Editorial Calendar
An editorial calendar is the document that organizes every planned social-media post by day, format, theme, channel and owner. It can range from a simple spreadsheet to dedicated tools. It is the basis for maintaining consistency, capitalizing on strategic dates and balancing formats across Reels, carousels and stories.
What is an Editorial Calendar?
Editorial calendar is the structured posting schedule for social networks and other content channels. It defines what will be posted, on which network, on which date and time, in which format, on which theme, with which persona in mind and by whom.
Without a calendar, the operation is reactive: someone posts what they remember when they remember. With a calendar, you can balance formats, ride relevant dates and measure performance by category.
Minimum structure
| Column | Example |
|---|---|
| Date | 06/05/2026 |
| Channel | |
| Format | Reel |
| Pillar | Educational |
| Theme | 3 mistakes in ads |
| Funnel stage | Top |
| Status | In production |
| Owner | Marina (copy) |
| Asset link | (Drive) |
| Caption | (text) |
Content pillars
Define 4 to 6 pillars (thematic categories) that structure everything. Example for an agency:
- Educational (50%): tips, tutorials, metrics
- Authority (20%): cases, data, opinions
- Connection (15%): behind the scenes, team, values
- Conversion (10%): direct offer, testimonial
- Entertainment (5%): humor, meme
Ideal frequency by network in 2026
- Instagram (feed): 4 to 7 posts/week
- Instagram (Stories): 5 to 10 stories/day
- Instagram (Reels): 3 to 5/week
- TikTok: 5 to 10/week (algorithm rewards volume)
- LinkedIn: 3 to 5/week
- Threads: 14 to 28/week (2 to 4 per day)
- X: 5 to 15/day if you want traction
- YouTube long-form: 1 to 2/week
- YouTube Shorts: 4 to 7/week
Dates and hooks
A strong calendar combines:
- Commercial dates (Black Friday, Mother's Day, Christmas)
- Industry dates (Marketing Day, Entrepreneur Month)
- Brand dates (anniversary, launch)
- Trends (algorithm updates, trending audios)
- Evergreen content (timeless)
Example week
- Mon: Educational Reel + 6 behind-the-scenes stories
- Tue: Authority carousel + 5 poll stories
- Wed: Viral Reel + 8 customer stories
- Thu: Educational carousel + 6 question-box stories
- Fri: Connection Reel (behind the scenes) + 7 weekend stories
- Sat: Story-only (curation, customer reposts)
- Sun: Entertainment Reel + Monday countdown
Tools
- Mais Social (integrated calendar with scheduling)
- Notion, Trello, Asana with templates
- Google Sheets for small teams
- Airtable for complex operations
Common mistakes
- Calendar without pillars (becomes random)
- Scheduling 4 weeks and never revising (misses trends)
- Same content cross-posted without adaptation
- Not reserving slots for reactive content (news, virality)
- Calendar without status column (impossible to track production)
Related terms
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