Day 35: Podcast Content Calendar

Today we discuss the best way to consistently keep putting content out and stay organized while doing it, the benefits of using this podcast content tool, and steps to creating your own for your podcast.

Steps for Skill Mastery:

1. Create a content calendar
2. Create production tasks

Step 1: Create a Podcast Content Calendar

One of the most effective tools for staying consistent with your podcast is by creating a podcast content calendar. A calendar system gives you a big picture view of your production process. It keeps you consistent by making you aware of what’s due, what’s upcoming, and who’s responsible for it.

Without a plan, there’s a good chance you (or someone on your team) will miss a deadline and disrupt the podcast schedule.

Essentially, a podcast editorial calendar is a list of podcast topics. Each topic should include dates for all of your deliverables as well as the name of the person responsible.

Here’s an example:

• Topic: How To Build A Brand For Purpose & Impact – Linzi Hawkin
• Interview Prep: June 25th
• Record: June 27th
• Edit: June 29th
• Schedule For Publishing: June 29th
• Publish date: July 23^rd

Or maybe it is more involved with something like this:

• 6 weeks out: Define episode topic and set your intention. What are you hoping your audience will take away from this episode? Reach out to potential guests (if required).
• 5 weeks out: Jot down list of points you want to cover in the episode. Confirm guest (if required) and start researching them.
• 4 weeks out: Come up with a structure and flow for the episode incorporating all the points and stories you want to cover. Come up with a list of interview questions for guest (if required).
• 3 weeks out: Record episode.
• 2 weeks out: Edit episode, create show notes and get it prepped to publish on your host and website.
• 1 week out: Get your promotion posts prepped for the episode, follow up with guest (if you had one) to notify them about the release and how they can share it.
• PUBLISH & PROMOTE!

There are plenty of tools you can use to organize your podcast content calendar. I recommend using the simplest tool that fits your needs. For most podcasters, that means something basic like Google Calendar.

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Activity: Create a Content Calendar

Using a calendar system that works for you, start setting up a content calendar with ideas you have for new episodes.

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Now that you have scheduled out each content piece on your calendar, it is time to break those episodes into smaller production tasks.

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Step 2: Setup Production Tasks

It’s a lot easier to stay consistent when you break big projects on your podcast content calendar into small, manageable tasks.

Segment each episode into small chunks. List everything you have to do, no matter how small.

For instance, a list might look like this:

• Preliminary topic research
• Identify potential interview guests
• Reach out to potential guests
• Create questions for guest
• Record the episode with guest
• Edit episode recording
• Add pre-roll and mid-roll ads
• Upload podcast
• Create and schedule webpage
• Create and schedule email newsletter
• Create and schedule social media posts
• Follow up with guest

As you can see, all of those tasks are part of publishing a podcast episode, but they’re quite manageable when you break them into small pieces.

Now it’s your turn.

Activity: Expand Your Calendar

Write down the tasks you must complete for each content piece in order to break it into smaller pieces. You may wish to start writing some of these tasks into your daily or weekly schedule for you’re the next content piece you will create so you have time set aside for them.

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Now let's fill that calendar with lots of ideas for new episodes.

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Skill Lesson Mastered

Demonstrate mastery of the knowledge and skills presented in this lesson by applying it to the above activity. If, and only if, you have a full understanding and have mastered the knowledge and skills presented in this lesson, select the next lesson in the navigation.