Once your business develops a social media presence, it is important not only to populate your Google + and Twitter feeds with valuable content. Doing so regularly—not too sparingly and not every other minute—is key to creating a positive and engaging social media presence.
That’s where an editorial schedule comes into play. Most publications rely on an editorial calendar, and it can be an instrumental tool in order to ensure you are strategizing about posting—not just posting for the sake of updating a feed. It also enables you to tie in posts with events and news, making them even timelier and appealing…that’s always the ultimate goal!
Identify your core values.
Start by listing the values of your brand and the goals of your social media program. Do you want to engage with prospects or establish yourself as a thought leader? Or are you simply out there to get sales? Knowing your values and goals can help you pinpoint how to best use social media, which channels you can use and how often you need to update to connect with your audience.
Choose your channels.
With so many social media avenues out there, it’s no wonder that businesses hop on all of them when they start using social networks. But do you need to use Pinterest and Facebook? Are you better poised for Twitter or LinkedIn? And do you really need a Google + page? Look at the advantages and disadvantages of each based on your industry and goals. Then decide which networks you want to commit to, because when you create posts they may not work for all channels.
And if you say you’re going to be active on numerous channels, you need to be active—brands that neglect their feeds fail at connecting with customers, who may see the social networking presence as phony.
Create a calendar.
In knowing what your business goals are, you can then develop the actual calendar. Perhaps your business is seasonal, so posting mostly during the high season is more important, but you don’t want to forget to update on the off-season, too. Can some of your posts tie in with holidays and current events? Note those events on the calendar For example, if your brand creates personalized items, it may consider some back-to-school posts during the end of summer and early fall to promote its line of personalized pencil cases and backpacks in addition to its holiday gifts.
iCal or Google Calendar are good tools to help you get a calendar down, but something in Excel can work just as nicely. And remember to build in some flexibility for things as they arise—perhaps a blizzard snows in your prospects during your President’s Day sale and you’ll need to extend a promotion...you can do that when you’re thinking ahead in calendar mode and responding to happenings as they occur.
Think themes.
Many businesses build posts around different themes, and this is a good idea to coordinate social media posts. Themes can go along with the seasons but can also be whatever you want. Build any themes you use into your calendar so you always stay on track.
Plug in other promotions.
Once you have your calendar set, try to synchronize it with any other big events going on in your organization. Perhaps you are launching a new product; that may not revolve around a theme or a holiday, but it would be great to spread the word on your social media channels. Make a spot for it. You should also promote your other happenings in your business—yes, you can post about a blog post—via social media. Be sure to incorporate other marketing channels in your social media platform.
With a strong foundation in place, your business can avoid aimless posts and create a social media presence that engages your audience—and gets the results you’re after, too.
An entrepreneur with an eye for good design and advocate of simplicity. He brings a fresh strategy and approach to every project and plays an integral role in clients’ accomplishments through collaboration and close integration. Through his hands-on experience in technology and marketing, he ensures user experiences and technology are on the leading edge.
