A well-structured social media editorial calendar will put your company’s inbound marketing strategy on a fast track to success. Get organized. Improve the efficiency, accountability, and even quality of your social media content with this must-have organization tool.
Here are 8 tips for your social media editorial calendar:
1. Plan ahead: Try producing an editorial calendar well in advance (an entire year ahead if you can). The further you can plan ahead, the more control you have over the content you’re producing. But don’t be afraid to alter your strategy along the way; the editorial calendar is a guideline, not a religious text (or your Mother in Law).
2. Set precise goals: What are you trying to achieve? Are you looking to increase sales, leads, strengthen your brand? Investing in different platforms yields different results.
3. Determine your audience: Who are you producing content for? Always keep your audience in mind because it will shape your social media strategy. Are you posting to attract prospective clients, current customers, or members of the media? What is your target demographic? The answers should be included in your editorial calendar.
4. Find a theme: Layout themes for each month. What are the main talking points (e.g. company events, product launch, new developments, etc.)? Creating general themes is a great way to keep your social media strategy, and your audience, focused. Breakdown the months into weekly, and even day-specific themes. Maybe you can post a new video every Thursday, or offer tips on Tuesdays.
5. Post videos and pictures: Don’t ignore the power of visual information. A short video or an impressive photo can pack some real punch. That doesn’t mean ignore the blog, but that a healthy balance between text and images is crucial.
6. Diversify: Publish content across platforms that matter to your buyer personas (don’t spread yourself thin, but select based on where they are. what they want and your goals). Diversify your topics, too. Identify your primary topic groupings and keywords and spread them out at regular intervals. Consider colour-coding your editorial calendar for the utmost clarity.
7. Post frequently: Simply put, the more high-quality content you can produce, the better. Make sure your website homepage, blog, and Twitter page are updated regularly. Stale, inactive platforms are like unwashed dishes in a college frat house: generally detrimental to your success.
8. Share it: Make a spreadsheet, use Divvy, Evernote or Google Calendar. Get your team on the same page. Ideally, everyone involved can add and edit entries in real-time to ensure the information is current and up-to-date.
Achieve overarching cohesion in your inbound marketing strategy by creating an editorial calendar – your company’s social media blueprint.
