Why do you need a content calendar to plan your blog posts, videos, and podcast episodes? Because success with content marketing rarely happens by accident. That’s why 96% of the best marketers use a content or editorial calendar. (Source: 99Firms)
In other words, the most successful marketers PLAN their content.
In this episode, we’re talking about what an editorial content calendar is and five reasons why you’d want to start using one in your business today.
TIME-STAMPED SHOW NOTES:
[01:40] Start with Strategy and Planning in Your Marketing
[04:33] What is an Editorial Content Calendar?
[08:24] How to Format an Editorial Content Calendar
[11:15] The 5 Benefits of an Editorial Content Calendar
[21:22] Is Having an Editorial Content Calendar a Necessity?
[23:13] Bloopers
RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
Google Sheets
Asana
Coschedule
Start with Strategy and Planning in Your Marketing
[Meghan] One of the reasons we began The Messy Desk Podcast was to support other business owners and self-employed individuals who struggle with the overwhelm and chaos that’s so common in the lives of entrepreneurs.
And one way we combat overwhelm and chaos is through planning and strategy. You’ll hear that from us time and time again. In fact, we just talked about planning goals in the previous episode!
[Theresa] That’s right. We repeatedly hear complaints from clients and colleagues who could alleviate their struggles simply by slowing down long enough to plan and strategize.
It seems counter intuitive, but you truly need to slow down to speed up.
[Meghan] We believe in starting small and simple. Those initial foundational steps are so often missing in our businesses. You know how it is, you go seeking information for a specific problem you want to solve in the moment. And you find a solution.
More often than not, the solution doesn’t address the bigger problem. Instead, it’s a band-aid. It’s like using your finger to plug the dam until another hole pops open.
[Theresa] It’s a temporary solution that works “for now.” That “for now” solution is more like a patch. It keeps you moving forward in the moment, but it’s not designed to work on a long-term, permanent basis.
Because when you’re using your fingers to stop the small leaks in the dam–or solving bigger business problems with temporary solutions—eventually you’re going to run out of fingers and you’re going to need to build a new dam, right?
“For now” decisions keep you moving forward but aren’t long-term solutions.
[Meghan] That’s right! Sooner or later, you’re not going to be able to plug the holes without bigger sacrifice.
What we’re getting at is that something’s gotta give. Either YOU are going to get fed up or the business isn’t going to survive. Well, maybe it will survive, but it won’t thrive—and neither will you until you fix the bigger issues.
[Theresa] And many times those bigger issues are related to more fundamental, foundational things, like mindset, productivity, planning, and strategy. Which is why we talk about these topics and incorporate them into our episodes.
[Meghan] Those are definitely themes throughout the podcast! And that’s intentional.
Starting with planning and strategy in your marketing is probably the least fun for most businesses. But planning and strategy guide the direction you need to go to achieve success.
[Theresa] It’s easier to get to your destination when you’ve got a specific location and a map, right?
Not sure you need a content calendar? Here are five reasons why it's beneficial to plan your blog, vlog, or podcast topics.Click To TweetWhat is an Editorial Content Calendar?
[Meghan] Exactly! And that brings us to the editorial content calendar. Why? Because it’s a map of sorts. It’s the planning and strategy that guides your content marketing so you can reach your goals.
You’ve got two options when it comes to your content.
- You can randomly come up with ideas for your content and hope that Lady Luck is on your side.
- Or, you can plan your content so that it’s working toward a greater goal, such as selling your products and growing your business.
[Theresa] I think we all know that option number two is the better choice!
[Meghan] Definitely! From my own experiences, I know option two is preferred. All you need for proof is my Smart Bird Social blog. Initially I didn’t plan my topics, and I’m still paying for that mistake. I won’t go into that again, but I’ve talked about how the wrong topics attracted the wrong audience and hurt my SEO.
A content calendar would have helped me so much when I was first starting out since it is a strategic, mapped out plan. And who doesn’t love a plan?
[Theresa] I love having a plan too! Here’s why:
- It saves me time. I only focus on the work that moves me forward.
- No guess work is involved. I know what I’m doing and why.
- Decision-making is easier. If it doesn’t advance my agenda, it’s easier to say no. Sayonara, shiny objects!
- I work less because I spend more time on the right things and less time on everything.
[Meghan] Yep, having a plan brings peace of mind and saves time. So, you may be wondering, what is a content calendar?
A content calendar is an organized plan of the what, why, who, and when for the topics you’re publishing on your blog, vlog, or podcast. In other words:
- WHAT content to create (ie. topics/keywords);
- WHY you’re creating it (ie. promote an offer or freebie);
- WHO is creating it (ie. the author); and,
- WHEN the content launches (ie. due date).
Your calendar will include other details, but those are the most basic elements.
This type of document is also called an “editorial calendar.” The terms are interchangeable.
[Theresa] A little side note here. If you Google “content calendar” you’ll find a lot of information about social media content calendars.
But what we’re talking about today is NOT for social media. As Meghan mentioned, we’re talking about planning the topics for your main content assets, like your blog, vlog, or podcast. A social media content calendar is a different discussion.
[Meghan] Right. I use a separate calendar for social media content. Some people plan their social media on the same calendar as their blog. That’s up to you.
I feel that social media is an effective tool to amplify and distribute your content. But, your main content strategy and assets drive the decisions for what to post on social media, not the other way around.
How to Format an Editorial Content Calendar
[Meghan] Okay, so how do you format a content calendar? I prefer using a Google Sheet or spreadsheet. Google Sheets are free and work well for collaboration. That makes the app effective and accessible for nearly everyone. And you know, it’s simple, especially if you have used spreadsheets in the past.
[Theresa] I like the spreadsheet format as well. For this podcast, we use a Google Sheet for the content calendar and then Asana for the workflow and task management. I think it works really well.
[Meghan] I agree. Using those two together has made managing the content so much easier.
Theresa’s setup in Asana is really a work of art! She was like, “Here Meghan, let me go set something up in Asana.” And then, next thing you know, she’s got an entire workflow and system planned out.
[Theresa] Asana is a great tool for task management, especially if it’s more than just you in your business. Having the workflow and system already done in Asana made it possible to bring on a graphics person without any stress.
Could we have managed the tasks with a spreadsheet? Maybe, but Asana is set up for task management and a spreadsheet isn’t. Asana is great for taking what’s in the calendar and setting up the tasks associated with content production and publishing.
Google Sheet + Asana are terrific tools for managing your content and the tasks around creating it.
You could also use an app like Coschedule. It offers a digital content calendar, although it’s not free. But for under $20 a month, it’s fairly robust and integrates with WordPress. There are even WordPress plugins that offer editorial calendar capabilities.
[Meghan] My content calendars track quite a bit of information and data. I need over ten columns of info. And, I need the functionality to search and filter the data. So, for me, a spreadsheet format has been ideal. But to each their own! This is about creating what works for you.
[Theresa] Absolutely do what works for you! There’s no such thing as one size fits all. What’s important is that you get started. Don’t make using a complicated system the excuse you make for not moving forward. Just start simply. You can get more sophisticated later.
The 5 Benefits of an Editorial Content Calendar
[Theresa] So now that you know what an editorial content calendar is, Meghan’s going to enlighten us about why we should all be using one.
#1 Organizes Your Content Strategy and Ideas into a Plan
[Meghan] To start off, a content calendar organizes your ideas and implements your strategy into an actionable plan. This is my favorite benefit of a content calendar!
After you figure out your content strategy and research content ideas, what do you do? You need to get specific. Put some structure around the legwork you’ve done. Decide what’s getting published and when so that you or someone you hire can start working on it. Having a plan for your content makes you more likely to take intentional action.
Not only that, but you can also plan your promotions this way. Remember, part of the content calendar is the WHY. Every piece of content has a purpose. And that purpose is to lead your audience down a certain path.
A calendar helps you plan that path and any campaigns or promotions you want to organize. This bird’s eye view is an instrumental part in your effort to communicate a brand message, generate leads, and increase sales.
[Theresa] This reminds me of a quote by Napoleon Hill, “plan your work and work your plan.” Your content calendar is the purposeful plan that you work. A little bit of effort up front leads to months of ease.
#2 Sets a Publishing Schedule to Be Consistent
[Meghan] The second benefit is that a content calendar makes it possible to set a publishing schedule and stick to it. The end result? Consistent publishing.
Consistency builds credibility and trust with your audience. Showing up reliably with quality content also builds your reputation. Plus, your new content gives people a reason and an opportunity to continue engaging with your brand.
Consistent publishing isn’t only important for how people feel about your brand. There are also search engine optimization benefits. Google prefers consistent, high quality and fresh content. In turn, this increases your brand’s exposure and reach. This is true across all types of content including blog, video, AND audio content.
[Theresa] Now that you have a publishing schedule, you can incorporate the content creation and publishing process into your daily or weekly routine. And you know what that means? You’ll form a habit. This will make it easier to meet your deadlines and stay consistent.
And since you’ll know well in advance what’s coming down the pipeline, you can plan ahead. You can prep your content in advance or even outsource some of the work!
Don’t underestimate the perks of setting a publishing schedule! It helps you meet deadlines, stay consistent, plan ahead, and outsource the work.
#3 Saves Time Since the Prep Work is Done
[Meghan] Another benefit of using a calendar is that it saves time.
You complete the brainstorming, research, and planning during the process of creating your content calendar.
That means the prep work is done when you sit down to create content. No worries about writer’s block! You can go straight to content creation, and that will save you an epic amount of time. It will also increase the quality of your content and make it possible to keep up with regular publishing.
Right now, you’re probably doing all of the separate phases of content production at once. I know I’ve done this plenty of times. You’re coming up with ideas, writing the content, formatting it, and getting it out the door all at once—in one sitting or one time block on your calendar. That’s a big NO.
You’re going to produce lower quality content this way, and you’ll never be able to stay consistent with publishing. It’s too many tasks for one sitting. You’ll get overwhelmed and other, more immediate tasks will take precedence.
[Theresa] Another huge advantage in this scenario is the opportunity to set up processes and systems. You can start to see your content production as four distinct steps.
- Prep work or ideation – researching and planning ideas (the content calendar)
- Content creation – writing, editing, images
- Publishing – uploading, formatting, optimizing for search
- Promoting – getting the word out about your new content
Like Meghan says, trying to do these all at once is a recipe for disaster. So now’s your chance to split these steps into separate tasks on your calendar to avoid overwhelm. Better yet, hire some or all of it out!
#4 Simplifies Collaboration
[Meghan] And Theresa brings us to the fourth benefit of a content calendar: it simplifies collaboration when you’re working with others.
Even if it’s only you in your business right now, it’s imperative to plan for the future. Creating processes now means that you can outsource easier later. Getting help may not be on your radar. But, you cannot keep doing everything in your business yourself if you want to earn more money or work less.
With that in mind, the content calendar is perfect. It’s a clear plan and schedule that is accessible to others. You don’t have to worry about everything hinging on your input because other people can follow a calendar to manage the content production process.
So when you’re ready to hire writers, designers, SEO experts, project managers, or assistants, the calendar is there to make planning simple across multiple team members.
Plus, you can always add more or less information to the calendar to meet your needs. It’s a fluid document that changes as your business needs change.
[Theresa] Right. My favorite part about having a content calendar is that it helps you establish a repeatable process. This is invaluable to have whether you choose to hire or not. Once you’ve identified the steps in your process it’s easy to create a system.
Seeing all of the deliverables clearly laid out will help you determine what tasks you want to relinquish later. That information helps you decide what type of assistance you want and, therefore, who you need to hire.
A content calendar helps you establish a repeatable process and a system.
For example, in creating the production process for The Messy Desk Podcast, we determined what needed to be outsourced right away. We also identified the tasks we didn’t want to do. So it was clear who we would need to hire and in what order.
We have two other people on our team that help us with the things we can’t do and don’t want to do. We easily plugged them into our workflow in Asana and they got started right away. The team helps to alleviate the friction between us and the tasks we don’t enjoy. More importantly, it frees us up to focus on the most important part of our business, like the content!
#5 Keeps You on Target with Your “Why”
[Meghan] The fifth benefit of using a content calendar is to stay on target with your why. It reminds you that every single piece of content must serve your audience, serve your business, and relate to something you offer.
Sometimes when you’re coming up with ideas for things you want to talk about with your community you get so focused on what you think they want to know that you forget about what’s important to your business.
Sure, it’s important to pay attention to your audience’s why and what they care about. But you’ve also got to think about the business’s why. Why are you publishing this content?
Your content is meant to earn trust, highlight your expertise, build your authority in your niche, and generate leads. One very important reason that you’re in business is to make money, and your content is meant to help you achieve that goal.
And a content calendar helps because it keeps you focused on content topics that align with your products and services so that you generate more sales over the long haul.
[Theresa] I’ll quickly add this. When you’re developing your calendar and doing the initial groundwork, you must know these basics:
- Who you’re trying to attract—aka your target customer;
- What your unique selling proposition is—aka what makes you different than the competition;
- How your who and what align with your offers.
It will be easier to create effective content if you know these basics.
Is Having an Editorial Content Calendar a Necessity?
[Meghan] Can you find success without planning and strategy? Yes! Plenty of people have. But usually it’s not sustainable or peaceful success. Sooner or later, you’ll need—and want—to plan your content marketing efforts because you’ll achieve bigger goals and better results with less overwhelm and stress.
In my opinion, it’s a good idea to tip the odds in your favor and plan your content with a calendar. Hopefully, we’ve convinced you that the benefits are worth the work!
Theresa, any final thoughts from you?
[Theresa] Messy moments do lead to insight and success. Sometimes you need to operate in that messy zone. But that’s meant to be temporary.
And, remember to start small! Meghan usually plans six months of content for her clients, but you can start with planning four weeks. The important thing is to start.
[Meghan] Okay, that’s it for this episode!
If you like what you heard today, please share this episode on social media or leave us a comment. We appreciate you!
