Editorial Calendar Template

An Editorial Calendar is a vital tool for businesses aiming to maintain a consistent flow of content, marketing campaigns, advertisements, and more. In the effort to engage customers and prospects effectively, many organizations establish regular schedules for producing blogs, newsletters, and social media campaigns. It plays a crucial role in keeping track of this content and devising a cohesive content marketing strategy.

Editorial Calendars serve as the blueprint for content strategy within an organization. They encompass a structured timetable for planning and delivering content to the intended audience. While the specific details of Editorial Calendars may vary from one team or organization to another, they typically outline the content topics, stakeholders involved, target personas, distribution methods, and publication dates.

What do you put in an Editorial Calendar?

The contents of your Editorial Calendar can be customized to align with your team's specific requirements. Frequently, teams include information such as the title, topic, description, writer's name, and the due date for each piece of content. Additionally, you have the flexibility to incorporate elements like target keywords, the intended persona for the content, the stage in the buying process, and the chosen distribution channels. This adaptability allows you to tailor the Editorial Calendar to suit your team's unique content planning and management needs.

Why use an Editorial Calendar?

The utilization of an Editorial Calendar offers several advantages. In the absence of such a tool, content teams often face challenges in strategic planning. With an editorial calendar in place, you gain the ability to proactively align your content with various marketing campaigns, company objectives, and seasonal considerations.

Furthermore, implementing a structured production flow, such as through a Kanban board, simplifies the visual tracking of each article and content piece at different stages. This enhances the overall organization of your content creation process and fosters better clarity regarding the progress of each piece.

1. Content

   Begin by compiling a comprehensive list of the content you intend to create. To maintain a consistent content flow, consider including pieces currently in development alongside those already scheduled. This catalog should encompass various types of content, ranging from concise blogs to substantial long-form resources like ebooks.

2. Stakeholders

   Maintain an ongoing record of all individuals involved in each project, including writers, contractors, designers, editors, and social media team members. This facilitates easy reference for stakeholders, enabling them to stay informed about upcoming projects in the content pipeline.

3. Timelines and Milestones

   Clearly define crucial deadlines and milestones within your editorial calendar. Specify when content creation, review, proofreading, and publication should occur. Also, indicate the dates for posting content to your content management system.

4. Calls to Action

   Ensure that every piece of content is associated with a well-defined call to action. Determine the next steps for your audience after consuming the content. For instance, consider including links at the conclusion of a blog post that lead to additional resources or downloadable ebooks.

5. Distribution Channels Inventory

   Enumerate the channels through which you plan to distribute your content. For instance, after creating an ebook, outline the subsequent steps. Will you repurpose it into blog posts? Will it be shared on platforms like LinkedIn or via your newsletter? This section guides your content distribution strategy.