How this marketing firm is transforming workflows with AI

In a world where every minute counts, reclaiming lost time isn’t just helpful, it’s transformative.

Eye Care Pro (ECP), a specialized web and marketing company serving optometry practices, discovered this with Asana's AI workflow builder, AI Studio. 

Senior manager Theresa Welty and project management team manager Amy Wagenaar said the impact was immediate. Repetitive tasks that once consumed entire days gave way to automated workflows, freeing their 243-member team to focus on what humans do best: strategic thinking and creative problem-solving.

Game-changing AI applications

ECP found multiple high-value applications for both AI Studio and the AI capabilities integrated throughout the Asana platform:

1. Creating AI automations without technical expertise

Before AI Studio, setting up AI-powered workflows would have challenged team members who lacked technical skills. "I wasn't great at setting up workflows. But as soon as AI Studio came out, I could just type in what I wanted AI to do," Theresa said.

2. Instant project insights

ECP now optimizes task prioritization and workload management with AI-generated insights into project statuses, enabling smarter resource allocation decisions. "The portfolio summaries that AI generates in Asana are invaluable," Theresa said. "If I had to dig through every project, contact project managers for updates, or create status reports myself—that would take hours."

3. Smart conversation summarization

For project managers like Amy, the conversation summarization feature has been game-changing.

"Being a project manager means constantly jumping in and out of projects. When there are 80+ comments on a task, the summary function is probably my biggest time saver," Amy said. "I can immediately understand what's happening without reading everything."

4. Automated task assignment

ECP implemented an AI-powered workflow that automatically assigns tasks based on custom data fields, eliminating manual assignment processes.

"As soon as a task is imported into a project, it automatically notifies a specific person according to a custom data field," Amy said. "It ensures tasks reach the right team members at the right time instead of sitting in limbo waiting for someone to take action."

5. Reducing repetitive work

The team leverages AI to automate previously manual tasks, reducing bottlenecks and creating more time for strategic work.

One powerful example is their daily checkout system: "Tasks are imported, auto-assigned to specific individuals with custom task descriptions and links to Microsoft forms, and then automatically completed when the due date arrives," Amy said.

6. Smart data field assistance

ECP was particularly impressed with Asana's data field autofill capability. In one instance, after a team member accidentally deleted fields, AI suggested and restored the missing data.

"That's a massive win because we frequently import client data from other tools," Amy said. "When something goes wrong, having that AI safety net saves tremendous time in data validation."

7. Identifying duplicate efforts

Another area of exploration for the team is AI-powered workflows built in AI Studio to identify overlapping work.

"In a large organization, you don't always know who's working on what. Teams aren't always aligned and often duplicate efforts," Theresa said.

Using AI to identify duplicate work will "help people complete tasks faster by seeing how similar work was done previously, improving effectiveness, efficiency, and quality while providing training opportunities."

Real-world impact

For ECP, Asana's AI capabilities have transformed daily operations. Non-technical team members now build their own workflows, tasks automatically reach the right people, and project managers quickly digest conversations without needing to read dozens of comments.

These practical improvements save the team hours weekly while reducing the frustration of work.

ECP's success is all about thoughtfully applied automation, where results come from identifying specific pain points where AI can help people work more efficiently, versus adopting technology for technology’s sake.