content-calendar

name	content-calendar
description	Build a content calendar: themes, formats, channels, publishing schedule, ownership, and promotion plan. TRIGGER when: user says /content-calendar, "content plan", "editorial calendar", "publishing schedule", "content strategy".
argument-hint	[time period, e.g. 'Q3 2026' or 'next 30 days']
user-invocable	true

Content Calendar

Build a structured content calendar that aligns publishing activity with business goals, audience needs, and team capacity. Produces a ready-to-use calendar with themes, formats, channels, owners, and promotion plans.

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Process

Step 1 — Define Goals and Constraints

Establish what the content calendar must achieve and the boundaries it operates within.

Input	Question	Example
Business goals	What should content drive?	Lead generation, brand awareness, SEO traffic
Time period	How far out are we planning?	1 month, 1 quarter, 6 months
Channels	Where will content be published?	Blog, LinkedIn, Twitter/X, YouTube, newsletter, podcast
Team capacity	How many pieces per week can the team produce?	3 blog posts, 5 social posts, 1 newsletter per week
Existing assets	Any content to repurpose or refresh?	Old blog posts, webinar recordings, case studies
Key dates	Product launches, events, holidays, industry moments?	Product launch May 15, conference June 3
Brand guidelines	Tone, style, topics to avoid?	Professional but approachable, no political topics

If the user provides only a vague brief ("plan content for next quarter"), ask for at minimum: goals, channels, and team capacity.

Step 2 — Develop Content Pillars and Themes

Organize content around 3-5 pillars that map to audience needs and business goals.

Pillar	Audience Need	Business Goal	Example Topics
Thought leadership	Stay informed on trends	Brand authority	Industry analysis, predictions, opinion pieces
Educational	Learn how to solve problems	SEO traffic, lead gen	How-to guides, tutorials, frameworks
Product / Solution	Evaluate solutions	Pipeline, conversion	Use cases, comparisons, feature deep-dives
Social proof	Validate decisions	Trust, conversion	Case studies, testimonials, customer stories
Culture / Brand	Connect with company	Employer brand, loyalty	Team stories, values, behind-the-scenes

For each pillar, define:

• 3-5 recurring topic clusters
• Target keywords (for SEO-driven content)
• Content formats that work best for this pillar

Step 3 — Map Content Formats to Channels

Match formats to channels based on what performs in each environment.

Format	Best Channels	Production Effort	Shelf Life
Long-form blog post (1500+ words)	Blog, SEO	High	Long (evergreen)
Short-form blog post (500-800 words)	Blog, newsletter	Medium	Medium
Listicle / roundup	Blog, social	Medium	Medium
Infographic	Blog, LinkedIn, Pinterest	High	Long
Short-form video (< 60s)	TikTok, Reels, Shorts	Medium	Short
Long-form video (5-20 min)	YouTube, website	High	Long
Podcast episode	Podcast platforms, blog (transcript)	High	Long
Social post (text-only)	Twitter/X, LinkedIn	Low	Very short
Social post (image/carousel)	LinkedIn, Instagram	Medium	Short
Newsletter issue	Email	Medium	Short
Case study	Blog, sales collateral	High	Long
Webinar / live stream	YouTube, LinkedIn Live, Zoom	High	Medium (with recording)

Step 4 — Build the Publishing Schedule

Create the actual calendar entries. Use this structure for each entry:

Field	Description
Publish date	Target date (day of week matters for engagement)
Content title	Working title
Pillar	Which content pillar it belongs to
Format	Blog, video, social, etc.
Channel(s)	Where it will be published
Target keyword	Primary SEO keyword (if applicable)
Owner	Who writes / produces it
Status	Idea / Drafting / Review / Scheduled / Published
Due dates	Draft due, review due, publish date
Promotion plan	How it will be amplified after publishing
Notes	Dependencies, assets needed, approvals required

Optimal publishing cadences by channel:

Channel	Minimum Viable	Good	Aggressive
Blog	1x/week	2-3x/week	Daily
Newsletter	1x/month	Bi-weekly	Weekly
LinkedIn	2x/week	3-5x/week	Daily
Twitter/X	3x/week	1-2x/day	3-5x/day
Instagram	2x/week	3-5x/week	Daily
YouTube	1x/month	Bi-weekly	Weekly
Podcast	Bi-weekly	Weekly	2x/week

Step 5 — Plan Content Repurposing

Maximize ROI by repurposing each anchor piece into multiple derivative assets.

Example repurposing chain from a single blog post:

Long-form blog post (anchor)
  ├── LinkedIn article (condensed version)
  ├── Twitter/X thread (key takeaways)
  ├── Instagram carousel (visual summary)
  ├── Newsletter feature (with commentary)
  ├── Short video (1-min summary for Reels/Shorts)
  ├── Infographic (data/process visualization)
  └── Podcast talking point (discussion topic)

For each anchor piece in the calendar, define at least 2-3 derivative pieces with their own publish dates and channels.

Step 6 — Define Promotion Plan

Every published piece needs a promotion plan — organic reach alone is rarely sufficient.

Promotion Tactic	When	Effort
Share on owned social channels	Day of publish	Low
Email to subscriber list	Day of or next newsletter	Low
Internal Slack / team share for employee amplification	Day of publish	Low
Engage in comments and related discussions	Day 1-3	Low
Repurpose into social-native format	Week 1	Medium
Pitch to relevant newsletters or communities	Week 1-2	Medium
Paid social boost (top performers only)	Week 2+	Medium
Update and reshare older related content with links	Month 1	Low
Syndicate to Medium, LinkedIn articles, etc.	Month 1 (after indexing)	Low

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Output Format

Deliver the content calendar in two parts:

Part 1 — Strategy Overview

1. Goals and success metrics
2. Content pillars with topic clusters
3. Channel strategy and cadence
4. Repurposing framework
5. Promotion playbook

Part 2 — Calendar (table format)

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri
Week 1	[Blog] Title — Owner		[Newsletter] Title — Owner	[LinkedIn] Title — Owner
Week 2	...	...	...	...	...

Each cell includes: [Format] Title — Owner. Provide a separate detailed table with full metadata for each entry.

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Quality Checklist

• Every content piece maps to a business goal and content pillar
• Publishing frequency is realistic given stated team capacity
• Key dates (launches, events, holidays) are incorporated
• Each anchor piece has a repurposing plan
• Each piece has a clear owner
• Status tracking fields are included for workflow management
• SEO-driven content has target keywords assigned
• The calendar has a mix of formats, not just one type
• Promotion plan is specified for each piece, not assumed
• There is buffer time for delays — not every slot is critical-path

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Edge Cases

• Solo creator / one-person team: Reduce frequency dramatically. Focus on one primary channel and one repurposing path. Prioritize evergreen content over timely pieces.
• No existing content: Start with a "foundation" phase — create pillar pages and cornerstone content before filling a high-frequency calendar.
• Multiple products or business lines: Create separate pillar structures per product line. Use a shared calendar view but tag entries by product.
• Highly regulated industry: Add a compliance review step between "Review" and "Scheduled" status. Build in extra lead time for legal/compliance approval.
• Seasonal business: Weight content volume toward pre-season and in-season. Use off-season for evergreen and SEO content that builds authority.
• B2B with long sales cycle: Align content to funnel stages (TOFU / MOFU / BOFU). Ensure each stage has adequate coverage, not just top-of-funnel.
• User wants daily social but has no content: Implement a 70/20/10 mix — 70% curated/shared content, 20% repurposed owned content, 10% original. Build toward higher original % over time.
• Content calendar already exists but is stale: Audit existing calendar first. Identify what to keep, refresh, retire, or fill. Do not start from zero without reviewing what exists.