My penchant for organization is fairly well-known. It’s one of the reasons I use an editorial calendar. It keeps my content organized and lets me know of posts that need to be written, such as this one. Once I write that content and prepare it to be published, I am free to focus on other things, namely, building my business and working on larger projects.
Organization isn’t the only reason I recommend editorial calendars. I have five other ones:
- Editorial calendars bring order to content that may or may not be scattered. An editorial calendar lets me view a month, three months, or a year. It lets me see how the content can be organized to bring it full-circle or to lead readers to a particular end, such as signing up for a newsletter or contacting me for work.
- Editorial calendars highlight gaps in the content. Not every day in my calendar is filled. Even if every day has a post or other content attached to it, that doesn’t mean gaps aren’t there. For instance, a marketing blog typically has several foci. If one of those areas hasn’t received much attention, it’s time to address it and to fill in the gap.
- Editorial calendars identify who is responsible for creating content. In larger organizations or even at newspapers, editorial calendars are used to assign stories and other content. Everyone knows who is responsible for what, which cuts down on confusion and the potential for misunderstandings.
- Editorial calendars set up time lines and expectations. Editorial calendars set up publishing dates and due dates. If the calendar is upheld, employees know to turn their work in on time and, preferably, to turn in ready-to-publish work (or as close to it as possible).
- Editorial calendars identify themes and potential integrations with other elements, such as e-letters, videos, and comics. My own editorial calendar is interwoven with content other than the blog posts. It includes the Write Right comics, videos, and e-letters. Incorporating all those things results in a more cohesive message. While they can stand on their own, they find renewed power when used in conjunction with each other.
If you have an editorial calendar, why is it important to you?
Image: Jeff Hester (CC BY NC SA)
A version of this post originally appeared at Leaders West on March 29, 2013.
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