Understanding the Workflow

Every project in CollectContent has a workflow: an ordered set of stages that each piece of content moves through, from the first draft to publication. Understanding how workflows are structured makes it much easier to see where a project stands and what needs attention next.

What is a workflow

A workflow is simply a sequence of stages, arranged top to bottom. A typical workflow might look like:

Draft → In Review → Approved → Published

Every item in the project can have exactly one stage at any given time. As work happens, items move forward through the sequence, stage by stage, until they reach the end.

Stages aren't fixed by CollectContent. Each project defines its own set, so the workflow can match how your team actually works.

See Creating workflow stages to set one up.

Stages reflect real progress

Because every item has a stage, the distribution of items across stages tells you exactly how a project is progressing. If most cards are sitting in Draft, the project is in its early days. If most have reached Approved or Published, it's close to done.

This is what makes the stacked workflow progress bar in your Project Overview useful as a status view: it gives you a quick sense of your project's maturity.

Moving items through stages

Team members move an item to its next stage by updating the item's stage indicator. There's no limit on how many times an item can move; content can also move backwards, for example, if a reviewer sends a piece back to Draft for changes.

Why this matters

Because stage changes are visible project-wide, "Administrators" and "Editors" on your team can open a project and immediately understand what's finished, what's in progress, and what hasn't been started yet, without needing a status update meeting. The workflow is the single source of truth for the status of content.

Next, learn how to manage workflow stages for your own project.