Erika Heald Marketing Consulting

Content marketing that drives business results

October 7, 2019 Content Chat Recap: Getting Started With Your 2020 Content Marketing Planning

by Leave a Comment

2020 is almost here—have you started your content marketing planning? In this #ContentChat, we discuss the ways that marketers can approach content planning and trade tips on optimizing the success of your plan year-round.

Q1: Have you started your 2020 content marketing planning yet? And do you have an official planning process?

Now’s the perfect time to start 2020 planning, unless the holidays are a busy time for your team. We recommend developing an annual plan with quarterly editorial calendars.

The community is in various planning stages, most with a general outline of themes, topics, and pillars they plan to support. It is important to have at least something on paper as a base to build from.

Review your previous content marketing plan as a base for your new plan. Assess whether you can simply update the existing plan, or if it needs a more significant change in direction.

Stay realistic with your goals. While stretch goals can provide some extra pressure to succeed, your team will probably feel defeated if their goals are too aggressive.

Q2: When kicking off your 2020 planning, do you look at analytics and goal attainment for the previous 12 months, or for the year to date?

Per our poll, the majority of respondents look at the prior 12 months of data when creating a new plan.

The chat mirrored these results, emphasizing that both data sets are valuable. In January each year, consider doing a final assessment of your previous year so that you analyze your last pieces of content and can move forward with your new year.

Regardless of your approach, one thing is clear: waiting until January to plan your 2020 content is too late.

Q3: I like to use a SWOT analysis as part of my planning activities. So let’s talk about how you uncover your 2019 content marketing Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.

For strengths and weaknesses, your data can guide you. Review your goals and assess where you may have missed the mark or drastically overachieved, and consider interviewing your customers to get additional insight on these areas. This review can be done annually, quarterly, or on any cadence that your team can support. More regular check-ins allow for your team to course correct as needed, versus waiting until the end of the year to see how you did.

Opportunities and threats will require a knowledge of current and future market trends, as well as some research on your competitors.

Optimize your year-long success by keeping your goals visible, and store content ideas in a central location that you can then revisit during planning season.

Q4: Will you have a documented content strategy for 2020? Why or why not?

A documented content strategy is the best way to stay focused and strategic with your efforts. The majority of our community members will have at least one content plan for 2020, and some will have multiple to represent different needs.

Q5: Do you work with external consultants or freelancers as part of your content marketing planning process? If so, what areas do you typically find value in having an external POV to assist with?

External consultants or freelancers can bring valuable insight into your planning, especially when they are not emotionally invested in the activities. Many of our community members mentioned that their planning teams are exclusively in-house, but outside experts could better identify areas of opportunity or current gaps in your plan.

Q6: In the last few minutes of today’s #ContentChat what are some questions we can help you answer about annual content planning? Or, what tips or templates do you love and want to share?

Favorite types of content pieces for marketing? Evergreen is the way to go, as well as content ideas that can be repurposed for multiple forms.

Best tools, templates or sites for content planning? Erika recommends MarketingProfs and the Content Marketing Institute for great templates and resources, and Heidi shared a blog post of hers for reference as well. Kari made a great point⁠—tools in the Google or Microsoft Office suites may be all you need to tackle your planning like a pro.

 

About Alek Irvin

Alek Irvin is a content marketing professional with a rich history in social media management, executive thought leadership development, and media relations. As a consultant at Erika Heald Marketing Consulting, he creates human-focused content and thought leadership platforms that help brand leaders connect and engage with their communities. Alek has worked with a range of startups and Fortune 500 companies across the B2B technology and consumer spaces, including IBM, Dell Technologies, Hitch Works, Emtrain, Integrate, and Frameable. Connect with him on Twitter @AlekIrvin.

Explore the Blog

#ContentChat ABM B2B blogging buyer personas career development CMworld conferences content audit content creation content distribution content marketing content marketing planning content marketing process content planning content strategy customer experience editorial calendars editorial management editorial style guide employee brand advocacy events influencer collaborations LinkedIn marketing conferences new hire onboarding personal branding podcasting professional development professional development for content marketers research SEO SMB social media social media engagement social media planning solopreneurs Spin Sucks startups thought leadership twitter UGC video virtual events writing process

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

All content © copyright 2000-2023 Erika Heald. All rights reserved.
Read our Privacy Policy.