During the busiest times for content creation, managing an editorial calendar can be a daunting task. We've gathered insights from Editors and CEOs to share their strategies, from creating clear priority lists to prioritizing assignments with timetables. Dive into the diverse tactics used by these professionals, as we present fifteen effective strategies for editorial calendar management.
- Create Clear Priority Lists
- Group Articles by Topic
- Utilize Project Management Tools
- Plan Calendar Three Months Ahead
- Coordinate with a Master Calendar
- Break Down Calendar into Weekly Themes
- Color-Code for Task Prioritization
- Implement a Tiered-Priority System
- Collaborate Using Project-Management Platforms
- Schedule Content Proactively
- Map Out Long-Term Content Plans
- Mix New and Repurposed Content
- Outsource with Quality Control
- Use Collaborative Calendar Software
- Prioritize Assignments with Timetables
Create Clear Priority Lists
I have learned that, whether I’m writing for digital or print, it’s imperative to kick off each batch of content with a clear priority list. As someone who is incredibly deadline-oriented, I need to know that I have a manageable order to my tasks to avoid becoming overwhelmed at the last minute. That’s why I even integrate personal tasks into my calendar, for the sake of ensuring that I budget my time to the best of my ability.
When developing my priority lists, I use color-coding and typographical emphasis (bolding, italicizing, underlining). Color-coding helps me distinguish between different topics and publications, while typographical emphasis highlights the urgency of deadlines beyond just including the date. Although I recognize that plans can change along the way, I always set goals for myself leading up to the official deadlines, given that those are hard stops.
By meeting the writing goals on my priority lists, I have the chance to step away and return to my work with fresh eyes, ensuring sharper revisions during the final edit. Holding myself accountable and maintaining this workflow every month ultimately leads to higher-quality content, regardless of how many pieces I’m creating.
Megan Marshall, Editor, Cedar Park City Lifestyle
Group Articles by Topic
The best way I've found to manage our editorial calendar during particularly busy times is to break up our assignment queue into smaller batches, usually grouped by topic.
Since we're often working on series of articles about related topics, my team and I tend to stagger writer deadlines so that each article in the series 'batch' comes into the edit queue around the same time. Then, we can work through those similar edits while the topic is fresh in our minds and ensure there's not too much overlap between the content. By the same token, we're sometimes able to share/add information across articles in the editing phase, as each writer brings their own unique research and perspective on the topic.
By working on groups of articles on similar topics simultaneously, it significantly cuts down on the research and fact-checking time that we spend during edits since we're not starting from square one every time.
Nicole Fallon-Peek, Co-Owner and Editorial Director, Lightning Media Partners
Utilize Project Management Tools
I like to use tools such as Monday and Trello to keep up with tasks. I also have a comprehensive content plan that every editor needs to check in on. It also helps to work in sprints, something I've taken inspiration from developers who need to focus on a maximum of three things per week. Allow room for adjustments. Be ready to adapt to unforeseen changes or new opportunities without disrupting the overall plan.
Staffan Ulmert, Editor in-chief, Valdemar
Plan Calendar Three Months Ahead
Plan your calendar at least three months in advance. There will always be some content pieces that can be switched around when an urgent request comes in. But if you have a solid calendar, it's easier to push back on stakeholders and remind them they also need to plan ahead—and around your calendar.
Julie Cadieux, Senior Editor, Corporate Content Marketing, Genetec
Coordinate with a Master Calendar
With content marketing, we are always trying to coordinate our blog, webinar, and podcast publishing with themes and campaigns that are relevant to the company. At the same time, we aim to be aligned with news hooks and current affairs (gleaned from news, social listening, etc.) to be relevant to cybersecurity professionals. By calendaring all in one master calendar (using Monday.com), we can plan and adjust to balance competing agendas. This also allows us to publish primer pieces (teasers) ahead of webinars, for example. More recently, we started packaging content into tracks using Pathfactory to increase engagement and conversion with content campaigns. The master calendar is key to coordinating and culminating in a final package.
Mike Barton, Digital Managing Editor, ReversingLabs
Break Down Calendar into Weekly Themes
During peak content periods, our go-to strategy involves a blend of meticulous planning and a dash of creative chaos. We start by breaking down the editorial calendar into bite-sized weekly chunks, making it less daunting and more manageable. Think of it like prepping for a feast: You don't cook everything at once; you pace yourself. We also assign specific themes to each week, which adds a fun, cohesive thread to our content and keeps the team on the same wavelength. And here's a quirky twist: We hold "Content Jams," where the team gathers (virtually or in person) for a few hours of uninterrupted, high-energy brainstorming and content creation. It's like a jam session for writers and designers—ideas flow, creativity spikes, and deadlines magically become less terrifying. By mixing structure with spontaneity, we keep the editorial ship sailing smoothly, even when the content seas get rough.
Lukasz Zelezny, SEO Consultant, SEO ANT LTD
Color-Code for Task Prioritization
During peak content periods, prioritizing tasks with a color-coded editorial calendar streamlines workflow. For instance, assigning urgent projects in red and long-term tasks in blue helps maintain focus and balance. At Caption Easy, this visual organization ensures timely delivery without sacrificing quality, keeping our team efficient and clients satisfied even during the busiest times.
Khurram Suhrwardy, CEO, Caption Easy
Implement a Tiered-Priority System
One strategy editing professionals can use to manage their editorial calendar during peak content periods is implementing a tiered-priority system. By categorizing content into different priority levels—urgent, high, medium, and low—editors can allocate their time and resources more effectively. This system lets the team focus on completing and publishing urgent and high-priority content first, while scheduling medium- and low-priority items when resources allow. Additionally, this approach can help prevent bottlenecks by identifying which pieces need immediate attention and which can be deferred, ensuring a smoother workflow and timely content delivery.
Vaibhav Kakkar, CEO, Digital Web Solutions
Collaborate Using Project-Management Platforms
An effective method for managing an editorial calendar during busy periods is to use collaborative project-management tools, such as Trello or Asana. These tools provide a visual overview of the entire content pipeline, allowing team members to see the status of each piece at a glance. By assigning tasks with clear deadlines and responsible parties, everyone on the team knows their responsibilities and can update the progress in real time. This transparency helps quickly address delays or reallocate resources as needed. Moreover, such tools often offer automation features for recurring tasks, saving time and reducing the risk of human error, which is crucial during times of high editorial activity.
Sahil Kakkar, CEO & Founder, RankWatch
Schedule Content Proactively
During peak content periods, one strategy that has significantly improved our editorial management is the proactive creation and scheduling of content well in advance. This means identifying key seasons and events relevant to our industry and planning our content calendar to have material ready to go before these high-traffic times hit. By doing so, we're able to ensure a steady flow of quality content without the last-minute rush, which can often compromise the content's effectiveness.
Another key aspect of this approach is leveraging tools that allow us to schedule content for automatic publication. This not only reduces the workload during peak periods but also ensures that we maintain a consistent presence in front of our audience. By front-loading our work and preparing content ahead of time, we can focus on engaging with our audience and fine-tuning our strategy in real-time, rather than scrambling to meet publishing deadlines.
Joshua Bartlett, Owner, Double Plus Marketing
Map Out Long-Term Content Plans
A content calendar can get pretty messy, pretty fast, especially during the peak periods of the year. Our agency specializes in content marketing for a variety of clients, as well as our own, so we need to make sure we are constantly on top of our schedule for each project. This requires long-term planning: mapping out content well in advance—weeks, months, quarters—by identifying key dates for content such as holidays, sales (if our client has them), specials, or other initiatives that our client is doing, such as a hiring boost or anniversary event.
This allows us to string together major themes and content types throughout the year, as well as gives our editorial team concrete deadlines well in advance of when they are actually due, so they can plan their resources accordingly. If all goes well, we can even plan to have some resources in “reserve” for last-minute content that needs to be created for unexpected events.
Phillip Mandel, Owner, Mandel Marketing
Mix New and Repurposed Content
During peak content periods, we like to plan an equal mix of new/high-impact and optimized/repurposed content. It's a great time to identify high-performing content that can be easily updated or expanded, saving time and energy to prioritize exceptional quality for the output of new content expected to have high engagement. It's a helpful way to ensure a steady flow of high-quality content even during peak periods.
Lia Munson, Co-Founder, Resilient Stories
Outsource with Quality Control
As an SEO with a content marketing business, managing the editorial calendar during peak periods can be challenging, but I've found that outsourcing content creation while maintaining strict quality control processes is an effective strategy.
During busy times, I bring on freelance writers or contract with a content agency to supplement my in-house team's capacity. However, to ensure consistent quality, I have detailed style guides and SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) that all writers must follow. This covers everything from tone and voice to formatting and SEO requirements.
I also utilize SEO writing assistants to help inject relevant entities and optimize content for search engines. These tools analyze the text and suggest adding mentions of important people, places, organizations, etc., that are highly relevant to the topic.
But the key is maintaining rigorous editing and QA (Quality Assurance) processes. All outsourced content goes through multiple rounds of review by my senior editors before publication. We fact-check, edit for flow and readability, and double-check that SEO elements are properly implemented per my guidelines.
James Oliver, Founder, Oliver.com
Use Collaborative Calendar Software
During peak content periods, leveraging collaborative editorial-calendar software was key. This tool allowed for real-time updates and clear visibility of deadlines and responsibilities. Prioritizing tasks and setting buffer times for unexpected delays ensured a smooth workflow. Regular check-ins and communication kept the team aligned, maintaining high-quality output despite the increased volume. This strategy streamlined our process and enhanced overall productivity.
Alex Taylor, Head of Marketing, CrownTV
Prioritize Assignments with Timetables
One efficient method for managing editorial calendars during peak content seasons is prioritizing assignments based on priority and deadlines. This entails constructing a precise timetable that lists all upcoming content deadlines, such as drafts, revisions, and final submissions.
Next, I set out specified time windows for each task, ensuring that deadlines are met without overloading myself or my team. I also schedule buffer periods to account for any delays or adjustments during editing.
In addition, I use project management tools and software to monitor progress, allocate tasks, and communicate with teammates. This enables seamless communication and ensures everyone understands project schedules and expectations. Finally, I review and update the editorial calendar to reflect shifting priorities or new content opportunities.