What's Content Planning and How to Streamline Your Content Strategy

Content planning is an essential part of any successful social media strategy.

By creating a content plan, you are able to create content in advance and have a template for each piece of content you will produce.

This not only saves time but also helps ensure that your social media content is consistent and follows the same pattern every time.

Content planning can also help you develop a comprehensive content strategy, which will help guide your social media marketing efforts.

The content planning process includes

• researching relevant topics,
• choosing suitable keywords,
• creating interesting visuals
• writing compelling copy, etc.

Furthermore, having a well-thought-out plan allows you to be more organized when producing each individual social media post.

Is It the Same as a Content Strategy?

Content plans and content strategies are both important for successful content marketing.

The main difference between a content plan and a content strategy is that a content plan focuses on the what, when and where of content creation, while a content strategy focuses on the why, how and who.

A content plan is used to create a specific piece or pieces of content for a certain purpose or audience.

A content strategy, on the other hand, is an overarching set of goals and objectives that helps guide the development of multiple pieces of related content over time.

Both are essential components in any successful content marketing effort as they help create effective, targeted messages with clear goals in mind.

What Content Planning Tools Do Strategists Use?

Just like with anything related to digital marketing, strategists use different content planning tools to stay ahead of the curve.

Content strategists also utilize keyword research tools, like Moz Pro or Google Ads, to identify the right keywords for their content.

They might also employ SEO auditing tools such as Audiit, and Screaming Frog SEO Spider to ensure that their website is properly optimized for organic search engine traffic.

Additionally, they can use analytics platforms like Google Analytics to measure the performance of their content and make adjustments accordingly.

What Does a Content Planning Template Include?

What Is Your Goal?

When asking this question, it's important to consider what exactly you want to achieve.

• Do you want more website visitors?
• Are you looking to increase sales or generate leads?
• Or are you aiming to build brand recognition?

Establishing clear objectives can help you create content that aligns with your business goals and helps you reach them.

Answering this question helps you focus on creating content that will be effective in achieving your desired outcome.

It also allows you to measure the success of your efforts by tracking metrics such as website visits, engagement rates, and lead generation.

Content planning can make a huge difference in helping businesses reach their goals, so it's important to ask yourself this critical question before getting started.

2. What Problem Will You Be Solving for Your Audience(s)?

You must consider who your audience is and what problems they are facing.

You should research their needs and try to identify potential solutions that your content can provide.

This could include providing helpful advice, introducing new products or services, or simply educating people about a certain topic.

Once you have identified the problems you are trying to solve for your audiences, you can begin mapping out a plan for how to address these issues through content.

This will help ensure that your content is tailored to solve specific problems that your audience has and provide them with tangible value.

3. What Content Formats Will You Be Using?

One of the core components of content planning is answering the question: “What content formats will you be using?”.

This is important as each format has its own advantages and disadvantages and should be chosen carefully depending on the goals and objectives of the campaign.

There are many different types of content formats to choose from, such as:

• text-based articles,
• product reviews,
• infographics,
• video tutorials,
• podcasts,
• webinars
• and more.

Each type of content offers a different way to engage with customers or potential customers, so it's important to consider which format would best suit your audience.

Additionally, it's also important to consider how each format fits into the overall strategy for your campaign and how it can be used to create a cohesive narrative.

By taking these factors into account when selecting content formats for your campaigns, you can ensure that your efforts are well-targeted and effective.

Bottom Line

Every company's content plan will look different. However, your content plan should cover some main components, as mentioned in this article.

Other things to consider when planning your content:

• What channels will you publish on?
• How will you manage content creation
• What about the publication?
• What makes your company unique?
• How will you deliver your content?

Whatever the case, one thing is for sure – you need a content plan if you want to be successful.