Did you know that having a killer content calendar can be the key to higher follower engagement and referral traffic to your web page? Today we let your business in on our secrets to creating the perfect content calendar.
Putting out exciting content into the world can sometimes become a team effort. This task can especially be daunting for solo entrepreneurs, and falling behind on your content strategy could mean playing catch up.
1. Determine the type of content you want to post and how many times a week you want to post
Understanding how many times a week to post depends on your business objectives and the number of followers you have on each social media platform.
Ideally, you should be posting content every week to your accounts. Followers value consistency, posting a lot then forgetting to post can cause you to disengage and alienate your following base. Remember, your social media platform is a door that connects you to your audience. It also gives your audience an idea of what to expect from you and leaves them waiting for your eye-catching content. For us, one rule that we never stray from is posting blogs on Wednesday. This way, our followers know to expect a new informational blog post in the middle of each week. We also consistently post Monday through Friday at 6 pm GMT+2.
When you love your product and/or service, it's up to you to create content that makes your followers fall in love with your brand just as much as you. The way to achieve this is to create compelling content that will draw your followers (and any curious onlookers) in by creating value for them.
2. Set aside one day a month to discuss potential topic ideas
This meeting should either be held at the beginning of the month or the end of each month. Waiting until the middle of the month is already too late, and you will undoubtedly be playing catch up for the remaining weeks. Plus, you must also plan to anticipate any last-minute changes to your content schedule if some news hits your industry or business.
Sitting down with your team and coming up with ideas will ultimately create a well-rounded content calendar, as often those working with you will be brand advocates as well as employees.
3. After you determine how many times a week to post, then you should decide what to post
A brand is reflected by the content it shares with its demographic. Make sure you are targeting the right people and creating meaningful engagement. An added goal is to state at least three added values that your content will provide your target audience.
Ask yourself the following questions: who are my audience, how do they benefit from me, what does my content say about my brand, and how engaging is my content?
Answering these questions will help you create your content buckets. Content buckets are a fancy name for content categories. When you settle on a specific amount of posts for your platform, you can separate them into categories that better define their purpose. These categories include but are not limited to:
Educational content
Product or services spotlight
Company news
Trending topics
4. Choose categories or “buckets” that are relevant to your brand and your industry.
Next, decide how many times you would like to create content for that bucket. When YLW first started, we had five content buckets, and each month we created four posts per bucket. Our team met at the beginning of every month to brainstorm what posts would best serve our audience. Furthermore, we discussed and reviewed past visuals to accompany the content. Using these strategies, we designed our first month of content, as well as every month afterward. Our buckets may change depending on our new business objectives for the month as well as how our followers respond. Nonetheless, our routine stays the same to this day.
Creating content for different platforms is a daunting task that requires trial and error and a lot of trial commitment. If you are ever run out of ideas, we recommend the following tips :
Cross-promote content on different platforms
Repurpose content
Outsource this role to a social media manager
The first two points are great life hacks for businesses struggling to develop a few remaining content ideas. While this does save time, your business should use these tricks sparingly. The tone and content of every platform should differ depending on the platform’s demographic. Your audience will notice when your messaging starts to vary or if they have seen the same messaging twice.
5. Outsource content creation to a Social Media Manager
If you find that your business is spending too much time deciding when or what time to post and how to convert its content to different platforms, try outsourcing this task to a social media expert. These specialists will audit your content, determine what works best, and create for you a personalized content schedule to satisfy your business platforms’ unique needs.