Is Your Content Calendar Running on Empty?

Next up … Let’s talk content calendars!

We’re all living in the land of social with our businesses — especially these days — so having a content calendar is a key element to being organized and prepared for getting our brand out there consistently. It is also key for infusing our business with a personality and to show that we’re not doing the same boring ‘ol things that business B is doing. Thus, creating more engagement. But as a business owner, there is nothing worse than struggling with creative block when it comes to creating social worthy content.

You’re feeling pressure with all your client deadlines, your own deadlines, you’re wearing too many hats, and you’re in a slump as you just can’t think of any original ideas to post or even some eye-catching concepts for your next campaign.

Your head hurts!

That’s probably what brought you here today!

It’s okay, it’s easy to fall into despair. We all need a lift of inspiration now and again because you want the individuals who follow your social feeds to feel emotion regarding what content you’re posting and in such a way that they will respond (comment, like share, etc.) because your post(s) spoke to them. It “gets” them.

However, preparing weeks upon weeks of content doesn’t always come easy and takes a lot of thought, time, and preparation to make them “get you”. It’s not just researching relevant holidays or theme days or uploading quirky quotes from the rich and famous. It’s a bit more complicated than that. So, no need to go hide under your desk rocking back n’ forth … I have some great tips, helpful ideas that will get you (and keep you) well on your way to content marketing success!

A good solid strategy requires a leader who is willing and able to say no to a wide variety of actions and interests. Strategy is at least as much about what a business does not do as it is about what it does.

That being said, let’s get started!

Here are a few simple tips and steps to help with creating and filling up your social media content calendar …

#1. SET SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT GOALS.

Here is where your plan will come into play. The best way to keep your social content organized is on a calendar. It will give you and your team full visibility into your social schedule and makes it way easier to plan in advance when time allows for it.

But before you start filling in those blank fields with content, you must first define some goals for your brand. You must have some sort of strategy in place which will help you stay on-point so that every post, tweet, and pin has a purpose and works towards your end goal.

Having these goals set in place will also help you measure your audience’s impact and overall success. It will also help you maximize your time to the ultimate power! If you think about it, doing business with marketing is like winking at the soulmate of your dreams in the dark. You know what you are doing but nobody else does.

#2. DECIDE ON YOUR CONTENT MIXTURE.

When it comes to content, one thing business owners usually forget is that just because it’s your feed doesn’t mean the content you post should only be yours. Your content should also be relevant to sharing other really great content that has already been produced. For example: a combination of event promotions, industry news, tips n’ tricks, new programs, platforms, and helpful resources.

Now you should of course sprinkle your own content on your social feeds as well, that’s top priority, but adding in some curated content is a great way to bring some extra well-deserved attention to both parties (yourself and the content curator of what you’re sharing). You should work to tie all the things created by you for your business as well as the curated content which will create some amazing results when it comes to audience engagement.

#3. CREATE A SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT CALENDAR.

This one is the easiest tip of the bunch!

I know, it can sometimes be a hassle to remember what content you shared when and on what platforms. Especially when all platforms have different character counts and no option to pre-schedule. So, having a social media content calendar will provide you with a great organizational advantage as you will be able to sort, organize and plan for days, weeks and months ahead. And it honestly doesn’t require a crap ton of effort to get one set up.

I prefer to use an Excel spreadsheet, however some of my clients prefer GoogleDocs that way all members on their team can see what’s happening in live-mode and there is no cross-over of files being over-written. But if you’re looking for something a little more in-depth there are all sorts of platforms and free templates online.

Then from there we use this spreadsheet as a guide of our strategy and create our hearts out. Once all the graphics and copy are ready — and well proofed — we then hop into our trusty pre-schedule platform; PromoRepublic; and schedule away for weeks, sometimes even months at a time in advance. This way we’re not feeling stuck and on a tight schedule creating content on the fly for the day of or the following week.

P.S. If you’re looking for some assistance in this area, drop me a line as my team and I would be more than happy to offer some insight or create one for you, or shoot you some resources!

#4. FIND AND FILL IN SOME KEY DATES.

Okay, here is where the fun begins … putting holiday and event dates into play!

And let’s get real … no matter where you live on this glorious rock, we call home; holidays ARE a big deal! So, why not show some holiday spirit by creating some holiday-related posts for your business social feeds. It could be as simple as a relatable image or video, or maybe even an article from your blog or podcast. Or even some curated holiday content from a reliable source.

Now holiday posts aren’t the only beneficial way to bring up engagement.

Think about events too!

For example, May the 4th – which we all know as “May The Fourth Be With You” day. So, why not do a special fun post or special campaign with a sweet, discounted deal that’s themed around this day for all the special entrepreneurs out there using their superpowers (through all the blood, sweat and tears, LOL) … the late nights, early mornings, endless cups of caffeine, running from here to there, mastering every piece of tech we can get out hands on, the endless meetings, long to-do lists … You get the idea!

Or how about some of these other special dates …

• World Password Day (first Thursday of every May)
• World Hunger Day (May 28th)
• World Humanitarian Day (August 19th)
• Mental Awareness Week (October 1st to 7th)
• World Mental Health Day (October 10th)
• Giving Tuesday (first Tuesday of every December)
• International Human Rights Day (December 10th)

That’s just a short list of examples of some of our favs — near and dear to our hearts.

Looking for more dates to take advantage of?

Check out Hubspot! They have a really great free calendar template with all these special dates on it, and MORE! Or check out this link right from the source (National Calendar Day).

If you are going to succeed in the land of social, you need all the right tools, right at your fingertips. And I’m in hopes that thus far you’re feeling pretty good about things!

That being said, we want to do a mini deep dive into two more sections to help with your content … So, got a quick minute to talk about content?

There is a lot to be gained by joining forces with others to tell your brand’s story. The more you collaborate the more your message will get delivered onto more platforms, more social and media outlets and to a larger audience.

Collaboration is truly a beautiful thing. And every marketer’s dream! It unifies teams while striving for omnichannel marketing mastery. (As long as there are no communication breakdowns.)

So, it’s time to hunker down and figure out some ways to keep your content fresh.

Here are a few ways to get the most out of your content collaborations …

BLOGS:
If anything, this is the no-brainer on the list and an easy (and fun!) way to become a thought leader by seeking opportunities to invite guest experts to contribute.

PODCASTS and VIDEOS:
Podcasts and videos are natural for collaboration. Plus, video search is the new evolution of SEO. Making podcasts and videos of the new frontier in the business world. Either it could include industry influencers, vendor partners, customers or even just yourself (like I do!) to discuss viable content pertaining to your evolutional series.

EXPERT INTERVIEWS:
Have a roster of experts you’d like to round up? You can use this as a true formula for blogging, podcast, video interviews, eBooks and so much more. This team of experts can also help you share and promote the content across a myriad of networks and platforms. Easy-peasy marketing.

WEBINARS:
This is a classic example of collaborative content as you can take this opportunity to build out a press center with archives of topics and/or resources you cherish most.

This can also be done as a separate page on your website or any landing page, which can showcase said content as a stand-alone archive of text or as a fun graphically scrolling slider.

WORKSHOPS and COURSES:
Ready to put your expertise (and others) out into the world?

By gathering your know-how and the know-how of others you can create a training type of symposium, lunch n’ learn or a full blown out course which is a truly great way to tell your brand’s story. A simple collaborative offering to help other entrepreneurs across the globe.

If you use even just a couple of the fundamentals, I just shared with you, it will help you strengthen that creative muscle and make your brand story stand out from the crowd. But remember, tell your brand’s REAL story, not it’s highlight reel. You want people to relate and be inspired. It’s the rocky journey of pursuing a goal, getting knocked down, finding a new path to success, and sharing it with the world. Give them “the feels”. Branding demands commitment; commitment to continual re-invention; striking chords with people to stir their emotions; and commitment to imagination. It is easy to be cynical about such things, and much harder to be successful.

Okie dokies … we’re running a little long here today, but all this information is so important I didn’t want to leave you empty handed. So, last the “untangling” tip of the day is … Plug n’ Play Content Strategies.

Let’s start by being honest with ourselves … We all want killer content!

But we don’t always have the time, or the creative juices left at the end of the day to build up the momentum we need on our own business strategies – which we’ve been pretty much talking about throughout this entire episode. And well, it just so happens that’s where this last section comes in handy … Let’s begin with a step that will assist you long-term, your strategy guide.

You can’t achieve strategic success unless you fully understand what success means to you and your business.

Some of the most common goals used for marketing through plug n’ play content includes:

• Brand awareness
• Lead generation
• Audience engagement
• Audience loyalty
• Profitability

In order to figure out which goals you and your business should be prioritizing or if you’re looking to expand your plan, I have found a truly great online resource that includes 23 templates, checklists and guides to make this process easier.

(The clickable link is within the transcript of today’s episode for you.)

Once you’re planning stages are complete, it’s time to start thinking about WHAT content you’d like to build your brand with. I know it can be overwhelming because the problem in today’s day-in-age is there is so much information available online, and the online spaces are overly crowded with people’s attention span being shorter and shorter.

So, I’ve created a quick list of some of the best plug n’ play content formats for you.

Some good examples of content formats are:

• How to’s
• Case studies
• eBooks
• Tool reviews
• Giveaways
• Infographics
• Interviews
• Lists and mind maps
• Surveys and quizzes
• Niche resources
• Motivational quotes
• Niche related quotes
• Pinboards
• Company news

And the list goes on.

But those are some good tried and true starters!

Then when you are ready to begin using these publishing ideas to put together your social schedule, keep in mind the 80-10-10 rule, and for those are you who may be unfamiliar, here’s the scoop …

• Curation and OCP (“other people’s content”) = 80%
• BTS (“behind the scenes”) marketing messages = 10%
• Sales-y messages and content (e.g. newsletter sign-up) = 10%

This kind of 80-10-10 content mixture ensures your business is providing quality, helpful and valuable content more than being sales-y. People aren’t always cruising through their social profiles to buy, so don’t bombard them.

We are living in the age of information. Yet despite this advantage we’re all still starving for more knowledge. Your audience knows what to do when they see your content but at the very same time, they don’t know what they need to know all because they’re overwhelmed.

So, give them what they want by focusing on one BIG IDEA because when you do, it won’t be the idea they will be attributing their success to, it will be YOU!

Now it’s time to share some things with us …

• Have you developed your foolproof plug n’ play strategy yet?
  • Or are you still fighting FOMO?
• What social media struggles are you dealing with right now?
• Do you need help keeping up but not sure where to find it?

If you answered YES to that last question, let’s chat!