22 Nov Why You Need an Editorial Calendar for Your Organization

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Why You Need an Editorial Calendar for Your Organization in 2017

You may already have it; you may have just talked about it; you may have only referenced it as a ‘myth’…but we’re here to talk about why your organization needs to use an editorial calendar in 2017.

An editorial calendar might come with different names such as a marketing or PR calendar, annual road map, topic calendar, and so on, but for our purposes, we’re going to stick with calling it an editorial calendar.

So, why are we making such a big deal about using such a calendar? Because, it can mean the difference between achieving your goals in 2017 versus only wishing you did.

An editorial calendar not only provides your organization with a communications guideline, or direction, but because of its inherent nature, it allows for thoughtful planning, careful consideration and capitalization on market trends and new services. In essence, it serves as a way to preplan your goals, broken down into granular topics, to communicate with your public or target audience.

When developing an editorial calendar, proceed with caution. It is not intended to be a document just whipped together. Organizations that achieve great communication results have planning sessions with multiple team members who come together to brainstorm and develop a calendar. Overall, organization goals are taken into consideration as are economic, political and other factors.

The calendar should enhance your PR and marketing efforts both internally and externally, whether you have an in-house department(s) or outsource the service.

If you outsource PR or marketing, you will want to ensure your agency is well-aware and is following your editorial calendar. Some companies even request their outsourced agency develop this for them with their final review, (which is something we do all the time). However, we definitely have clients who provide their editorial calendar and it helps us further drive their growth in the right direction. The best way for your outsourced agency to succeed is for your internal input. Bending the ear of the top executives, participating in board meetings and reviewing analytical reports, are actions that your outsourced agency might not be able to achieve. Be their guide and help them make your goals flourish.

If your team is in-house, you will want to ensure your editorial calendar takes into account each of your departments, but most importantly, emphasis on outside references. We see many situations where an in-house team is handling nearly everything. With that being the case, they are inundated with the company’s culture, policies, procedures, approvals, red tape and so on. As a result, they lose sight of what external factors must be considered into their plan. Consider this when developing your editorial calendar. There are tools you can use, such as hosting a SWOT analysis prior to help overcome some of these obstacles. Remind your internal team to keep thinking about the bigger picture and not get tied down to granular obstacles they may be used to facing on a day-to-day basis. Think big!

Another obstacle with editorial calendars is the ‘change factor’. What you may have planned for March of next year might not seem so pertinent or inspiring as you approach this time. Perhaps there was an internal change that caused a shift in gears to something of greater importance or you just aren’t ‘feeling’ the topic any longer. Being able to add flexibility to your calendar is essential. We always recommend having five evergreen topics prepared to put in situations where you want to scrap an idea and move to something else. Flexibility is key to capitalizing on hot trends and leading changes in your industry. Just because you have a plan set for an entire year doesn’t mean deviation can’t be allowed.

Lastly, don’t let your editorial calendar collect dust. Once it’s developed, don’t let it become just a saved document somewhere never to be reviewed again. Use the calendar as a living document that is frequently reviewed, edited and discussed. Ensure it is on the agenda of your internal / external meetings and that you actually adhere to the plan. Don’t forget to measure the results of your editorial calendar as this could aid in the development of future plans as well.

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