We are huge fans of editorial calendars over here at Checkerboard. For those who aren’t familiar with editorial calendars, they are a tool that bloggers use to establish a posting schedule. They also include the topics (which are brainstormed prior to) that each post will cover. Not only do they ensure that our content is fresh and timely, they also keep us posting content in a consistent manner. Editorial calendars are a critical part of any business’ social media strategy and we encourage all our clients to use them to manage content and maintain a schedule for blog entries and social media posts.  Some clients use Google Calendar; it’s free and pretty easy to use.

You don’t want to look like an amateur blogger to your audience. An editorial calendar can help make sure that your blog, Facebook and Twitter platforms look polished and read professionally.

• Editorial calendars establish a schedule for your audience. People are creatures of habit. We’re predictable and we like pattern. If your readers notice you are making posts every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 2:00 p.m., guess when they will start checking back for new content? You got it: every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 2:00 p.m. You can even take this one step further with the topics you choose to write about: for example, a grocery story could make a post every Tuesday featuring a new meal idea and call it Tasty Tuesdays.
• Editorial calendars eliminate last minute brainstorms. Another nice thing about editorial calendars is that when you sit down to write a blog, you already know the topic. They prevent that dead behind the eyes, fingernails drumming on the desk writers block. Without an editorial calendar, you tend to end up writing about whatever pops in your head and you’re left with a disorganized blog that looks like nothing more than a grab bag of random topics. Don’t underestimate the power of great last minute ideas, though. The best editorial calendars are flexible enough to allow spontaneous gems of brilliance to be worked in the schedule.
• Editorial calendars guarantee a consistent message. If you have multiple people writing for your blog, an editorial calendar ensures that all team members have a clear consensus about the ideas that need to be communicated and who is responsible for which post, which day and where it goes. It holds bloggers accountable for writing about the correct topic and meeting deadlines.

Don’t have time to dedicate to making regular posts? We can help. Our writing team will craft your social media content and follow an editorial calendar to ensure they are posted on schedule. We can successfully train your audience to keep coming back for more.