A Content Calendar How-To Guide

By: Johana M. Caba, M.A. 

What is a content calendar? You might have heard of content calendars, editorial calendars and marketing calendars but you might not know what those terms mean. Well, a content calendar, editorial calendar or marketing calendar are used in the marketing and public relations industries to create strategic plans for businesses and and individual clients. By definition, a content calendar is a publishing schedule that is used by bloggers, businesses, and other organizations to plan and publish content across different media outlets like magazines, blogs, social media, newsletters and newspapers. If you have never heard of these terms, then you might not know where to start. As a new blogger, content creator or small business it is important for you to develop a content calendar to plan, create and publish content throughout different media outlets to aid you in your promotional strategies. Below are some tips on creating your first content calendar and if you want the full guide, you can purchase it at the end of this post for $8 USD. We also have a FREE Beginners Guide to a Public Relations Plan for Small Business and Bloggers which you can get right now in your inbox by subscribing to our newsletter. 

1. The Right Planner: This first tip depends entirely on your personal preferences. You can either decide to plan your content on a physical planner, large calendar or a virtual spreadsheet. If your small business consists of several people that will be handling the content creation and promotion, then I suggest using Google Sheets to share the calendar with everyone. After deciding your tool, you can move on to the next tip. Order The Blogger's Planner 2021 today for a blogger specific planner that has everything you need.
2. Existing Content: Start with content that you already have. For example, old blog posts, white papers, infographics, video tutorials and tutorial guides can be used to fill in your calendar. Use these existing ones and plan to share them throughout your editorial period which can be weekly, monthly or quarterly. 
3. New Content: Use your editorial calendar to see when you will be posting new content and what type of content it will be. Be specific. For example, every Tuesday you need to post a new blog. This means that you should plan to start writing the piece a few days in advance to give you enough time to proofread, edit, proofread and edit again before publishing. Same goes for infographics, white papers, and video tutorials. 
4. Analytics: A content calendar is a great way to keep track of your analytics. You can see and record which days get you the most traffic, what kind of content gets the most attention and which platforms lead to the most traffic. By jotting down your analytics and keeping track with your calendar, you can plan better for the future and adjust your plans depending on the information you gather. ​

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