The ONE Thing You Need To Succeed In Social Media Marketing This Year

Is one of your New Year’s resolutions to post more frequently on Facebook (or Twitter or Google+ or a blog)? If so, you will want to incorporate a tried-and-true technique that editors and writers have been using for decades if not centuries: the editorial calendar. It’s the first thing we do when we are engaged for social media management.

Ever notice how magazine and newspapers have recurring “buckets” of content that appear in every issue? Whether it’s the Cosmo Quiz or Letters to the Editor, there are categories that reappear consistently. And using this technique will help you organize your Facebook / blog / Twitter postings.

Why create an editorial calendar? The most important reason for the small business owner is commitment. Once you have a calendar in place, you’ve set a date for content and you’re more likely to get it done. It also helps you get over the “what am I going to write about now?” dilemma. You’ve got the general outline done, now you just have to put the words into place.

Tips for creating your social media editorial calendar

Brainstorm over a few days. Don’t worry about buckets or categories for now, just brainstorm. Start with your business keywords. (You DO have a list of keywords and phrases, don’t you?) Jot down things you can write about that your customers and prospects want to know about. Do one brainstorm session, then come back in 24 hours or so and try another session. Your brain regenerates overnight – you’ll be surprised how coming in fresh will give you more and more ideas to add to your list.

Include some easy-to-do posts. Nominate a customer of the week, book of the week, Question of the day, re-post a quote or find other quick-to-publish items. Not every post has to be a mini-novel. You may be able to get a few weeks’ or months’ worth of “quickie” posts lined up and scheduled in an hour or so, and congratulate yourself on a job done!

Take a cue from holidays and seasons. Back-to-school, Mother’s Day and Christmas are obvious holidays you can tie into. What about something more offbeat? Check Chase’s Events for ideas at http://www.mhprofessional.com/templates/chases/special-months.php.

Don’t overdo it. Give yourself a break and be realistic about what you can do. If it’s impossible to commit to three posts a day, maybe just commit to one a day.

Organizing your editorial calendar

Now that you have brainstormed lists of potential posts, see how they might fall into categories. Can you assign a theme for certain months? What about having “quickie” posts for Mondays and Fridays? Can you divide your product lines or features into bite-size pieces and focus on one per week?

Here’s an example of a simple editorial calendar’s category buckets:

Monday: Inspiration

Tuesday: Tip/How-To

Wednesday: Question about an Industry Topic

Thursday: Product feature focus

Friday: Opinion/Industry News Item

To access a list of great resources for managing your Facebook page, visit us at http://facebook.com/peppertownmarketing and click the “Facebook Resources” tab.