What is an Editorial Calendar for Online Publishing?
An editorial calendar is a schedule used to plan the publishing of content. Publications, from print magazines to online media use their editorial calendar to for planning. An example is a magazine planning for a summer issue and articles about family vacations ideas. Another example is a YouTube video channel that uses a calendar to schedule videos about product reviews.
An editorial calendar is a planning tool that's used by any media for scheduling their content. Blogs, websites, podcasts, newsletters and social media accounts use an editorial calendar to plan and schedule episodes or articles. Using a calendar helps these publishers plan their work so they can start work on a specific piece of material far enough in advance, so it will be ready for publishing at the right date and time.
Why is it referred to as an editorial and a content calendar?
The term editorial calendar comes from the role an editor plays in the production of any publication. The word content is a broader term that includes the various types of electronic media.
The Editor
An editor is a person responsible for making choices about what and when something appears in a publication. In traditional print publications like a daily newspaper or a monthly magazine, the editor-in-chief is the person responsible for planning the articles, photographs, visuals, and any other content for a particular issue. I
Some publications have more than one editor, for example, a metropolitan daily newspaper like the New York Times usually has a sports editor, a business editor, an entertainment editor, a local news editor, a photo editor, a world editor and other editors responsible for sections of the newspaper. Each editor is responsible for their area, whether it's in print or online, and they all report to a managing editor who's also referred to as the editor-in-chief.
?While some publications have a staff of people who create content such as authors, photographers, and reporters, other publications operate with just one person who is both writer and editor. Many websites, blogs, YouTube channels, and podcasts are written and edited by just one person.
The Schedule
It doesn't matter if the editor is one person or many, a calendar is a valuable tool for planning the work necessary to create the content. With a due date assigned for publishing, it's possible to work backward to determine the tasks necessary to create the content and assign the staff to work. If the work is outsourced, the editor knows when to hire and assign the outsourced effort, all in time for the content to be ready on the due date.
An article that requires one week to write can be assigned one week before it's due date, a video that takes a month to produce can be assigned a month before publication, and a photo can be ordered, so it's ready on time, whether it takes a few hours to shoot or a few weeks.
The content
While the calendar manages the schedule of publication, it also manages what is scheduled. A monthly magazine is a good example since it's periodical. It doesn't matter if it's online or print, it still has a date for each issue.
The editor has to choose what goes in each issue, and since the content creating takes time, he/she needs to give assignments, so there's enough time to have it ready for the publication deadline.
Choosing what goes into each issue is determined by the topics covered by the magazine. A gardening magazine would plan articles for summer issues several months, if not more, in advance. A local newspaper that deals with daily events has to make faster decisions, but the editor still has to choose what articles appear in print.
Online publications that could publish as soon as something is ready don't always have to do that. They can either release something immediately or hold it for a set calendar date. Since there's no need to create a physical form of the media, like a printed copy, online content doesn't require the time to reproduce the printed version.
Even with online sites that create news during the day, there's usually some longer lead-time content that is under development in the editorial calendar. And sometimes there's not enough articles or content to fill an issue, or an assignment is running late, so editors have backup plans with articles or content that can be ready on short notice.
If you're a blogger yourself, having a few extra pieces on hand is a good idea in case you're running late on getting something published in your next issue.
Types of Media
Web pages are capable of displaying and playing text, images, video and audio, which makes them extremely versatile for publications. Fast Internet connections have made it easier to for users to access the larger files that contain audio and video content, so all of these types of content have become more frequently used for publishing on the internet. As a result, there aren't just articles or photos; there's “content.”
While it might be technically possible to publish different types of media, it's up to the site publisher and editor to make the decisions about the type of media. Some creators prefer to write blogs, others to post photos, some prefer videos, while others like to create audio podcasts. The Internet makes it possible to use any of these and other types of media, so the only limit is the author's imagination and technical skills.
What should an editorial calendar look like?
If you plan on using an editorial calendar, there's no right or wrong way to do it. As long as you have a date and name for your entries, any format can work. Using the calendar on your computer or mobile smartphone notes posted on a bulletin board, a journal, or a document are all acceptable ways. Choose a format which is easy to view and update, since you'll want to be able to make changes.
If you share your calendar with others, I recommend using a cloud-based calendar like Google Calendar, iCloud, or Microsoft Office 365 where it's possible to collaborate with a team and share one calendar that can be edited by multiple users.
Readers and viewers
An editorial calendar is a benefit to people who "consume" the content since it can tell them when a certain article, videos, broadcasts will be available. Movies use a release calendar for individual pictures, so you'll know when they are available in the theater, magazines announce articles that will appear in the next issue, and television series announce their season preview dates. People like to know when something is going to be ready, especially if they are looking forward to seeing it.
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