A successful business requires a watertight strategy to help plan ahead, which is why it is vital to have a communications calendar. However, there are several types of calendar and it is just as important to know what works best for you. To assist, we have outlined what are communications calendars, why you need one and how to implement them.
What is a communications calendar?
In its simplest terms, a communications calendar is a schedule. There are two types of these: one for internal use and one for external use. Typically, a calendar for internal use will breakdown your business critical plans on a day-to-day basis for your team. An external calendar is typically designed to outline key content being sent out to parties outside the organisation, often used for marketing.
Why your business needs one
Organisation is the primary reason to implement a communications calendar, regardless of its type. It is essential for planning ahead based on the business’s objectives, which should regularly be reviewed as outlined in our five steps to achieving important business goals. The calendar can then be shared with employees to breakdown content plans, budget for the months ahead, and improve operational delivery by showing what should be worked on and when.
What to include in an internal communications calendar
An internal communications calendar is vital for ensuring staff are aware of business plans and critical dates for project deadlines. This may also incorporate key dates and plans for internal communications, including newsletters, internal social media and business planned announcements. This type of calendar is purely designed to keep those in the business up to date with key information, so make sure to include bank holidays, campaign launches and any monthly or quarterly events.
What to include in an external communications calendar
An external communications calendar is often called a marketing calendar, as any communications are sent to audiences outside of the core business. Therefore, an external communications calendar should outline the key dates to send content as well as who is sending it. The type of content shown in this calendar could include email marketing, social media platforms, webinars, editorial, adverts and live events, clearly showing the dates these should take place on and the staff involved.
There is plenty more to include in an external communications calendar too, such as email and SMS marketing dates. Should you wish to find out more, we outline specifics on how to build an effective marketing strategy using email and SMS in other blog articles.
How to distribute your calendar
Your marketing team will often be in charge of putting together any communication calendar, with input from managerial members of the business. Once complete, this strategy can be distributed through a selection of methods. One of the most efficient methods is digitally via a spreadsheet, which can then be viewed by members of the team no matter if they working at the business spa or at home. This also has the benefit of sharing an editable strategy should it ever need amending.
Core by Premier Software® can be implemented into your business to help manage staff time effectively. This can help with the booking of internal meetings, planning rotas, and running reports to measure the success of your business strategies. To discover more on how Core can help your business, click the button below.
