What's the best way to create a content marketing calendar?

1 Define your content goals

The first step to create a content marketing calendar is to define your content goals. What do you want to achieve with your content marketing? How do you measure your success? How do you align your content with your overall marketing strategy and objectives? Your content goals should be SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. For example, you might want to increase your website traffic by 20% in the next quarter, or generate 50 new leads per month from your blog. Having clear and realistic goals will help you focus your content efforts and track your progress.

2 Know your target audience

The next step to create a content marketing calendar is to know your target audience. Who are you creating content for? What are their pain points, challenges, interests, and preferences? How do they consume and share content online? What type of content do they find valuable and engaging? To answer these questions, you need to do some audience research and create buyer personas. Buyer personas are fictional representations of your ideal customers, based on data and insights from your market. They help you tailor your content to your audience's needs, wants, and expectations.

3 Choose your content types and formats

The third step to create a content marketing calendar is to choose your content types and formats. What kind of content will you create to reach your goals and connect with your audience? How will you present your content in different formats and channels? There are many types of content you can create, such as blog posts, ebooks, videos, podcasts, infographics, webinars, case studies, and more. Each type of content has its own advantages and disadvantages, depending on your purpose, message, and audience. You should also consider how to repurpose your content across different formats and platforms, to maximize your reach and impact.

4 Plan your content topics and keywords

The fourth step to create a content marketing calendar is to plan your content topics and keywords. What will you write or talk about in your content? What are the main themes and subtopics that relate to your goals and audience? How will you optimize your content for search engines and users? To plan your content topics and keywords, you need to do some keyword research and content analysis. Keyword research is the process of finding and selecting the words and phrases that your audience uses to search for information online. Content analysis is the process of evaluating and improving your existing content, as well as identifying gaps and opportunities for new content.

5 Schedule your content creation and publication

The fifth step to create a content marketing calendar is to schedule your content creation and publication. When will you create and publish your content? How often and how much content will you produce? How will you manage your time and resources? To schedule your content creation and publication, you need to use a content calendar template or tool that suits your needs and preferences. A content calendar template or tool is a document or application that helps you plan, organize, and visualize your content activities in a calendar format. It can include information such as content title, type, format, topic, keyword, goal, audience, channel, date, status, and owner.

6 Review and update your content marketing calendar

The sixth and final step to create a content marketing calendar is to review and update it regularly. How will you monitor and evaluate your content performance? How will you adjust and improve your content strategy based on your results and feedback? How will you keep your content fresh and relevant? To review and update your content marketing calendar, you need to use some content analytics and reporting tools that help you measure and analyze your content effectiveness and ROI. You should also collect and act on the feedback from your audience and stakeholders, and update your content goals, topics, and keywords accordingly.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?