Planning ahead and utilizing my calendars has been SUCH a game-changer for me in my business and it can be for you too! Setting aside intentional time to plan your content is a crucial part to being a business owner. But maybe you’re wondering how to actually have a system in place for planning your content out and if there’s a strategy behind that. Check out the video below for my tips to plan out content for the ENTIRE year in one sitting.
How I Plan My Content
Block Off Dates
First and foremost, I block off days where I have any vacations planned or black out dates where I know for sure I cannot take on clients, book photography gigs, or where I don’t want to be launching. This is an important place to start because if you leave this for the end, you may not have this time “left over” after the rest is planned out. You need to protect this time for yourself!
Add In Booked Events
Next, add in travel dates, booked events, and any time where you know you cannot take on more because of prior commitments. If you have booked a wedding, client event, a convention you’re traveling for, etc.- these are all great things to add during this time so you know you’re booked and busy and that those days are accounted for.
Plan Promotions & Launches
After I put all my vacation and booked events on the calendar, I move onto launches. This is where I will look at my year as a whole and make note of any time where I want to focus on promotions or a marketing push. Maybe you have a Black Friday sale that you want to promote. That is the great to add to your calendar 4-6 weeks before Black Friday so you start the work early and are not waiting until the week of to create graphics and a plan. This is the perfect time to look for different pushes you will have in your business for marketing or launches that you want to intentionally talk about on all social media platforms and through your own content. Some other examples can include: Valentine’s Day Mini Sessions, Summer Family Photoshoot Packages, and Holiday Photo Sessions.
Set Quarterly Focuses
Setting a focus for each quarter of the year is something I utilize to break down the year. I normally stick to 1-3 focuses for any given month. Maybe you want to update your website, take a course, or do a styled shoot – and those are all great things. As you’re thinking of these ideas, add them to the calendar with sticky notes or a pencil to allow for some flexibility. You may realize you have too much on your plate for the quarter you originally planned them to be in and bump them out to the next. Overall, be sure to set some intentions here for themes you’re going to get projects done in for your own business.
Add a Promotion or Take Strategic Time Off
As your year is starting to fill out, you will see where you are pretty busy and where you maybe have some more freedom. This is where you can either add in a promotion or take some strategic time off. If you see that you have a bit of an “off-season” at some point in your year, and that feels good to you because of the other things you’re doing to drive revenue, protect that time for yourself. Maybe you schedule another family vacation or you take a little content creation hiatus so you can come back even more creative. Look at the gaps and decide if you want them there or not!
Plan Check-Ins (Mid Year and Yearly)
Lastly, you’re going to want to plan for business check-ins – both mid year and at the end of the year. It’s a great time to go through the numbers, recenter on your business, evaluate where you’re at, and readjust for the next 6 months ahead. I also do a very expedited check-in at the beginning of each month where I review my goals and what happened the previous month so that I have a solid pulse on what’s going on in my business. 30 minutes each month of CEO time goes a long way!
I’d love to hear how you approach planning out content for your business! Everyone finds their own rhythm so feel free to adjust and tweak as needed. Comment below with one of your best takeaways from this post!
