Why You Need a Social Media Content Calendar

Social media is one of the easiest methods to reach potential customers. Platforms are free and can be utilized to generate interest and engagement in your business. Sometimes using these social media platforms can be a bit overwhelming. When should you be posting? How many times should you be posting? Which platforms should you be using? A social media content calendar can be the answer to all these questions.

Although there are many social media platforms to choose from, the most popular remain to be Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Each of these platforms requires different content, and creating this content can be extremely time-consuming. In a recent study conducted by Vertical Response, 43% of small businesses reported spending six hours per week on social media; that’s almost a full workday! The easiest way to conquer this obstacle? Create and implement an organized strategy.

So what exactly is a social media content calendar? Simply put, it is a calendar used to plan out every social media posting by platform, day, and even time. Use these simple steps to begin building your company’s social media content calendar:

1. Advance Planning- Take time at the beginning of each month to evaluate the messages you want to send throughout the month. This doesn’t need to be a final calendar, but simply drafting a rough outline can save great amounts of time.
2. Include Variance of Content- Make sure you are not sharing the same type of content each time you post. In order to generate and maintain interest with your readers, provide variety. Postings can include organic blog posts, shared posts/articles, videos, pictures, etc.
3. Evaluate Posting Times and Frequencies- Using services like Hootsuite, you can determine specific times during which your posts receive the most engagement. Posting at these specific times can be beneficial to wider post reach. Frequency of postings is also vital- you don’t want to post too little and you don’t want to post too much. Find that sweet spot for your business.
4. Fill Out Content Calendar Accordingly- After going through all above steps, begin to fill out your social media content calendar.

Here is a simple template to get you started.