Why bother creating a social media calendar? Can’t I just post whenever I feel like it?
The answer is yes – and no.
Creating a social media calendar allows you to ensure you’re covering a wide, varied range of content, following the natural rhythms of your target market’s social media use. For example, we all need a little help feeling motivated on a Monday, so perhaps an inspiring story or quote which is in line with your brand message is the way to go. On Fridays, we’re looking forward to the weekend, so perhaps something funny or cheeky would work here. Again, make sure it’s in line with your brand message. Creating a social media calendar can be time-consuming but you’ll save a lot of time in the long run.
Creating a social media calendar will also help smooth over those weeks when you’re flat chat and haven’t had a chance to post anything because the content is there and ready to go, or better yet, already scheduled!
What information should I include?
Always include the obvious details, such as date and time, as well as to which platforms you’d like it to be published. A ‘rhythm’ is really helpful as well eg. Monday: Inspiring Post, Tuesday: Client Story, Wednesday: Sourced Article etc. This helps make sure you don’t start with a blank page but instead, a puzzle which simply needs piecing together with killer content. Always include the filenames of your graphics as well, to save time searching for something you saved last month and doubling up on your workload.
How will I know what to post?
Take a moment to pretend you are your potential client – or a current client. What do you want to see today? What would help you feel inspired and motivated, enough to click through and explore the brand more thoroughly, or to even make a purchase? What kinds of contents or captions would inspire you to share the post with a friend, or simply click like? Consider the day of the week, possible weather conditions (eg. the beginning of Spring has us all feeling inspired and motivated – cash in on that!). Also, any national holidays or celebrations such as ANZAC day and Father’s / Mother’s Day are usually quite relatable to the general public.
What’s the magic?
Be yourself! Figure out your brand and stick with it – don’t try to be ‘cool’ like your competitor or ‘corporate’ like the office across the road. Brand and voice is really important and your clients and followers will begin to recognise it. Maintain this across everything you do, including social media, website, emails and any other collateral you may use in the company.
And if all else fails, call us! We’re here to help.
