Understanding that a plan merely a tool to help you stay focused and achieve previously defined goals, don’t be afraid to pivot, change your objectives or modify it to best suit your company’s needs. With that said, the ‘trick’ to a repeatable and successful marketing effort is to have a plan. By following the following tips, you’ll be able to better focus your efforts and develop a sustainable and successful marketing plan. The article linked below, by Ms. Rachel Foster, touches on the following points.
When it comes to achieving content marketing success, planning is key.
(marketers) who have documented their strategy are more effective in all aspects of content marketing than those who have not
Editorial calendars are key in outlining your strategy and keeping you on track. Whether you’re a solopreneur and marketer, or part of a team of marketers, consider the benefits of having a common goal you can easily identify.
By having a defined outline that reinforces your business goals, you’re able to better schedule what content is published, when, where, and via what type of media. For example, here at SmartBizPractices.com we publish our blog content on Mondays, around 9am, which is the start of the workweek. We may publish and share on other social media sites like LinkedIn on Tuesdays, and we may release checklists and videos at the beginning of the month. These actions are simply selected based on when we feel our audience is most likely to absorb said content. Rachel goes on to list 5 steps to creating an editorial calendar.
1. Align your content with your target audience.
Ensure your content is relevant to your audience. First, you must understand what your target audience is searching for. What information is missing that you can provide? You can do this by:
- Participate in industry forums and communities
- Join professional organizations and participate in local chapter meetings
- Start or visit a Meetup group where you can network with other professionals in your field
Once you understand the relevant content your audience needs, you’ve found your content! This makes it easier for you to identify what you want to publish, and when. For example, as a business consultant I focus on publishing articles detailing the best practices for planning your marketing plan BEFORE the new year begins. This allows my audience to start planning before the year begins.
2. Align content with where buyers are in your sales cycle.
Rachel suggests that “your editorial calendar should contain content for early-, mid- and late-stage leads. Ideally, each piece of content should contain a call to action that motivates leads to view the next piece of content in your sales cycle.”
Some examples include introductory content for new clients or prospects. The second tier can include content for current customers, which details some benefits or features they may not be aware of. A third tier of content can be geared towards retaining and reacquiring leads that you might’ve lost in the past.
3. Pick content themes.
Create an annual editorial calendar and break it down into monthly
or quarterly stages. Depending on your desired publishing frequency, having a plan helps identify what articles to publish at the right time. You can follow industry trends, and align your content with what your customers are seeking. An added benefit to creating and following a content theme is that it helps you create new products or services you may have neglected.
4. Fill in the gaps.
This is an opportunity to “look in the mirror” and take stock of your current resources and content. Do you have content you can repurpose or update and re-release in a different medium? For example, did you create a how-to quick start guide? Maybe you can offer a detailed step-by-step eBook with the top 5 tools to help the client achieve their goal. Or maybe you can release the content as an audio file (podcast), a video, or a blog post.
5. Decide on a publishing schedule.
Rachel said it best, so I won’t re-invent the wheel.
For regular content – such as blog posts and e-newsletters – it’s important to stick to a regular publishing schedule. Your fans will expect to receive your content on specific days, and you don’t want to disappoint them.
Setting up a schedule and frequency helps your marketing team stay on track and meet your goals. Additionally, your audience will become accustomed to receiving your content on a regular basis.
Depending on your audience’s preferred medium (email, newsletter, eNewsletter, blog post, video blogs, professional networks, etc.) you are likely to find statistics to help you identify the best time to ‘post’ and publish your content. Check out this article on creating sustainable and interesting content your audience will appreciate. Want a one-page social media checklist? Click here and download ours (.pdf format)
Tools for Creating an Editorial Calendar
The Marine Corps has taught me quite a few great life lessons, but 
Keep It Simple Stupid has to be one of the most influential statements I’ve heard through the years. Using the concept of simplicity, you can create an editorial calendar that’s easy to replicate over and over again. Create a checklist/format and ensure it shares your brand’s vision. You can make your checklist in any format you feel most comfortable with. Whether you use Numbers, Excel, Word, Pages or pen and paper, here’s a few fields I recommend each post/publication includes:
- Title
- Format (e.g. blog post, white paper, webinar)
- Author
- Associated campaign or buyer persona
- Keywords
- Call to action
- Related Content
- Status (e.g. in development, scheduled, published)
Do you have a team of writers? Upload your editorial plan (or make it a blog post itself!) to a file-sharing program, such as Google Docs or Dropbox, and allow your writers to create. Here’s a link to our Article Submission Checklist. Rachel has also put together an editorial calendar template, Click here to download it.
Key Takeaway
“The future belongs to those that prepare for it”- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Having an editorial calendar is a great way to help you stay on track and meet your marketing plan goals. If you fail to have a plan in place, even if just a rough outline, you are more likely to become inconsistent and fail to duplicate any tangible success. As such, be a professional, create a marketing plan that is aligned with your own business goals, and be consistent. Your editorial calendar and marketing plan are not set in stone. Plans are flexible, and you should allow room in your plan for unscheduled updates, reactions to industry trends, and new product or service promotion .
Want to read the entire article? click here How to Plan Your 2015 Content Calendar
Have comments, questions or advice you’d like to share? I’m all ears! Please comment below or tweet me at @ajros02 using the hashtag #SBP
Until next time!
-Angel