Still operating without a blog content calendar? Let’s change that.
It’s Thursday. It always happens on a Thursday, doesn’t it?
Your final blog post of the week is set to go live tomorrow. Except it’s not written.
You stare intently at your screen, willing words to start appearing.
You hit play on your GSD Spotify station.
You get your third cup of Bulletproof coffee.
You smell something coming from your kid’s room on your way back to your desk.
You find it. The final, missing Easter egg. And it’s well past the 4th of July.
Before you know it, you’ve disinfected the entire toy chest, loaded two vanilla scented Hefty’s, and emailed your entire family to tell them you are now a battery-operated-toy-free-household please plan for birthdays accordingly.
Emily Ley would be proud, but honey that blog post is still not done.
Time for a Blog Content Calendar
No more scrambling at the last minute for post ideas.
No more 10 pm the night before slapdash posts.
No more avoiding your blog because it takes so. much. time. you can’t get to your other work.
What if you could enjoy writing for your blog?
What if you could feel prepared and excited for your next post?
What if you knew, more assuredly than you know a Jane Austen heroine will end up happily married to a rich dude, that your blog served your readers? Supported your biz goals? Built your brand while you sleep (or watch The Bachelor?)
A blog content calendar makes that happen. Here’s how to create one and fill it with posts your readers devour faster than peanut butter Halo Top.
What a Blog Content Calendar is
If you’ve read my post about why you need an editorial calendar, aka content calendar, you’re probably already familiar. But just in case, here’s a snappy definition from one of my faves:
A content calendar is basically an overview in calendar form of all the content that you are planning to share and post on your blog or various social media outlets. The purpose of a content calendar is to plan it out in advance, so you know exactly what you’re posting each day. It’s helpful because it’s visual and easy to quickly glance at and know what content is coming up for that month.1
3 Steps to an Epic Blog Content Calendar
1. Tool Time
Use whatever tool works for YOU. Paper planner? WordPress plugin? Evernote? Trello? G Cal? This beautiful calendar from Lindsey Letters? Just pick a tool that brings you joy and excitement, so you’ll look forward to mapping out your content.
2. Plan it
Break out your shiny new calendar and get planning.
Plan it annually, quarterly, and monthly. Here’s one of the best tools I use.
If you’re going back to the drawing board each week, you’re already fighting uphill.
What happens when your 4-year-old gets preschool plague and your Tuesday goes the way of Lion Guard and saltines on the couch? What if you win a Tahitian vacation but you absolutely must leave that Friday without even time for a wax appointment?
Your content doesn’t have to suffer when life inevitably happens.
Have a month’s worth of posts at your fingertips. Here’s how.
3. Fill It Up
Ready for the fun part? Let’s load up your editorial calendar with nothin’ but the best.
Set Categories
Who are you talking to?
Write all your blog posts like an email to your dreamiest, Volcano candle scented, caramel filled dream client.
That’s who you want to reach, after all. So what do they want to hear about? What’s important to them?
Combine those topics with the ones that fire you up. The topics you just can’t stop talking about. The ones in your zone of genius.
How many times do you want to post weekly or monthly? That’s how many categories you need.
For example, I blog once a week, 4x monthly. And I want to evenly distribute my content across my categories. That looks like:
- Week 1: Content Creation
- Week 2: Copywriting
- Week 3: Branding & Content Strategy
- Week 4: Mompreneur Tips & Tricks
Remember Your Biz Goals and Quarterly Goals.
Zoom out and analyze your promotional calendar.
The blog posts that support your business go in “permanent ink.”
When is your eBook publishing? When is your course launch? When do you need to start promoting your fall collection? Get those dates on the blog content calendar.
If one of your income streams comes from collabs and sponsored posts, these go on your calendar next. They get priority because strict deadlines make them hard to swap with other posts on the schedule.
Next, look for major holidays. Plan seasonal promos like Black Friday and Cyber Monday at least a quarter in advance. They’re likely the highlight of your marketing season, so make sure you put your best, pedicured and Stuart Weitzman-clad foot forward with content that matches the rest of your efforts.
Theme your promotional, sponsored, and seasonal posts according to your topics and schedule these posts accordingly.
Get Your Stalk On
See what your clients are talking about. Then take the conversation to your place.
Look to see what people are saying on:
- Quora
- Facebook Groups
Now you can get topical. Try to solve problems and answer questions with these posts.
If your fellow group members all keep asking “For the love of La Croix why can’t I get my IG captions to format properly?”
Well, you know a post about IG captioning would bring all the female entrepreneurs to your yard. Write it, and answer with your link to put an end to their frustration.
RePurpose
You’ve already got a gold mine of content, you beautiful, talented, brilliant, powerful musk ox.
Take a quick peek at your analytics. Those immensely popular posts that bring the traffic year after year? Those are ripe for repurposing.
Try approaching your headline from a different angle. If you wrote an amazing, lovingly crafted blog post called “Why You Need an Editorial Calendar for Your Blog” then write another one called “How to Create The Perfect Blog Content Calendar.”
Try writing an “evil twin” post.* If you’ve written about “The Best Ways to Choose a Wedding Photographer” more often than you’ve washed your hair this year, write a post called “How NOT to Choose a Wedding Photographer.” Then try this.
*Guard your tone carefully with this approach. A business coach once evaluated a post I wrote with this technique and she was concerned about how negative it was. Don’t devolve into snark if that’s not your brand voice, and strive to serve above all else.
Try a different format. What’s your most-watched YouTube video? Transcribe that puppy. What’s your top performing tutorial post? Make a video version. Most clicked Pinterest graphic? Get some throat lozenges and record your first podcast. A group thread on Facebook that you keep returning to with new intel? Time to make it a blog post. Look at the hard work you’ve already done and make that content work harder.
I’ll keep it brief, just like your Pinterest search for content ideas should be. Promise me. Set a timer and whatever you do, don’t click through. Let the headlines jog your imagination. We can talk about apple cider sangria another day.
Helpful Hints from Content Queens
You don’t have to take my word for it, though you totally could. Some of the best content creators are open-handed with their ideation process.
Lauren Hooker has 50 blog post ideas for you, plus these tips:
Chaitra from PinkPot has an excellent headline swipe file download that she explains here:
Melyssa Griffin swears by mind mapping:
And Marie Forleo has 5 tips you should check out, but this one is my favorite:
Make It Good, Make It Useful
The whole point of your blog content calendar is to make sure the content you create supports your business goals and your brand. But the only way it’ll work is if it serves your readers.
You’ll do this when you:
- Plan in advance
- Write to your ideal client
- Answer the questions they’re actually asking
- Write content that excites you and interests them
- Make it valuable and irresistible.
Your Turn
In the comments, tell me your favorite way to build out your content calendar. Or your favorite Leslie Knope compliments.
