as things evolve.

Scope

Explain what your SOP covers and who should be using it. It sets the context so your team knows when this applies and why it matters.

Roles & Responsibilities

This section is self explanatory. Here is where you would list out the roles involved in the workflow and what tasks they are responsible for. Use job titles instead of names so you’re not constantly updating it when people come and go.

Required Tools

List the tools, platforms, or software needed to get the job done. Super helpful for onboarding new folks or making sure everyone’s got what they need from the jump.

Workflow

This is where the magic happens. Lay out the step-by-step process, with any notes, bullet points, or even screenshots if it helps. The goal is to make it as easy to follow as possible.

Resources & References

Drop in any helpful links to items mentioned in your workflow, such as screen recordings, templates, or shared folders, etc.. This is your go-to section for quick access to all supporting materials.

We’ve dropped a free marketing SOP template for you below, which comes stock with all these components. It pairs perfectly with the SOP creation strategy we’re about to walk through, so stick around to see how we build them!

👉 Download our FREE Marketing SOP Template

How to Create Marketing SOPs Using AI

Instead of starting from a blank document (ugh), use this 4-step process to build your SOP in a smarter, faster, more scalable way.

Step 1: Record Your Screen

Use a screen recorder like Loom (free and super easy) to capture yourself walking through the workflow. Narrate what you’re doing out loud and make sure to identify who is responsible for each step using job titles.

💡 Pro tip: If you’re not using Loom, tools like QuickTime or OBS will work, but you’ll need an extra step later to transcribe your video.

Step 2: Transcribe Your Recording

Loom automatically generates a transcript. Just click “Transcript” > “Copy.”

For those not using Loom, here's that extra step I mentioned earlier. You'll need to use an app like Descript to generate a transcript.

Step 3: Convert Transcript to Workflow Using AI

Paste your transcript into ChatGPT and use this prompt:

“Read this transcript that overviews my process for [insert task] and use it to create a formal step-by-step workflow with instructions.”

In seconds, you’ll have a polished workflow you can drop into your SOP.

Step 4: Build the Complete SOP

Take the workflow you just created and paste it into the “Workflow” section of the SOP template (linked above - but here it is again). Then fill out the other fields like Scope, Roles & Responsibilities, Tools, and Resources.

Optional 5th Step: Include Your Video Don't let your workflow video go to waste. Upload the screen recording to your shared team drive and link to it in the Resources section for the visual learners.

Ready to Make Some SOP’s? 

It’s not glamorous work, but the payoff is real. That’s why we built our marketing SOP template and workflow to make the whole process easy, efficient, and (almost) painless.

So, give them a shot - your team and future self will thank you for it!