How To Create A Content Calendar in Google Sheets - WordPress Membership Plugin Members Sites

Jul 20, 2023

How Do I Create A Content Calendar using Google Sheets

                        A well-planned schedule keeps your content ticking over effortlessly. You don't have to shell out for a fancy tools for managing projects. It's possible to create the ideal calendar of content using a no-cost program you likely already have in use, Google Sheets. Read on to see how it's done.          

How to create a content calendar in Google Sheets

Hello to the exciting world of content marketing when deadlines come closer than the speed of a running cheetah drinking the energy drink.

Imagine trying to navigate this intensely fast-paced setting without a map and any sense of direction or even an idea of where you're going. Sounds daunting, doesn't it?

It's just what it's as it is to manage and curate content with no calendar.

Content schedules are an outline of the content you'll post the content on, when it's to be posted, and the precise timeline for its release.

However, it's not just a sophisticated organizer. It's the heartbeat of your content plan, ensuring your marketing objectives stay in line and that your target viewers are engaged.

Gripped audience eating popcorn

Stay tuned as we share our top tips, and how to build a schedule of content in Google Sheets, that'll keep your entire team focused and on time!

Advantages of a Content Calendar

There are several motives to plan for the future with a planned schedule:

The process of your team can be streamlined

Content schedules provide every important detail for your team of creatives and other external contributors.

It defines:

  • What is required to be achieved,
  • Deadlines,
  • Other crucial specifics (such as keywords and references)
  • The person accountable of each project.

This clarity can greatly minimize confusion, rushes at the last minute and mistakes in communication.

When everyone is clear about their roles, they are able to focus on doing their best job. That's the perfect formula for efficiency!

Strategically Organized Content

With a content schedule it's not just posting content hoping to get it noticed. Each piece of content has the purpose of serving and supports your broader content strategy.

It ensures that your content has a purpose that is consistent with the themes you have chosen, and is in line with your brand's messaging. You can also ensure that each content type and topic gets its fair share of attention and ensure that nothing is left unnoticed.

Schedule Content Ahead of Time

Give yourself the gift of time with a content calendar

It's late at night, your deadline is approaching, and you're frantically trying to create the perfect blog article or figure out an intriguing title for your Facebook blog post. If this sounds familiar, you need an agenda for your content!

By using a schedule of content such stress-inducing scenarios are avoided.

You are able to plan your HTML0 content for weeks, or even months ahead, which gives you plenty of time to find information, conduct research and create more engaging interactive, engaging web content.

Additionally, it allows you to coordinate content around crucial dates or times that are important to your company or industry.

Differentiate Content

Content schedules provide an overview of your content landscape.

You can easily check if you're maintaining a good variety of different types of content, whether it's blog posts or updates on social media, podcasts, or videos. Colors are a great way to check the quality of your content visually.

Content Calendar Example

This ensures your content stays fresh and interesting, meaning your viewers don't become bored of the same content.

Just a few benefits of taking the time to schedule your content ahead of time.

The creation of a successful Content Schedule

Let's break down a step-by-step guide that will help you move your plan to success.

Step 1: Know Your Content Marketing Goals

There's no reason to make content for the sake of it. If you would like to maximise your content's potential, you must identify your goals and the direction that you're taking.

Identify "Why" as well as "Who"

Why?

Why do you think it is important to creating content?

Arrow hitting target blue yellow leadership aiming achievement goal target

Who?

If you've decided on your goal Now is the time to get in touch with a key player in your content game - - your audience.

These are the individuals that you want to reach via your material. The more you understand their interests, needs as well as challenges and challenges, the greater your chance of creating content that genuinely resonates.

Make Use of This Information Every Time You Design Content

Your content marketing goals and your target audience should be on your radar each whenever you design or write new information.

These elements will dictate the type of content you'll produce and the subjects you'll cover and the best channels to distribute your content.

Step 2: Planning Your Content Strategy

Once you've established the foundations with your objectives and audience in mind, we can begin the exciting part of preparing your content strategy.

Here is where strategy and creativity merge, and where your content plan begins to form. Therefore, get your favourite beverage, don your artistic hat, and get to work!

Generating Ideas for Content

Start brainstorming ideas for your content. If we refer to content, we are referring to all types of content.

  • Blog posts,
  • Social media postings,
  • Newsletters,
  • Podcasts,
  • Webinars,
  • Videos,
  • Infographics
  • Quotes
  • Customer testimonials
  • Demos

Do not be shy! Consider every type of media your customers use, and what motivates them to purchase.

As an example, suppose you're an online education platform that targets professionals who are looking for advancement in their career Your goal could be to provide them with the latest abilities and skills despite their busy schedules.

Your content schedule could include quick tutorial videos, easy-to-follow instructional guides and inspirational successes to share via the social media platforms on which career-oriented people are most likely to engage, like LinkedIn as well as Twitter.

TIP I: Use ChatGPT for Content Ideas

All are looking for ways to incorporate ChatGPT to simplify their workflows, and this is a fantastic illustration of how to achieve it.
         
          Leveraging the power of ChatGPT can be a great way to brainstorm ideas. It's it's an AI modeling language It's highly adept at presenting numerous and innovative suggestions aren't even thought of.

Begin by defining the content's purpose and users (as you've done in step 1) Then, you can engage with ChatGPT just like you would in a chat.

Here's how to make the perfect prompt

1. Explain your company and target public

"We're an entrepreneur-run company specializing on organic skincare products aimed at people who are health conscious, aged between 20 and 35.

2. Define your purpose

We're launching a new collection of cruelty-free, vegan face serums and our goal is to boost the sales on our website by spreading the benefits that come with our products.

3. Contact ChatGPT what content ideas you'd like to see it develop

Do you have persuasive content ideas or strategies that highlight the positives of our serums, and convince our audience members to an order?."

Here's the output GPT-4 generated by following this prompt:

From there, you can request it to provide you with blogs with titles suggestions outline of your blog, propose questions for your quizzes that are interactive.

The key is interaction - the more specific your prompts are, the more specific and valuable the replies.

Tip 2: Search for Keywords to use in the Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Keywords are actually the key to SEO for web-based content. Utilizing powerful keywords can be an important factor in ensuring that your content is not lost in a web-based content sea and appearing in the result pages of the desired potential customers.

This is also an interesting understanding of how your target audience seeks out similar products to yours on the internet. With the help of the research of keywords, you've got the power to create material that answers their questions or addresses their wants.

SEMrush as well as Google Keyword Planner are great tools for discovering these invaluable gems. Embed these keywords into the content of your site to improve the SEO of your site and propel your site further up the rankings of search engines.

SEMrush homepage 2023

Step 3: Make a Master Content Calendar In Google Sheets

After you've got a clear idea of the kind of material you'll provide, the next step is to determine the best time and place to release the content.

You may have a real-time video on your site, an email newsletter queued up, a demonstration of your product, or a gathering for your social media for the same time.

In addition, you should consider your regular blog posts as well as your regular social media interactions.

Your timeline for posting is totally up to you, but be aware that consistent posting is crucial for each of your platforms to really flourish.

This is when a master calendar is essential. The aim of a master calendar is to have an overview of your strategy for content and set a schedule for publishing every bit of content.

This is how you accomplish it:

From Your Google Drive account, click New towards the upper left corner of your screen. Next, click on an arrow , and click on from a template

Scroll to the bottom and choose Annual Calendar. Scroll down and select Annual. It will create an annual calendar that is based on the current calendar year.

Click the Customize your calendartab to choose from different types. When you're done, may delete the tab in order to free up space to store useful data.

Then click on the tab for the month that you would like to edit.

Enter the type of content that you would like to provide on the day and then color code it to make it obvious at a glance which type of content is scheduled for the day. This will ensure you have an appropriate variety of information.

Content Calendar in Google Sheets

Individual Content Calendars

When your overall monthly plan has been set, now it's time so figure out the details.

Who is the person who wrote it? What is the time frame you have to edit and format the content? Who's taking care of social media posts and what kind of content are they going to post? Don't worry, we have a plan for this as well!

This is the way to create a blog schedule within Google Sheets:

  • Select the (+) icon at the right-hand corner of your Google Sheet to add a new tab.
  • Drag the new tab next to the corresponding month.
  • Create the             Blog Schedule            sections with columns for
  • Publication Date
  • Blog Post Topic/Title
  • Writer
  • Deadline (give yourself plenty of lead time to edit and format the blog post in advance of the published date)
  • Keywords
  • Additional details
  • Depending on the style the blog is designed, you can add additional columns like "Blog Category" (long-form, informationgraphic, short, etc. ).
  • Copy and paste the data from your master calendar.
  • The task can be assigned to a different author by right-clicking the cell and pressing Comment.
  • @tag an individual on the team, or write in the full email address of the person who assigned them.
  • Make sure that all contributors have access to the calendar.
blog content calendar and social media calendar

Now, onto social media timetables.

You may either make an entirely new tab, or for a more centralized blog you can enter the details beneath your blog's schedule.

To include all social media calendars You should add:

  • Social Media Platform
  • Post Time
  • Day
  • Content

If you want to create a more extensive schedule it is recommended to include relevant hashtags, links, images, photographs, as well as the actual text for your post.

As with your blog schedule it is possible to assign the author and have an indication of whether it's been queued up by your social media administration tool (like Buffer or Hootsuite).

To conclude

From enabling you to map out your content strategy, to ensuring that all your goals for marketing align and are in sync, a schedule of content is a reliable guide in the dynamic world of content marketing.

Utilizing Google Sheets as your platform making a schedule of content is easy as it is efficient.

From master calendars to detailed blog and social media schedules You've got the options to streamline your process and diversify your content keep at the top of your game.

So why wait? Start harnessing the potential of a planned content schedule today and watch your content marketing efforts thrive.

Remember, success in content marketing is not about who is loudest or most raucous and who is the smartest. With your brand new content schedule You're already well on your way to success. Now, let's get planning!

           Are you using an agenda calendar? Got any tips you would like to share with our Member community? Tell us about it by leaving a comment below.

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