You open a blank timeline and get stuck
New project just confirmed. You’re setting up the stages.
“Script review” — how many days? “Design & production”? “Final output”? You run through estimates in your head, but there’s not much to go on. You’ve done projects like this before, but never quite the same, and every situation is a bit different.
You fill in some numbers, tell yourself you’ll adjust later, and move on.
Day counts are hard to get right at the start
The timeline asks you to make your most concrete decision at the most uncertain moment — how many days per stage, right now.
You guess, fill it in, and know it’s only a rough estimate. But the timeline doesn’t know that — it just runs with those numbers.
What you usually do know is things like: “this stage is more important than that one” or “this part is more complex and needs more breathing room.” You need a way to confirm priorities first and let the system calculate the proportions.
The fix: use time weights to decide “which one matters more”
Nimoo offers a time weight allocation mode.
You don’t need to commit to day counts upfront — just assign each stage a relative importance level, from “Shortest” to “Longest” (five levels).
The system calculates each stage’s day proportion based on the weights you set.
Example: freelance designer on a branding project, not sure how to split the time
A designer just landed a brand identity project with three core stages: concept exploration, final artwork, and revision sign-off. She knows “final artwork” takes the most time and “revision sign-off” is relatively quick — but isn’t sure about specific day counts.
What to do:
- In Project Setup, choose “Time Weight Allocation”
- Assign a weight level to each stage:
- Concept exploration → “Medium”
- Final artwork → “Longest”
- Revision sign-off → “Short”
- The system automatically calculates day proportions based on the weights
- Enter the timeline — drag any stage boundary to fine-tune from there
Custom stages: don’t let the default template box you in
Nimoo ships with some common stages as reference points, but you’re not obligated to use them.
Every project has its own workflow. You know better than the system what stages this particular project needs.
Feel free to add, remove, or rename stages so the timeline reflects how you actually work.
Example: ad agency on a social media video project with a different process
An ad agency has their own fixed video production workflow, slightly different from the system default: “Script review → Storyboard → Shoot → Rough cut client review → Final cut & delivery”
What to do:
- When creating the project, start from blank and add stages one by one following the agency’s process
- Set time weights for each stage to reflect the relative complexity of each phase
- For stages with client review (rough cut review), add revision rounds
- The system allocates day counts based on total project length and weights
Fine-tune after you’re in the timeline
Time weights give you a reasonable starting point, not a final answer.
Once you’re in the timeline, you can:
- Drag any stage boundary to adjust day counts directly
- Add or remove revision rounds for specific stages
- If the overall timeline runs past the deadline, check compression suggestions
The key thing: you’re going in with a structured timeline, not a blank slate to guess from.
Summary
| Situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Not sure how many days each stage needs | Use time weight mode — decide relative importance first |
| Default stages don’t match your workflow | Add, remove, or rename stages to match how you actually work |
| You already have clear day counts | Switch to day count mode and enter them directly |
| Want to fine-tune after setup | Drag boundaries in the timeline, or add revision rounds |
Getting clear on “which stage matters more” is an easier starting point than guessing day counts — and it leads to a timeline you’ll actually use.