What is a content plan, what is it for, and can you do without it? We'll cover everything in order.
What is a content plan?
A content plan is a pre-planned schedule for publishing content on social media. Many people might think, "Why should I create a plan? I'm imaginative enough to create content on the fly!"
It's simple, it's not a matter of imagination, but of a systematic approach.
A pre-created content plan with format, topic, date, and time of publication will save you from unpleasant situations when inspiration is lacking, but the post needs to be published today.
Furthermore, this structured approach will allow you to remember important dates when you need to congratulate your readers. This planning will allow you to publish the necessary information and take the time to announce a seasonal promotion on the second-to-last day.
Of course, we're not against your constant inspiration and imagination, but you need to plan your publishing schedule so your page readers aren't overwhelmed by your creativity. Or they won't wait for a new post for weeks while your muse temporarily leaves you.
A content plan is especially useful if you've been managing social media pages for a long time and it becomes difficult to remember all the topics you've previously published.
Typically, a content plan is set for a month, but we also recommend checking it weekly and making any necessary adjustments. After all, one of the key rules of an effective publication is its relevance.
Before you begin your content plan, you should establish key goals for maintaining your page. These could include:
- Increase in sales;
- Increased brand awareness;
- Increasing loyalty, attracting audience.
Once you've set your goals, you can move on to creating your content plan.
To create a content plan for your project, you can use any method that suits you:
- Create a file in Google Calendar
- Google Sheets
- Google Excel.
In fact, the design method doesn't matter, the main thing is to determine the most convenient option for you and your team.
The content itself, according to its purpose, can be of the following types:
- Advertising (commercial).
- Entertaining.
- Informational.
All these types of content should be organically mixed in your diet. Avoid overusing sponsored posts, as overly intrusive service ads can irritate users. After that, you need to decide how often and when to publish. To do this correctly, consider all the characteristics of your target audience.
As you understand, your website can be anything in terms of specifics, but all of the above cannot be achieved without a content plan to achieve promotional results.
How to Create a Content Plan for Instagram
Although Facebook acquired the rights to Instagram long ago and the two social platforms are managed by the same company, their approaches to page promotion are fundamentally different. Consequently, creating content plans for these two networks has its own specifics.
How do you write a proper content plan for this social network? It's important to remember that Instagram is primarily a visual social network. People watch more than they read, so engaging content is essential. Therefore, before writing your content plan topics, you need to determine whether you can find high-quality visual material for them. Furthermore, Instagram has two additional features (Stories and IGTV) that you should take advantage of and consider their potential.
On Instagram these could be:
- post with photo;
- publications with video (up to 60 seconds - in the page feed, up to 10 minutes - in IGTV);
- carousel format (several photos in one publication or even photos + video);
- stories.
A word about stories. To effectively promote your page, you absolutely must make full use of this feature.
This is your business card and it should always be available to the user.
How to Create a Content Plan for Facebook
Facebook audiences are more interested in storytelling and entertaining content. Facebook readers prefer short videos up to 3-5 minutes long. Of course, you shouldn't simply fill your page with videos. After all, readers aren't always comfortable viewing video content, and the page's presentation needs to be balanced.
To prevent your monthly content plan from becoming a chore, think about the main headings of your content plan right away.
An example of a content plan for a week.
Below is an example of a weekly content plan for a tourist base.
For convenience, we recommend color-coding content for different purposes. This significantly simplifies comprehension and prevents unwanted clutter of messages on the same topic.
Example of a monthly content plan.
Of course, a month is a very long time, and during this time it may be necessary to make some changes, this is normal.
We also recommend leaving a comment field where you can make short comments on the topic of the post. These notes will make writing your texts for publication much easier in the future.
Selecting topics for posts
Choosing news topics is a creative process, but also the most challenging. Only after determining the type of content, the frequency of its publication, and the time of publication does the question naturally arise: "Where can I find topics for Instagram posts?" We offer several options to help you get ideas for future posts:
- Competitor analysis
Observe what your key competitors are doing: pay attention not only to local companies, but also be sure to seek out your peers on the global stage. Monitor their social media, get inspired, and strive for more. Pay close attention to readers' reactions in the comments: capture the moments that anger them and avoid repeating those mistakes. Don't forget about professional communities on Facebook and Instagram, where you can find plenty of new post ideas.
- Events calendar
Review your project-related milestones monthly and include them in your social media posting schedule. These calendars often feature odd dates (like a window sill day), but they often inspire new topics. Don't forget about special occasions for your company: birthdays and current events.
- Solving customer problems
Imagine yourself as a client.
Here you're landing on a brand page you've never heard of before. Consider what questions your readers might have and what they want to know:
- work schedule;
- address; delivery;
- uniqueness of the product;
- Features of the company's work during the quarantine period.
These are your future topics for posts.
We hope our tips will help you create a social media content plan. The key is to work systematically with this file, and within the second month, you'll see results and a clear boost in your page's performance.
Of course, maintaining a content plan is resource-intensive, but the results are worth it. KelyanMedia's SMM specialists will be happy to advise you on how to develop and successfully integrate a content plan for your project.
