how to create a social media content calendar


How To Create A Social Media Content Calendar

Strategy. Planning. Preparation. Schedule. Engage. Monitor. Revise. Reinvent. Implement. These are key words when it comes to developing and maintaining a solid and successful presence on social media. Yet most people overlook all of them. These components are necessary to establish your brand on social media in a way that actually gets you the results that you want, instead of just being a waste of time. Creating a social media content calendar for your strategy is crucial, and the only way to be in control of your social media presence, stay organized, and avoid feeling overwhelmed. But where do you start? You start right here! First, answer the following questions below to get clear about why you’re on social media in the first place, and what you want to accomplish for your brand, through social media.

#SocialMedia Tip: Focus less on gaining more fans &

followers, and focus more on building your e-mail list!


STEP 1: Answer These Questions

1. What is the purpose of your social media presence? What is it that you want to accomplish through your social media profiles?

2. Which social media platforms will you be focusing on?


3. What types of content/updates will you be posting?

4. What is your social media voice?

5. How often will you post your updates on each platform?

6. Where will you find content to post?

7. Who will create your original content?

8. When will you create your updates?

9. What scheduling tool(s) will you use to help streamline the posting process?

10. When will you go online to reply to questions and comments, like, or re-tweet other people’s posts, and interact with your social media audience in real time?

11. How will you measure your success?


12. How often will you check your social media stats and analytics to determine the effectiveness and success of your updates?

13. What special events, holiday promotions, giveaways, contests, launches, products, services, blog posts, etc. do you know about in advance that you can incorporate into your calendar for the year?

14. What national holidays, major industry events, etc. do you want to post about this year? Include them in your calendar as well.

15. How often will you pay to promote your content on social media? What content will you pay to promote? What is your monthly budget?

# SocialMedia Tip: You can't just sell, sell, sell, &

promote, promote, promote, on social media. You have

to build relationships with people.

Engage, Interact, and Be Social!


Here are the Do’s and Don’ts of maximizing your time on social media: Don’ts

v Don’t wake up every day and log on to social media only to schedule or post your updates for that day.


v Don’t go to Canva (http://canva.com) to create 1 or 2 social media graphics to share that day.

v Don’t sporadically sign in to social media, i.e. you log in on

Monday, and don’t log in again until Friday.

v Don’t expect to get results on social media if you’re not consistent, and active on a regular basis.

v Don’t miss out on opportunities to build trust and relationships

online, because you only log in to post a promo or update, then immediately log out, never having interacted with anyone.

Do’s

v Maximize your time by batching your tasks together, and scheduling your updates at least a few days in advance.

v Use Canva (http://canva.com) to create unique graphics to

share on social media. Try to create at least 10 or 20 graphics at a time.

v Schedule your social media updates at least one week in

advance, rather than just for one day.

v Take 15-30 mins. a day to reply to people’s comments, questions, tweets, etc. on your social media accounts.

v Take 5 mins. a day to follow new people/follow back your new

followers on Twitter and Instagram.

v Take 10 mins. a day to interact on social media in real time, i.e. like other people’s posts, comment on other people’s photos, re-tweet on Twitter, etc.

v Once a week, review your Facebook page insights to see which

posts are getting the most engagement, interaction, and reach,


and be sure to post more of that specific type of content.

v Pay to promote your Facebook posts, or tweets on Twitter periodically, to gain more exposure for your profiles, grow your fan base, and reach a broader audience.

v Connect your Twitter profile to your Facebook page so that all

of your Facebook updates automatically post to Twitter as well. STEP 2: Write down 5-‐10 different types of updates you want to share on your social media profiles, and create a schedule of when you’d like to post these updates throughout the day/week (you will find a sample calendar below). Make sure they are a mix of a variety of posts, including, but not limited to:

ü Personal photos ü Videos ü Quote Graphics ü Questions/Fill-‐in-‐the-‐blanks ü Blog Post Links ü Other People’s Content (Funny, Entertaining, Informative, Helpful)

ü Motivational/Inspirational Quotes ü Promotions/Contests/Giveaways ü E-‐mail sign-‐up promos ü Industry tips

STEP 3: Create a monthly content creation schedule Create a monthly content creation schedule to determine when you will spend time developing the specific content that you’ll post on


social media each month. This is where you create the actual updates that you’re going to share. Here’s an example: Video – 3 Tips To Get More Organized Blog Post – How To Become A Better Dance Teacher In 5 Simple Steps Motivational Quote – “You won’t be fulfilled by trying to do what someone else is doing. The anointing on your life is for your gifts—your calling.” ~ Joel Osteen This is where you get specific about exactly what each update will be, create the updates/blog posts/videos/graphics, and get them ready to be scheduled in your social media calendar, with the proper links, images, etc. Example Of A Monthly Content Creation Schedule: Week 1 - Schedule your social media updates for the entire month. Week 2 - Create 30 social media graphics for the month. Week 3 – Record and edit 4 new YouTube videos (for the month) or, create your weekly e-newsletters for the month. Week 4 - Write and edit 6-8 new blog posts. Schedule when they will be posted on your blog for the next month. When you break your tasks down like this, and take one week of the month to focus on one item, it makes it feel less overwhelming. That way, you never feel like you’re falling behind or trying to play catch up. You’ll always be ahead of the game.


STEP 4: Schedule your updates in advance:

- Use Hootsuite or Buffer to schedule your updates in advance across multiple platforms. (http://hootsuite.com, http://bufferapp.com)

- Take advantage of Facebook’s Scheduling feature.

- Use Postplanner to find viral photos (free), as well as other viral content to share (paid option) and schedule on Facebook. (http://postplanner.com)

#SocialMedia Tip: For maximum results, post AT LEAST

4x a day, especially on FB & Twitter.

This may sound like a lot. But remember, every fan &

follower you have will not see every update you post.

Post often & consistently throughout the day and

evening, for maximum results.


Sample Facebook Weekly Social Media Calendar


Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

8-‐9 am Motivational Quote

8-‐9 am Inspirational Quote






10-‐11 am Industry Tip Of The Day

10-‐11 am Brand Promotion (product/service/ event/e-‐mail sign-‐up)





10-‐11 am Personal Photo/Brand Video

12-‐1 pm Personal Photo/Brand Video

12-‐1 pm Fill-‐in-‐the-‐blank


12-‐1 pm Question of the day


12-‐1 pm Fill-‐in-‐the-‐blank

12-‐1 pm Blog Post Link








4-‐6 pm Motivational Quote

4-‐6 pm Industry Tip Of The Day





4-‐6 pm Other People’s Content – Entertaining/ Funny/Informative







7-‐9 pm Brand Promotion (product/service/ event/e-‐mail sign-‐up)

10 pm-‐12 am Other People’s Content – Entertaining/ Funny/Informative

10 pm-‐12 am Motivational Quote





10 pm – 12 am Inspirational quote

#SocialMedia Tip: Having thousands of Facebook fans

means nothing if the engagement on your page is low.

Too many people are focused on getting more likes on

their page, but their "fans" never even see or engage

with their updates.


Engagement is the key to growing your brand online,

and building trust and recognition with your target

audience.

You are officially ready to create your own, unique social media content calendar for your brand! I hope that you found this resource helpful, and that you learned something new!


If you have more questions, or need more help, feel free to e-‐mail me at [email protected] anytime. For more social media tips, tools, and resources, visit my website here, http://ashanimfuko.com.

If you’d like to learn even MORE about how to grow your brand and start getting REAL RESULTS on social media, I invite you to join my new Facebook group for entrepreneurs, artists, small business owners, bloggers, writers, dancers, and media professionals.

Learn more and join my secret Facebook group, “How To SHINE On Social Media With Ashani Mfuko” HERE -> http://ashanimfuko.com/shine-social-media-ashani-mfuko.

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Ashani Mfuko is a Social Media Strategist, Digital Marketing Specialist, Award-Winning Blogger, and Professional Dancer. Ashani works with small businesses, corporations, & non-profit organizations as a Social Media Strategist and Digital Marketing Specialist. She creates results-driven, innovative social media strategies that are proven to increase your revenue and catapult your brand to expert status in your niche! She has an extensive track record of creating and implementing successful social media strategies for her clients. She is also the Host and Executive Producer of the “Inside New York City Dance” television show on MNN, and is a proud wife and new mom. Ashani has been featured as a Social Media Expert on the Arise & Shine Weekend Morning Show, in Dance Magazine, as a “Media Maven”, as well as in Dance Mogul magazine, Inside Woman magazine, & Dance Studio Life magazine, in addition to various dance blogs online. She is the author and creator of the, “Finance Your Dance: How To Turn Your Passion Into Profit“ e-book and workshop, and her dance blog won the Reader’s Choice, “Top Dance Business Blog” of the year award, two years


in a row. She is a leader in the field of social media and digital marketing, and is highly sought after as a dance performer and dance teacher in the New York City dance community. Ashani is on staff at the Joffrey Ballet School in New York City, and teaches Advanced Jazz classes for their Jazz & Contemporary Summer Intensive program.