Planning and Scheduling Your Social Content In Advance Means Less Time On Social (And More Time In The Sun) This Summer
Dreaming Of Summer Fun But Not Sure How To Step Away From Social?
With summer right around the corner, chances are you’re trying to figure out how to step away from work to enjoy some fun in the sun. I know I am! Finding that balance between work and play can be tricky but, remember, taking time to step away and unplug is good for you and your business!
The trick is finding a way to walk away from your phone without walking away from your audience. So how do you post consistently, continue serving up amazing value, and keep your brand top of mind while also sippin’ your favourite summer beverage on a floaty somewhere? Three words: planning in advance.
By planning social content in advance, creating bulk batches of goal-focused content and tapping into your social media scheduling tools, you’ll be able to show up for your audience while living your best summer life.
The First Step To Spending Less Time On Social Media This Summer Is Planning Social Content In Advance.
Planning content ahead of time is part of my regular workflow all year – not just in preparation for the summer. It’s also something I recommend to all of my clients! Planning your social content in advance gives you the time to think about your business goals and to get creative and strategic. Once you have a plan, there’s still room for spontaneous posting but, you won’t get caught off-guard and leave your audience hanging for days (or *gasp* weeks) with no new content to enjoy.
Most importantly, planning content in advance means you can confidently step away from your phone and enjoy some well-deserved summer sun.
Some Planning Tips To Get You Started.
If you follow me on social then you know I love a good content calendar. In my experience, that is where a great plan for engaging social content really starts to come together. If you aren’t already setting aside time to plan your social content for the month (or week), preparing for a more laid-back summer is a great chance to start. Here are some things to think about when you sit down to make a plan for your summer content:
What are your business goals for the summer?
Whether you’re a service-based business or a product-based business, if you plan on taking time away from work to enjoy family and fun this summer, your content plan should reflect this! Instead of focusing on sales posts, spend the summer educating, connecting, and inspiring your audience.
What types of content are people in your audience loving?
When you are planning out your social content, look at your analytics to see what topics and types of posts your audience is loving. These insights are going to save you so much time so don’t ignore those numbers. (Click HERE to learn more about using analytics to create killer content!)
How much time will you need to write, photograph and film content for the summer?
This tip is more of a practical one but part of planning your content means setting aside time to make it happen. Strategy, writing, filming, editing, and scheduling all take time. When are you going to do it? Block out some time in your calendar and make it a priority.
Once you’ve got a “big picture” plan for your summer content, it’s time to get creative.
You’ve Got A Great Plan. Now It’s Time To Create That Content!
Once you know your goals for your summer content, you can start writing and creating amazing posts. If you struggle to come up with ideas for your posts – especially when you are planning out weeks of content at one time – here are some places you can look for inspiration.
- Your day-to-day life including work, family, TV and movies. You never know when inspiration will strike so keep a “notepad” list running on your phone or desk.
- Social media analytics. I know I mentioned this above but seriously, check out your analytics to see what content is getting people interested and engaged! There’s no shame in repurposing an older post if you have some fresh insights to offer. I do it all the time!
- National Days of Celebration. These can be fun and silly (I’m looking at you, National Selfie Day) and can also spark some out-of-the-box creative content ideas!
You can also always go back to your business basics and refresh yourself (and your audience) on the WHY behind it all and how stepping back a bit for the summer is filling you up so you can jump back in, refreshed and ready.
Once you have the words, you can start snapping photos, shooting videos (Reels, baby!) and creating graphics to fill in the blanks. You’re one step closer to being able to put down your phone and pick up that sun hat!
Put Your Plan Into Action By Scheduling That Amazing Social Content In Advance…Then Step Away And Have Fun!
You made your plan. You created the content. Now it’s time to put that plan into action and start scheduling those posts.
Scheduling social content in advance is a total game-changer. It can feel like a big investment of time upfront, but knowing that your posts are lined up and ready to auto-post to your social accounts while you enjoy a sunny afternoon in the park without your phone will make it worth every minute. Trust me!
Scheduling tools are super easy to use. Many of them are free to use and inexpensive to upgrade. They allow you to build a post just as you would on Instagram and schedule it to post for the day and time you want. Here are a few of my favourite scheduling tools:
2: Planoly
3: Buffer (great if you’re scheduling for multiple platforms, including LinkedIn and Twitter!)
4: Later
If you like creating and scheduling social content from your phone, Facebook’s Business Suite app is also a great tool!
With A Little Planning And Some Helpful Scheduling Tools, You Can Spend Less Time On Social This Summer.
Showing up consistently for your social media audience is definitely important but remember, social media should work for you, not the other way around! Planning and scheduling social content in advance gives you the freedom to step away from your phone while you enjoy the little things in life (like pink flamingo pool floaties 🦩 and ice-coffees). Heck! Some of those fun summer moments will make great social media content because your audience wants to see you – the person behind the business – loving life and showing up for yourself, like you show up for them.
Who’s ready to break out a calendar and start planning some killer summer content? ✋🏻
