Social media marketing is tough. There are plenty of roadblocks that could stop you from delivering the results you want to see.
The seemingly simple processes of planning and posting content are the biggest challenges. Indeed, one in eight social media marketers at small businesses say they struggle to post content consistently, while one in nine find it hard to create the content they need.
If planning is a problem for your team, it’s time you start using a content calendar for social media. That way, you’ll never be desperately scratching around for last-minute content ideas.
With that in mind, we’ve rounded up 15 free content calendar templates you can start using straight away. Happy planning!
1. HootSuite’s Social Media Content Calendar
First up is a social media content calendar template from HootSuite, which incorporates five popular platforms:
- TikTok
Image sourceBecause it’s a Google Sheet, it’s fully customizable. So if some (or all) of those platforms aren’t relevant to your audience or goals, you can easily switch them out.
This free content calendar template has many useful features, but one of our favorites is the evergreen content library tab. Use it to paste links to blog posts and other resources that work well on social at any time of year.
2. HootSuite’s Social Media Editorial Calendar
Another social media content calendar template from HootSuite, this one is a simpler version that helps with planning individual content assets. Create a new monthly tab, then schedule your social calendar weekly.
Image sourceAs standard, the calendar includes space for the following information:
- Title
- Author
- Topic
- Deadline
- Published
- Time
- Notes
But if you want to add other stuff — like links to graphics or details of the type of content you’re sharing — just create a new column or two.
3. Content Cal’s Customized Content Calendar
Content Cal has added an element of automation to its social media content calendar template. Answer questions about your objectives, channels and content types to create a customized calendar spanning 12 months of content.
Image sourceYou’ll still have to draft and post the actual posts. But this calendar still saves you a lot of time by helping you define the type of content you should include in your social media strategy, and it also ensures your social plans align with your broader marketing goals.
4. HubSpot’s Social Media Content Calendar
Next is this social media content calendar example from HubSpot, allowing you to plan your posting strategy from a single spreadsheet.
Image sourceIt contains tabs for different elements of your social strategy, from daily posting to overarching monthly campaigns. You’ll also find dedicated sections for each social platform.
5. Social Media Examiner’s Social Media Calendar Template
Social Media Examiner has created a content calendar template in Google Sheets.
Image sourceIt might not have some of the fancy formatting of the other spreadsheet-based calendars in this roundup, but it’s packed with plenty of detail. The day-by-day multiplatform view makes it a strong choice for social media teams that post high volumes of content.
6. Small Business Trends Social Media Calendar Template for Small Businesses
Unsurprisingly, Small Business Trends has created a free content calendar with small businesses in mind.
The company based this template on the same calendar used by their marketing team. Given that the publishers have 160,000+ followers on Twitter and 85,000 on Facebook, it’s fair to say they know what they’re doing.
Image sourceDownload the template as a PDF, spreadsheet, or Word document. It includes sections for multiple platforms across each day of the (working) week, plus lots of helpful prompts to help you develop content ideas.
7. Backlinko’s Content Calendar Template
Backlinko’s free content calendar template can either be downloaded as an Excel spreadsheet or a Google Sheet. It’s split into two tabs:
- A standard month-and-year calendar view
- A content list and workflow
Image sourceThe calendar element is a little basic, containing nothing more than a box for each day of the month.
However, the workflow sheet is pretty detailed and gives you an off-the-shelf process for bringing together all the elements required to create high-quality social media content.
8. Moisson Marketing’s Social Media Marketing Trello Template
South African agency Moisson Marketing has created a Trello-based social media marketing planner that you can duplicate and share across your team.
Image sourceAs well as a space to plan all your posts, it incorporates various Trello lists for:
- Saving helpful marketing resources
- Adding potential content ideas that marketers can work up into draft posts
- Tracking work in progress
- Sharing monthly social media progress reports
That makes it one of the most comprehensive resources we’ve found. The only downside, of course, is that you’ll probably need to pay for a Trello subscription if you’re going to use it for multiple projects or across a large team.
9. Smartsheet’s Social Media Content Calendar Template for Google Sheets
Our following social media content calendar example, courtesy of the team at Smartsheet, is the perfect choice for organizations that need a detailed, daily breakdown of their social media content planning.
Image sourceIt has space for five social platforms — Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Instagram — plus an “Other” section for other social networks.
As standard, every section includes a slot for six daily posts, with predefined time slots for each post. You’ll want to edit these based on your posting frequency. Beyond this, there’s room for:
- Social copy
- Images
- Links
- Data on click engagement (you’ll have to add this data yourself once each post has gone live)
10. Asana’s Social Media Calendar
If you’re an individual or a small social media team with a limited number of projects, you can use Asana free of charge. Otherwise, you’ll need to pay for its Premium or Business plans.
Either way, once you’ve created an Asana account, you can start using this fantastic social media calendar.
Image sourceBecause it’s a collaborative project management tool, it offers a bunch of functionality you don’t get with a simple spreadsheet-based content calendar.
For instance, it allows users to drag and drop tasks straight into the necessary date slot and add custom fields to define which platform you’ll be posting on.
Perhaps its best feature is the ability to assign tasks to other team members. Once you’ve come up with a post theme, you can hand it over to the copywriter, then add a graphic designer to create visual elements. Once they’ve finished, they can submit the task to you for approval and scheduling.
11. SocialBee’s Social Media Calendar Template
SocialBee has created weekly social media content calendars for each month of the year, with prebuilt sections for seven of the most popular social platforms:
- Google My Business
- TikTok
Image sourceEach section contains multiple fields, allowing you to add all the necessary details about each post. For instance, you can include ideas for hashtags, assign a due date, and paste links to visual elements to accompany your post copy.
As with any spreadsheet template, it’s easy to customize any of these elements to better suit your social media marketing requirements.
12. Vertex24’s Content Calendar Template
Vertex24’s free calendar template is designed for planning and tracking the progress of tasks related to social media content creation.
Image sourceAs well as a standard monthly calendar view, it includes a helpful Gantt chart that provides a visual breakdown of each post.
Another nice feature: the calendar is pre-populated with some of the biggest US holidays and events, offering helpful hints for timely social media content ideas.
13. Template.net’s Social Media Editorial Calendar
Template.net is home to hundreds of thousands of easily editable templates covering countless tasks, including social media planning.
Image sourceThis ready-to-use calendar can be downloaded for Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Apple Pages, or PDF, depending on your team’s requirements. Just edit the content in each column for a simple, shareable view of your content strategy across multiple platforms.
14. ClickUp’s Social Media Content Calendar
Like Asana and Trello, ClickUp is a project management tool with a library of useful templates. Again, you’ll need to create a ClickUp account before using them. You can start with a free plan, but you’ll need to upgrade once you hit your 100 MB file storage limit.
Image sourceThis easy-to-use content calendar template offers multiple views, allowing social media marketing teams to:
- Plan and organize content by platform and publication status
- Store ideas for future social media posts
- Prioritize posts based on marketing goals and external trends
15. Hallam’s Social Media Content Calendar
Marketing agency Hallam Internet has created a downloadable, spreadsheet-based social media content calendar with many helpful features.
Image sourceFor instance, it has a built-in character counter to ensure your tweets don’t exceed Twitter’s character limit. It also includes a column full of key marketing-friendly dates (like National Bloody Mary Day), alongside official hashtags where relevant.
Are you interested in more content like this? Make sure to sign up for one of our upcoming social media conferences.
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