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To keep your business top of mind for your target audience, you need to post content regularly. For maximum impact, you need to post the right things at the right time.
Your posting schedule should align with your marketing efforts, focusing on strategic needs and expected results.
In other words, you need a content plan.
But what is it? Is it the same as content strategy? What kind of information should be included? What is the difference between a good content plan and a bad content plan?
Answers to all these questions and more – more a Free templates to download Customize it for your own needs and read on.
What is a content plan?
A content plan is a document that defines all the marketing content and assets needed to implement your content marketing strategy.
This includes everything from blogs and social media posts to search engine optimization studies and white papers.
Each included asset corresponds to one of the Awareness, Consideration, Conversion or Loyalty stages and aligns directly with your marketing funnel.
Why you need a content plan
Content is an important part of marketing.
Creating a content plan will help your team create, collaborate, and implement this content.
Good planning helps predict future resource allocations and avoids unnecessary delays and costs.
Content Strategy Vs. Content Plans: What’s the Difference?
They have similar names, are often confused with each other, and are sometimes erroneously used interchangeably, but the Content Plan No Same with content strategy.
Yes you need both.
So what’s the difference?
The main thing you need to know is this: Your Content Strategy Defines how When why Content is used for marketing strategy.
Decide on your content plan what, when When Where We use a variety of assets as part of this strategy to reach our goals.
Essentially, your content plan is the building blocks (blogs, outreach, reports, etc.) you use to achieve the goals outlined in your content strategy (more leads, increased sales, etc.).
A content plan defines how to achieve the goals of your strategy, so you should develop a content strategy before you begin your content planning.
What information is included in the content plan?
An effective content plan should provide content authors with useful information they can use when developing their assets. In other words, you should say:
- Target audience for content – Your content needs an audience. It’s rudimentary marketing. Your content plan should clearly define the audience for your asset and build it to appeal to those targets.
- Shipping method – Is this a blog post or an ad? A podcast or a paid ad? Depending on the delivery medium, the content will be in different formats.
- what problem it solves – Your target audience has a need. Your content plan should present a solution to this need and call your target to action.
- How to make – Do you have a resident content writer to create this work, or do you outsource it to a freelancer? Who is responsible for publishing it? Answering these questions will help you manage your budget and workflow .
- Related expenses – Whether it’s a payment to a web developer, a placement fee, or a subscription required for research, your content plan should approximate the expected fees or payments required to create each item.
Optionally, you can also include information about tone, structure and layout notes, word count, categories, and URLs.
Types of content to include
We’ve already talked about how all pieces of content fit into specific stages of the marketing funnel.
Now let’s look at each stage and discuss the types of content that are best suited for each.
consciousness
This type of content is aimed at the top of the marketing funnel.
It’s about showing potential customers that you exist and letting them know about the qualities that differentiate you. Your content should be easy to consume and easy to share.
Common recognized content types include:
- social media posts.
- Keyword-rich content for SEO.
- Paid Search Ads.
- Blog posts that don’t focus on sales.
consideration
The second stage of the funnel is nurturing leads, building relationships, and establishing trust. At this point, the content should become more detailed and provide evidence of the solution.
Good content for the consideration stage includes:
- A blog that establishes your authority.
- comparison content.
- webinar.
conversion
A lead is at stake. Now it’s time to get them involved and complete the sale. Content at this stage should provide information about why customers should choose your brand.
Types that are useful at this stage are:
- Sale, promotion, coupon.
- provide consultation.
- Case studies, articles, white papers.
Create your own content plan
As promised, here are some content plan templates you can download and use for your business.
But here’s the problem. Your company’s needs are unique. Simply downloading this plan will not work.
It should be adjusted for your specific situation.
Not sure how to do that?
you are in luck We also provide a handy step-by-step guide.
Customize your content plan
1. Determine the goal each piece is trying to achieve
Trying to be everything to everyone is a terrible strategy. Remember the old saying.
This is especially true for marketing content.
All content that you plan and ultimately create should have a specific purpose.
When creating your own content plan, keep in mind what you are trying to achieve with your work. Make sure each piece of content aligns clearly with a specific stage in your marketing funnel.
2. Identify where your target audience is
Determine your target audience and find the best way to reach them. Then decide where each piece of content can be placed for maximum effect.
Be aware that certain types of content perform better on certain platforms.
For example, a professional e-book you are about to create is likely to receive more attention and interaction on LinkedIn than on Facebook.
3. Consider your budget
Keep your budget in mind when deciding when to create and release specific content.
For example, if you have a trade show scheduled for August that requires significant investment in both time and money, June and July may not be the best times to undertake resource-intensive content projects. There is a nature.
One of the benefits of content plans is that you can see information about ongoing and upcoming projects at a glance.
Use this to your advantage.
4. Determine your cadence
To gain credibility and grow your audience, you need to release fresh content on a regular basis.
Unfortunately there is no magic number for what it is. Only you can decide what best suits you and your audience’s wishes.
You should check your schedule to determine how much time you can devote to creating and curating content.
Then put yourself in your target’s shoes and determine how often they want your content.
Finally, consider how release frequency can help you reach your goals.
For example, if you want to grow your audience, you should post more often than if you want to maintain customer loyalty.
5. Create a flow
You need a well-defined content creation process.
You should outline what each person is responsible for, who will be involved in each step, and establish a process for handing things off from one person or department to the next.
Many organizations find that using a color-coded system works best at this stage.
Other content planning tips
Now that you’ve downloaded the content plan template and customized it for your unique situation, it’s time to start planning and creating that content.
Before we take the leap and start outlining all the assets and collateral we’ll be using next year, here are a few final things to remember:
color code
You can see information about each piece of content at a glance using the fill functionality provided by the spreadsheet.
It should be easy to identify where your work is in the creation process, what platforms it will be used on, and how it fits into your overall marketing strategy.
Don’t forget SEO
A lot of your prospects come to you over the internet, so helping them find you is of the utmost importance. Any digital content you create should always have search engine optimization in mind.
Research your keywords and make sure you include them whenever possible. Create content that aligns with search intent and make sure everything provides value.
Don’t be afraid to draw inspiration from pages that currently rank for your desired keywords.
(Note the word “inspiration”. It doesn’t mean stealing. All content must be original.)
Consider each channel separately
Each content marketing channel has its own purpose. You should always keep these in mind when deciding what to put where.
That said, watch out for opportunities to reuse things. If you can generate engagement by posting links to the same blog post on four different social media channels, you absolutely should.
keep the idea file
Great content ideas can come to you when you least expect them. Consider adding another tab to your content plan spreadsheet so you can list ideas for future content.
Keywords are a great starting point for generating ideas. Take a look around and see what other brands are doing. Can a similar approach be taken?
Maybe you have a stupid idea that you haven’t taken seriously, but it could inspire someone else.
The purpose of the idea file is to brainstorm as many ideas as possible. In other words, nothing is wrong.
final thoughts
Creating a successful content plan isn’t difficult, but it does take some work. But if you’re serious about achieving your marketing goals, you should do it.
And be careful: your position, goals, and standards will evolve over time, and your content should evolve with it.
Get out there now and create something amazing.
Other resources:
Featured Image: Maybe Alice/Shutterstock
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