One of the common reasons I hear from writers for not blogging is that it's hard to come up with ideas for content. A good way to make sure you have plenty of ideas for blog content, and to make sure you stick to your goals for your blog, is to use a blog calendar.
Blogging is a great way to connect with readers, build your author brand, establish yourself as an expert in your field, and a whole bunch of other stuff too (that I won't go into in this post but will be covering soon). That said, here's two big reasons you should be using a blog calendar:
1) It saves you time. You can plan out a month's worth of content in under 30 minutes. No more searching for a last minute idea. As you know what you're going to write about you'll be able to do so faster.
2) It gives your blog better focus. Why are you blogging? What goals do you have for your blog? By planning out your posts in advance you can make sure you stay on target.
Blogging is a great way to connect with readers, build your author brand, establish yourself as an expert in your field, and a whole bunch of other stuff too (that I won't go into in this post but will be covering soon). That said, here's two big reasons you should be using a blog calendar:
1) It saves you time. You can plan out a month's worth of content in under 30 minutes. No more searching for a last minute idea. As you know what you're going to write about you'll be able to do so faster.
2) It gives your blog better focus. Why are you blogging? What goals do you have for your blog? By planning out your posts in advance you can make sure you stay on target.
Your blog calendar can be as simple or as detailed as suits your needs. I personally use a very simple system where I have an A4 page printed out for each month of the year. It has a box for each day under the date. I simply write in the scheduled post in the box, e.g. interview with 'authors name', and then give it a tick once the post is programmed for posting (I like to set things up in advance where possible as it makes life a lot easier).
You can find some great FREE printables to help you organise your blog on the internet but here's a few links to get you started:
http://www.laurascraftylife.com/2013/10/day-3-and-4-2013-2014-monthly-calendar.html (this is the one I use for W&A)
http://smartschoolhouse.com/diy-crafts/for-the-new-year#_a5y_p=1131624 (this is the one I use for my author blog)
http://besimplyorganized.blogspot.ca/2013/04/31-awesome-and-totally-free-blog.html
http://cmongetcrafty.com/free-blog-organization-printables/
http://blog.thelovenerds.com/2013/09/free-blog-organizer.html
http://www.southernmessmoms.com/2013/07/how-to-keep-your-blog-organized-clean.html
A quick search on Google or a site like Pinterest will bring up loads more, or you can easily make your own in excel or word.
Do you use a blog calendar for your blog? Feel free to share the link if it's a free resource like the ones above so others can check it out too. Do you keep it simple or do you add more details to your plan? Like what?
