How To Create A Content Calendar

What Is A Content Calendar?

A “content calendar” is a written schedule of when and where you plan to release new content. It is also called the ‘editorial calendar’. To know how to create a content calendar, you should know why. A content calendar includes scheduled articles, updates, promotions, and changes to published articles. 

It’s important to create a content calendar. Why? Let’s study the following reasons.

1. First, a content calendar ensures all content-related tasks are completed.

Disorganized content development schedules cause forgetfulness. And make you post less or forget to update old articles. A calendar prevents mistakes.

1. Second, a calendar simplifies teamwork and external partnerships.

A content calendar may not be necessary for a one-person blog. But if employees and contractors contribute content, you need something to keep everyone in sync. Our Notion-based content calendar is more project management than the calendar.

1. Third, a content calendar shows your future material. Our calendar prevents us from publishing multiple case studies at once. or two related guides. Thus, we can view our marketing strategy for the coming months on one screen.

Table of Contents

Tips To Create A Content Calendar

Get Started With Existing Content

We often prefer creating new content to making the most of what already exists. We tend to leave a lot of useful information laying around. So we usually don’t need to start from scratch.

Instead, make a list of what you already have so you can identify what you can recycle and reuse. 

• Repurpose your slideshows into films, blog entries, or summary slideshows.
• Use your own data or research and generate infographics or news stories ethically.
• Recording and transcribing interviews with your knowledgeable coworkers can help.
• Break lengthy content into smaller blog posts or social takeaways.
• Make a few tweaks and add some new info. Reverse atomization is putting together posts or whitepapers on the same subject.

Content Atomization

When it comes to scheduling posts, you’ll find that content atomization is a lifesaver.

Content marketers could provide information in the form of shows like TV networks do. Our audience expects and recognizes these material broadcasts as reliable, ongoing efforts. They expect and enjoy watching these programs.

The content you create has to identify 3 kinds of shows:

• First are the binge-worthy shows. They are large and continuing content ventures with the same format in all seasons. If they don’t appeal to at least two groups of people, they’re not worth making. Common examples include podcasts, videos, webinars, white papers, reports, and more. This performance should be possible at least twice a month. These are also the first items added to your schedule.
• Next, we have the one-time shows. These shows air on a quarterly or annual basis. They focus on addressing a specific issue or concern that customers voice. The content pieces are large. But they don’t come out less on a regular basis like the binge-worthy shows. Consider user-generated content initiatives, contests, white papers, research papers, and more. The same degree of uniformity isn’t required here. And yet they should still be consistent with your brand’s voice and tone.
• It’s necessary to plan monthly or quarterly editorial sessions with all content creators. Use this meeting to set reasonable deadlines for sharing information from your repository across various channels (social media, email newsletters, etc.). You should have access to visitor, engagement, and revenue data from prior periods. This information may help discuss and determine which types of content performed well. So you can reproduce the good and rethink the poor-performing ones. Web, social, and sales data can optimize titles, introductions, and outbound links. This will help to get more visits and engagement.

How To Create A Content Calendar

Build The Content Calendar Template

The information you may need to create the template are:

Publish date and due date, author, status and title or topic, content type, and link to files like Google Docs. Your content calendar will seem different from one format to the next. Because there are unique needs for each variety of content.

Consider the following content types:

For blog posts: Primary keyword (+ search volume), Secondary keywords (+ search volume), Slug, Title and meta description, and Featured image

For social posts: Image or video file, Caption, Tagged users, and Hashtags

For podcasts: Interviewee details, script link, Original and edited audio.

For videos: Link to the script, Interviewee information, Caption, Original video files, Edited video file, and Thumbnail

Planning The Content

This step involves choosing the topics and assigning tasks.

Choosing The Topics

It’s important to think about what will interest your intended readers.

• First, you’ll need to learn as much as possible about your current and potential customers. Learn about their passions, challenges, and anticipations.
• After that, you can begin brainstorming a list of individual bits of content.
• Researching an audience, however, covers a vast field. Customer interviews, data examination, competitive research, and other methods are all included.

Keep in mind that a content calendar is but a tool to help you in your content planning and development. Your schedule is flexible, so you can make changes as necessary.

Assigning Tasks

To tag the person in charge of a certain task, simply write “@ + [their name]” in a spreadsheet. For smaller teams, this approach will do the trick. But for a large number of people, it won’t. A project management tool is useful in such circumstances. 

Start by sharing your calendar with coworkers and partners.

You can choose the task “Owners” in most project management software. And you can also alert them if there is a change in the task’s status.

These tools make it much clearer to users what it is they are responsible for.

Publish Your Content

You can either publish your content or schedule it for another time. Schedule posts on social media, WordPress, Anchor (for podcasts), and most other platforms with ease. 

You could plan ahead with your content:

• If you’re a freelancer or an employee who has to oversee the content strategies of many clients. 
• When the optimal time to publish content doesn’t coincide with regular business hours.
• If you’re writing for an audience in a different time zone, keep that in mind.
• When two companies decide to publish the same content at the same time.
• Scheduling content ahead of time can reduce the likelihood of mistakes, saving time. 

How To Create A Content Calendar In Google Sheets

Do you want to build your social media presence? Of course! Who doesn’t want that today? Let’s learn how to create a content calendar in Google Sheets then.

Choosing among so many content calendar programs out there isn’t easy. Some are too difficult to use, too expensive, or provide you with too many features that you will never need. It’s possible you haven’t settled on a favorite yet. So you might want to use a solution in the meantime that doesn’t need a subscription or free trial.

Spreadsheet software allows you to make one with the features you might be looking for. Let’s begin with how to create a content calendar in Google Sheets.

Columns To Create A Content Calendar Sheet

Your content calendar should serve as a blueprint for your posts. It should allow you to organize everything in one convenient location. This will make it easier to locate your belongings in the future. Besides, it’s a great spot for teamwork and cooperation.

Make a list of your columns to get started. This will serve as a guide for the structure of your future posts, just like writing prompts might.

Consider the text and graphics required for each piece of content, and when you want to publish them. You should also be able to add a title or description, make any notes, and display the current status of the post.

Extra column topics could include:

• A column for each account to designate where the article should be published (Instagram, blog, website, etc.).
• Separate columns for each social media platform’s copy, such as Instagram, Facebook, etc.
• Google Docs instead of long pieces of text in the spreadsheet. With these, you can copy and paste summaries into your spreadsheet.
• List whoever is manning the position in this column.
• An urgent matter column that conveys importance.

After deciding which columns will be useful, list them across the top of your Sheet. If you start small and build on that, it’s fine; you can always add on later. It’s common to have bright ideas when you’re on the job.

Add A Dropdown Menu To Your Content Calendar Sheet

If you ask someone about the status of a project without giving any details, you’ll get a lot of different answers. In this case, the dropdown choices in Google Sheets come in handy. They help you and your team stick to the same plan. So, you can see at a glance where each of your projects is. Also, the SORT tool in Google Sheets will make it easy for you to switch between them based on where they are.

Here’s how to add a drop-down menu to your content calendar:

• Once you highlight the status column, deselect the title cell. To do that, click on it while holding CTRL or MDI.
• Either right-click the choice or select Insert from the top menu.
• A sidebar will appear once you click Dropdown.
• Fill in the text fields with the statuses you want to use.
• To add more spaces, click the icon labeled Add another item.
• Give each status a unique color to make it easier to distinguish between them.
• Click Done.

Try it—your list appears in all column cells. Select the cell and delete it.

As you work, you can change your status to quickly update your team and remind yourself where you left off. Do you have several completed projects on your board? Then use the + symbol in the bottom-left corner to generate archive Sheets.

To find them, organize them into monthly or quarterly archives in chronological order. Copy and paste objects by row.

Add Tracking Tabs In Your Content Calendar Sheet

Use the tabs at the bottom of your screen to organize your drafts in Google Sheets for ideas. You don’t need many columns here. But you’ll want to characterize your post, explain your ideas, and discuss the visuals.

Track outcomes in a new tab. Here, the column headers will be the name or description of the post, the date, and your success measures. Examples are clicks, interactions, views, conversions, etc.

Keep track of how your posts perform. This will help to understand which content kinds work best on certain platforms.

Conclusion

Marketing strategy relies on a content calendar. It helps organize short- and long-term goals. The right tool and process may improve team productivity, data tracking, and content. A good content calendar is always needed to provide engaging material. 

All you need are some simple Microsoft Excel abilities. And the knowledge of how to create a content calendar that explains your approach for weeks and months. This saves time and improves the content. So are you ready to get organized and successful?