An editorial calendar is a planning tool that helps organizations consistently publish relevant content across channels by scheduling what will be published, when, and how. Researching target audiences, goals, current online conversations and searches helps guide the types of content created and how it is delivered. Creating an editorial calendar, from a simple paper version to a detailed online or spreadsheet tool, allows mapping out content ideas, assignments, deadlines and more for an integrated communications strategy.

1. Pass the WD-40: Running your communications program like a well-oiled
machine
Ruth Patton & Jenna Hartwig Wade, Fresh Energy
MCN 2011 Technology and Communications Conference, February 23
Quick and dirty notes
The editorial calendar: what it is, what it can do for you
An editorial calendar is a tool that helps you plan what content you’re going to publish, when, and how.
• Integrated campaigns
• Consistent content
• Support/leverage for work plans, budget battles
• Future content planning
The groundwork: research
• Who are your target audiences?
• What are your goals for those audiences?
• Audiences, goals, and channels work together to make great content
• Having your audiences and goals (and the right channels) identified helps narrow your focus
The big picture
• Create content and deliver it in ways that appeal to your audiences and help you fulfill your org goals.
• To find the sweet spot between content/audiences/goals/channels…
o What kinds of content are people looking for?
o What kinds of conversation around your issues already exist?
• Find a conversation rather than create a need
Why research?
• Help guide what words and messages you use in your content.
• Using a couple different tools, find words/phrases most commonly used: searches, online
conversations, social media
What you can find:
• What people are searching for
• What conversations are happening online and in social media
• What’s going on with your own online content
• What your supporters want
1

2. Google alerts (google.com/alerts)
• Google alerts track web and social media content
• Good “cover your bases” method
Google Insights for Search (google.com/insights/search)
• What words and topics people are looking for right now (or over the long term)
• Shows you top searches, rising searches (and how fast those new searches are rising)
• You can compare geography, time frames, specific terms
Social media
• Different animal
• Look for type of conversations that dominates, topics driving engagement, questions being asked
• Make sure you’re in the middle
Socialmention (socialmention.com)
• Big picture trends, specifically in social media
• Real-time results on the conversations that are happening in the world on your topic
Facebook
• Faking a Facebook ad
• Find everyone who has those terms on their profile
Twitter search (search.twitter.com)
• What are people tweeting about?
• Search by keyword, limit by geography, time frame, language, tone, or whether the tweet was asking a
question
Hashtag.org
• What hashtags are people using
• Be part of the “right” conversations, the ones that revolve around your issues
Google analytics (google.com/analytics)
• What do people gravitate toward on your website or blog?
• Need a google account of course (use any email) and free
• Page views, unique visitors, time spent on particular pages, etc.
Analyze your own social media
• What tweets/FB posts/entries get the best results, think about producing more of those
• Facebook Insights, Hootsuite, Tweetdeck, Sprout Social, Spredfast
General principles
2

3. • Ensure consistent branding
• Ensure consistent voice and tone
• Keep it all connected: make it easy for people to find your social media pages from your website and
emails (and from each other)
• Integrate your messages, keeping in mind which channel is best for what message
• Leave a trail: make sure people won’t get lost as they navigate your message channels
• Create great content: staff work plans, occasions of note in your industry (Earth Day, Black History
Month, National Poetry Month), seasons, holidays
Creating an editorial calendar
• Now that you’ve got your research and your content, how do you keep it all organized?
• Pieces of paper and a file folder, paper or online calendar, excel or google docs, fancy software
• Follow the KISS rule
What can your editorial calendar keep track of?
• Channels, deadlines, themes, authors, assignments, story ideas, published content, retweets, clicks,
page views, goals
Choose your level…
• Oily: If you don’t have a lot of channels, aren’t producing a lot of content, you’re a one-person shop
• Oilier: A few more channels, month by month view, optional ingredients
• Even oilier: A yearly calendar with multiple channels and a monthly breakdown
• Oiliest (or crazy oily): Metrics, images you’ll use, links you’ll include, comments and page views
afterwards
Our experience
• Never had a calendar before
• Day-long communications retreat, outside of the office
• Big ol’ piece of paper, lots of coffee, and different colored markers
• Brainstormed every channel we could think of, and lots of other things
• Months along the top – an entire year’s worth
• Started with the solid due dates, the things we knew for sure
• Filled in the holes with the goal of having multiple interesting things going on every month
• Plugged it into one big excel spreadsheet with a monthly view
3