Posting without a social media content plan is akin to navigating a vast department store without a shopping list. You end up wandering, moving from aisle to aisle, and unsure what you need or whys.
Certainly, you might spot an exciting item here and there. But without any direction, you're likely to leave empty-handed or with products that serve no real purpose.
A social media content plan compels you to step back and assess what works across each platform. It sheds light on areas that need improvement to better cater to your target audience's needs.
With a well-defined roadmap guiding your efforts, you'll craft content with a purpose. The outcome? Your entire social strategy evolves into one that fosters meaningful engagement and growth for your business.
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Why Do You Need a Social Media Content Plan?
Developing a strategic social media content plan is essential for any brand, aiming to genuinely connect with its audience and attain tangible results.
A well-organized and considerate approach to your content will not only ensure consistent posting but also guarantee that each post aligns with your overarching goals, providing the structure you need.
Here are five key benefits that highlight why adopting a purposeful approach to your social media content through an editorial plan is so crucial.
Provides structure and organization
Content planning provides essential structure to your social media efforts. For instance, an editorial calendar enables you to pre-plan content themes, such as holidays and events, and coordinate campaigns across platforms for maximum reach.
Without it, it's easy to lose sight of the strategy behind each post.
- Why do you share certain content on Instagram instead of Twitter or Facebook?
- And does it align with your goals?
Planning your posts ahead of time brings organization, allowing you to thoughtfully mix and match various content types across platforms in a way that aligns with your desired outcomes.
Ensures you create the right content for each platform
Every social media platform has its unique audience and style. What catches attention on TikTok may not resonate the same way on LinkedIn.
An editorial calendar enables you to customize content for each channel, tailoring it to what works best for its specific users. The outcome is social posts that feel cohesive and authentic across every platform they live on.
Helps build authority and thought leadership
Crafting value-driven content tailored to your audience is an excellent way to position your brand as an authority and subject matter expert.
For instance, consistently sharing industry insights or trends establishes your brand as an expert voice that followers can trust.
Practical and engaging content not only nurtures community but also showcases your commitment to giving more than taking, fostering genuine relationships. Setting goals around thought leadership and strategically planning posts to nurture it from the start will transform how your audience perceives your brand.
Leads to consistent posting
Consistency stands out as one of the major challenges brands encounter on social media. However, it's crucial for fostering engagement and trust with your followers. Planning content themes and actual posts well in advance on editorial calendar makes regular posting manageable.
You'll always know what messages come next and when to share them, eliminating the risk of drawing a blank on what to say.
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Focuses your efforts for better results
Last but definitely not least, an editorial calendar brings remarkable focus to your social efforts directly linked to tangible business goals.
For instance, content aimed at boosting email signups or webinar registrations will feature clearer Calls to Action (CTAs) and value propositions tied back to campaign goals.
Without this focus, it's easy to get sidetracked by content that might be fun to create but doesn't contribute much value to advancing your strategy. Goals related to lead generation, community growth, and more, along with plans to nurture them, truly make a difference in achieving results.
Social Media Content Plan's Key Elements
Now that you (hopefully!) recognize the incredible benefits of taking the time to map out your social media content plan, what goes into crafting this magical document?
Below are several elements that serve as the framework for effective plans to transform your social media strategy.
Audit Your Existing Content and Channels
The initial step in creating any content plan involves getting crystal clear on where you currently stand. Conduct an audit to assess recent social media content and performance across each of your channels.Enter your text here...
- Which posts and topics seem to resonate best and drive the most engagement? And which ones fall flat?
- How is your community responding? Where do you notice fans and followers being most vocal or active?
- What analytics numbers—such as clicks, impressions, or growth—stand out as wins? And which could use improvement?
Comparing channel and content performance helps identify what's working and what's not. This information informs the themes and actual posts you map out moving forward. It also pinpoints platform strengths and weaknesses to better customize plans by channel.
Set Your Goals
Next up? Establish solid S.M.A.R.T. goals fueling your social media efforts across channels in the months ahead. Examples may include:
- Growing Instagram followers by 15% quarter-over-quarter
- Increasing social referral traffic to blog content by 30%
- Boosting video view rate on TikTok to 20%
Whatever your current benchmarks and aspirations, use the audit and analysis to set tangible targets. Revisit these often as you work through content creation to ensure posts ladder up. After all, content that doesn’t further your goals won’t further your strategy.
Understand Your Target Audience
Truly effective social media content starts with understanding just who fills up your followers list. Getting crystal clear on the demographics comprising your community is key.
- What do they care about? What challenges do they face that you can solve?
- How do they like to engage on social media? Are they visual learners who love Instagram Stories? Or do they prefer snappy, voice-driven commentary on TikTok?
- What types of content do they love and share? And what misses the mark?
Of course, people span generations, locations, interests, and more. However, studying analytics and customer insights helps paint a picture of exactly who engages most. Craft content with them in mind.
Map Out Your Content Themes
Equipped with objectives, analytics, and audience insights, the genuine planning phase begins!
Generate overarching themes and content categories that align with the findings from your research. Several established categories for a social media content plan include:
- Industry News and Trends: Establish your brand as an authority by providing insights on pertinent developments.
- Company Culture Content: Offer followers a glimpse behind the scenes to cultivate brand affection through insider perspectives.
- Expert Advice and "How To's": Dispense useful guidance, tips, and tricks to nurture a supportive community.
- User-Generated Content: Leverage testimonials, reviews, and customer images to infuse authenticity into your content.
- Special Offers and Promotions: Generate enthusiasm with exclusive deals and early access opportunities.
Once you've identified pertinent themes that resonate, delve deeper. Add 2-3 potential posts per theme to begin expanding your calendar across various channels. Be as detailed as possible, outlining planned copy, images, hashtags, and calls to action (CTA) for each post.
Create an Editorial Calendar
Source: Planable
The final crucial step? Organize your content plan into a visible, high-level calendar! Whether it's a chart, spreadsheet, or an app like Later, laying out proposed posts across platforms over a specific period makes your plan much easier to execute. Here are some best practices as you map it all out:
- Introduce a variety of post themes and topics week to week for diversity.
- Review recent top-performing updates that could spark new ideas.
- Align posting schedules with major initiatives taking place across marketing or the broader business.
- Try out new formats, such as IGTV or Stories, if engagement drops.
Regardless of how you keep track of your calendar, treat it as your go-to reference, guiding what message to share and when. Refer back to it consistently and keep building future posts several weeks or a month ahead.
Track and Refine
You've put in a lot of effort to create a well-thought-out social media plan filled with excellent content. But resist the urge to put that plan on autopilot indefinitely without ever revisiting it. Instead, pay attention to how the mapped-out posts perform once they go live.
- Identify which themes and actual updates gain the most traction. Take note of what works to incorporate similar content more regularly.
- Determine what falls flat. Analyze why, and don't hesitate to pull planned posts that may no longer hit the mark.
- Keep an eye out for new platform features or emerging societal trends that you can creatively integrate into future calendar updates.
Consistently tracking performance against your benchmarks provides valuable insights. Adjust your editorial calendar based on monthly or quarterly results to maintain momentum. Savvy social media managers also set reminders to completely redo their plans annually.
How Does Social Media Content Plan Overcome Challenges?
Certainly, with any new process, there come some growing pains. But a few pro tips can make it much smoother to dive into the content planning game without pulling your hair out!
- If you're feeling overwhelmed, start small by adding one new content bucket at a time and expand on what performs well. Don't expect your whole calendar to come together immediately.
- Stuck on content ideas? Ask colleagues, customers, and fans to suggest topics and formats they want to see. This provides inspiration aligned with their interests.
- Running short on content creation time? Repurpose old evergreen posts into new formats like videos or live talks. User-generated and employee highlight content also saves time.
The Bottom Line of Social Media Content Plan
Yes, creating a solid social media content plan requires effort. However, putting in a bit of extra work now to think through high-level themes, potential posts, and timing sets you up for sustainable social media success in the long run.
Once in place, your strategy becomes one powered by creativity, consistency, and, most importantly, results.
Ready to start planning for social media success? If you need assistance with strategizing or managing the moving parts, our team is here to help.
Let us know! We're excited to brainstorm with you and feel free to download our Social Media Content Toolkit to learn more about crafting consistent content for your social media platforms.
