So, what exactly is a content calendar? It’s essentially a blueprint for your social media success. It outlines what you plan to post, where you plan to post it (even if you’re posting on multiple platforms), and when it will go live. It’s a detailed planner in its simplest form, but we love using a content calendar because it helps us visualize our overall plan! Using this tool allows you to easily spot gaps and opportunities so you can make adjustments as needed to keep your strategy fresh and engaging. Whether you’re scheduling posts for the week, the month, or the entire quarter, a content calendar allows you to plan every detail in advance. Yes, your ticket to content superstardom is as simple as planning ahead. Who woulda thunk?
Why Use a Content Calendar?
Imagine all the time you could free up if you didn’t sit at your desk for half an hour trying to jumpstart the creative side of your brain because you have to post something today. Beyond the obvious benefits of saving time and stress, a content calendar ensures that every piece of content aligns with your business goals and values. As a bonus, planning your content in advance means you can ensure your posts align with your marketing campaigns, product launches, and seasonal events. Creating content that is timely and relevant captures the attention of your audience when it matters most. A content calendar also helps you keep an even balance of content types, ensuring you’re not overwhelming your followers with too many sales posts. One more benefit is that it gives you flexibility to adjust your strategy based on real-time feedback and analytics. If a post is getting a ton of engagement, you can easily pivot and create more of that content.
How to Create and Use a Content Calendar
- Get Your Calendar: We do this digitally with Google Sheets, but you can use a monthly planner, a blank piece of paper, or any type of calendar you want!
- Pick 5-10 Categories to Post About: Examples include holidays, reviews, products/services, questions, and more. We like to color-code this part so it’s easy to see in our calendar (the crazily chaotic parts of our brains appreciate this). Remember the 80/20 rule: only sell 20% of the time. The other 80% should be filled with inspiration, education, and entertainment. What will your audience respond to?
- Figure Out How Many Days to Post: There’s no “right” amount per week to be posting on any platform. However, there is constantly updating research out there about what amounts on what platforms (and what post types) seem to be working for people. Check out our Facebook page for updates on this! You can also check your analytics to see when your audience is typically online and plan your posts on those days and times.
- Assign a Category to Each Day You’d Like to Post: this is where color coding helps! Post a review on a Tuesday. Ask your followers a question on Friday. Assignments can be totally random if you want! But having your categories color-coded will help you ensure you’re not posting your orange category too often.
- Update Your Calendar Regularly: Eventually, you’re going to run out of pre-planned days to post. This is when you’ll need to update your calendar! Just fill in your days with the categories you’ve selected and you’ll be good to go.
Be Flexible
One more thing: don’t be afraid to be flexible. A content calendar is a living document, so if something isn’t working or you have a great idea to post, don’t hesitate to make changes. That awesome quote post you created will be just as good next week! That’s the beauty of having a plan in place - you can adjust as you go.
We understand that managing social media can feel like just one more thing on your never-ending to-do list. But by using a content calendar, you take control of your social media strategy rather than letting it control you. By planning ahead, you free up more time to engage with your audience and focus on what you do best. Keep it simple at first and gradually build up your strategy. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll wonder how you ever managed without it! You’re on your way to becoming a social media pro, one planned post at a time.
If you need help with any step in creating your content calendar, we can help. We create free content planners every month for the members in our Facebook group, Flourish on Social. If you want a template to work with (which includes an extensive list of the month’s hashtag holidays like #NationalPetDay) rather than creating your own calendar, click here to join our group. We also offer Social Media Roadmap sessions where we take you through this process one-on-one. At the end, you have the tools to help you create your monthly content calendar. Book a session with us to get your Roadmap!
Breathe. You’ve got this. Good luck, and happy planning!
