How to Plan Your Content Calendar for 2016

Small Business Online Marketing Tips By

Plan to build--and keep--your readership in 2016 with valuable, consistent content.

The New Year is here, and nothing could be more helpful than taking a good, over-arching glance at your content strategy and aligning it with your marketing goals.

With a good plan laid out, you’ll always feel at-the-ready when it comes to a key arm of your marketing plan: content!

But how do you plan for content? For starters, it’s important to look the year ahead, as well as your goals ahead.

Don’t just pull things out of a hat or think of what you may be most interested in reading. Really get strategic!

These are the types of things that will help make your content work for you!

• Who is your audience?•Who are you speaking to?•How can you content help warm them to your goals, and shape your plans?•How can you lead them

through your conversion funnel with interesting content?

You’re looking ahead - a whole year ahead!

What holidays or events within your organization are important to your content? Maybe you’ll want to align some of your marketing with an upcoming promotion or holiday that ties hugely into your product and/or service.

Make it worth it! By planning ahead, you can make it happen and do all the necessary prep-work for a big hit.

Take a glance at competitors

When it comes to reviewing the competition, you’ll want to ensure you’re one step ahead. Don’t try to do something that’s already been done, just because you think “you can do it better.” Make your competition scan a good parameter of what not to plan. Be different, be unique. Realize that your unique audience is yours, and there’s a unique reason that they are.

“Listen in”Listen in to the industry. Do some research on what evolved in the past year and try to think ahead of what may be coming up.

Really listen to what you’re reading.

Take a look at past comments from last year. Your customers and audience were yours in 2015--so work to keep it that way!

Look to the teamYour team is your ears, eyes and heart.  Remember that you’re not alone when it comes to diversifying your content. Look to the team for new ideas, thoughts and content-generation.  Even different voices and contributors can make all the difference in keeping your content fresh and interested audience wide.

What worked in the previous year? Now is the best time to look back on past data and find out what worked, and what didn’t.

Really dig into your data if possible, and maybe even build measurement reports that you can create monthly in 2016--to save you time and effort in the future.

•Were lists posts seemingly quick reads without much engagement? •Were posts with great images those that drew the most organic traffic?•Which were shared, tweeted about, linked to?

Remember it’s flexible. Your content calendar should not be a rigid sales plan.  Remember that trends, the industry and news change faster than ever these days.  Let your content reflect that, and allow it to morph and flex as needed for your marketing strategy and the world it thrives in.

Keys to SuccessAt Bloominari, we are all aware how hard it is to achieve your goals. So remember: goals, calendar, competitors, listening, teamwork, measurement and flexibility!These are your keys to profitable content-success in 2016.

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Please contact us:bloominari.com | 619-354-1118 | info@bloominari.com