Content Strategy and Planning - Free Social Media Course

“Each content type serves a different purpose—images grab attention, videos tell stories, blogs educate, stories connect quickly, and lives build trust in real-time.”

Would you like a visual chart or cheat sheet to include in your course material for this topic?

Content pillars and themes

What Are Content Pillars?

Content Pillars are the 3–5 core topics your brand consistently talks about across social media platforms. They serve as the foundation of your content strategy and ensure that your messaging stays focused, valuable, and aligned with your marketing goals.

Think of them as the “main categories” of your content calendar.

Why Are Content Pillars Important?

Keep your content consistent and organized
Help establish brand authority in key areas
Make planning faster and more efficient
Ensure your content supports overall business and audience goals
Improve audience engagement with relevant messaging

Examples of Content Pillars (for different niches)

E-commerce Fashion Brand:

Product Features & Promotions
Styling Tips & Trends
Customer Reviews & UGC
Behind the Scenes
Sustainability & Brand Values

Health & Wellness Coach:

Mindfulness & Mental Health
Fitness Routines
Nutrition Tips
Client Transformations
Motivational Quotes

Digital Marketing Agency:

Social Media Tips
Case Studies & Results
Tools & Tech
Industry News
Team Culture

What Are Content Themes?

Content Themes are the specific angles or ideas within each content pillar. They give variety to your posts while still staying on message.

Example (within “Fitness” pillar):

“5-minute morning routine”
“Client testimonial: Jane lost 10 lbs”
“Do this stretch if you sit all day”
“Weekly challenge: 20 pushups a day”

How to Define Your Content Pillars (Step-by-Step)

1. Understand Your Brand Values & Mission

What do you stand for? What’s your message?

2. Know Your Audience Needs & Pain Points

What questions do they ask? What do they care about?

3. Align with Your Marketing Goals

Are you trying to educate, inspire, sell, or build community?

4. Audit Your Existing Content

What topics perform well? Where are the gaps?

5. Group Ideas into 3–5 Pillars

Ensure each post idea fits into one of the chosen pillars.

Using Pillars in Content Planning

Assign each day of the week to a pillar (e.g., Monday = Tips, Friday = Behind-the-Scenes)
Create batch content ideas within each category
Track performance per pillar to optimize content mix
Ensure diversity without going off-brand

Student Exercise (Optional)

Activity:

Create 4 content pillars for a sample or real business.

For each pillar, brainstorm:

3 content ideas
1 audience problem it addresses
1 engagement goal (likes, shares, saves, comments)

Example Output for a Pet Supply Brand:

Pillar	Content Idea	Audience Problem Solved	Goal
Pet Nutrition Tips	“5 superfoods for dogs”	Feeding pets healthier	Saves, shares
Customer Stories/UGC	“Pet of the Week” feature	Community recognition	Comments, shares
Product Education	“Why our chew toys are vet-approved”	Product trust and understanding	Clicks, conversions
Pet Care & Training	“How to calm an anxious puppy”	Behavior challenges	Engagement, shares

Pro Tip:

Revisit your content pillars every 3–6 months to refine them based on performance and business shifts.

Creating a content calendar

Module Objective:

To equip students with the tools and structure needed to plan, schedule, and organize social media content in a consistent, strategic way using a content calendar.

What Is a Content Calendar?

A content calendar (also known as a social media calendar) is a planning document that outlines:

What content will be posted
Where (which platform) it will be posted
When it will go live
Who is responsible for creating or approving it

It helps streamline your workflow, avoid last-minute scrambling, and maintain consistency across platforms.

Why Use a Content Calendar?

Ensures consistent posting Aligns content with marketing goals and campaigns
Helps visualize the balance between different content types/pillars
Improves team collaboration and accountability
Allows room for real-time trends and updates
Helps track performance and repurpose content effectively

Elements of a Good Content Calendar

1. Date & Time

When the post will go live

2. Platform

Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, Pinterest, etc.

3. Content Type

Image, video, story, blog, reel, live, etc.

4. Content Pillar or Theme

E.g., Tips, Behind-the-Scenes, Product Highlight

5. Caption or Post Copy

Draft of the message you’ll share

6. Visual or Asset

Image/video file or link to the creative

7. Call-to-Action (CTA)

What you want users to do (e.g., like, comment, click)

8. Hashtags or Tags

Targeted keywords for discoverability

9. Status

Drafted, Scheduled, Posted, Needs Approval

10. Metrics to Track (Optional)

Engagement, reach, clicks, saves, conversions

How to Create a Content Calendar (Step-by-Step)

1. Define Your Content Strategy

Before starting the calendar:

Confirm your content pillars
Understand your brand voice
Know your audience’s preferences
Set your posting frequency (e.g., 3x/week per platform)

2. Choose the Right Tools

Manual Options:

Google Sheets or Excel
Notion
Trello
Airtable

Scheduling Tools:

Meta Business Suite
Buffer
Hootsuite
Later
Sprout Social

3. Pick Your Time Frame

Start with weekly or monthly views
Decide your posting days based on audience activity (using analytics)

4. Plan Content Around Key Dates

Include:

Holidays & observances (e.g., International Dog Day)
Product launches
Sales & promos
Industry events
Brand milestones
Trending hashtags or challenges

5. Populate the Calendar

For each post, fill out:

Platform (e.g., Instagram Story)
Date & time
Caption + CTA
Visual asset or placeholder
Pillar/theme
Hashtags/tags
Approval status (if working in a team)

6. Review & Finalize

Double-check spelling, links, and image sizes
Get stakeholder or client approval
Schedule posts in advance if using a tool

7. Track & Adjust Weekly

After posting:

Record metrics (engagement, reach, saves)
Identify top performers
Adjust your future calendar based on what works

Student Assignment Idea

Task:

Create a 7-day content calendar for a sample brand using at least 3 content pillars.

Include:

Platform
Post idea/title
Caption draft
Content format (image, story, etc.)
CTA
Hashtag examples

Pro Tip:

“Plan 70% evergreen content, 20% timely or seasonal, and 10% reactive (trending topics or news).”

Content creation tools (Canva, CapCut, etc.)

1. Canva (Graphic Design)

What It Is:

An easy-to-use graphic design tool ideal for creating social media posts, presentations, flyers, and more.

Features:

Thousands of templates for Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, etc.
Drag-and-drop design interface
Access to stock photos, icons, fonts, and animations
Team collaboration and brand kits
Magic Resize (Pro feature) for multi-platform formatting

Best For:

Branded posts
Infographics
Stories and reels covers
Highlight icons
Ads and promo graphics

Course Tip:

Show how to create a full weekly post set using Canva templates.

2. CapCut (Video Editing)

What It Is:

A free video editing app (by ByteDance – TikTok’s parent company) used for mobile-first video creation.

Features:

Transitions, effects, and filters
Text-to-speech and subtitles
Background remover
TikTok-style trending templates
Music and sound effects library
AI-powered features (face smoothing, auto captions)

Best For:

Instagram Reels
TikTok videos
YouTube Shorts
Tutorials or behind-the-scenes content

Have students create a 15-second reel using CapCut’s pre-made templates.

3. InShot (Mobile Video + Photo Editor)

What It Is:

A versatile app for editing videos, photos, and collages, especially for Instagram and TikTok.

Features:

Trim, split, merge clips
Add music, voiceovers, stickers, and text
Video speed control
Canvas resizing for different social platforms
Export in HD

Best For:

Daily reels or stories
Testimonial video clips
Behind-the-scenes edits
Social media ads

4. Copy.ai / ChatGPT / Jasper (AI Copywriting)

What It Is:

AI tools for generating captions, ad copy, hashtags, content ideas, and blog intros in seconds.

Features:

Caption generators
Headline variations
Hashtag suggestions
Brand tone customization
Long-form writing for blog or landing page content

Best For:

Caption creation
Repurposing content
A/B testing ideas
Saving time on copywriting tasks

Use these tools to help generate 5 headline variations for an Instagram ad.

5. Remove.bg (Background Removal)

What It Is:

An online tool to instantly remove backgrounds from photos, useful for product images or story overlays.

Features:

One-click background removal
Download transparent PNGs
Upload custom backgrounds
Batch editing (Pro version)

Best For:

E-commerce product posts
Profile cutouts for thumbnails
Story design elements

6. Planoly / Later / Buffer (Content Planning & Scheduling)

What It Is:

Content scheduling tools that allow you to visually plan, preview, and auto-publish posts.

Features:

Drag-and-drop content calendar
Preview Instagram grid
Hashtag groupings
Analytics dashboard
Link in bio tools

Best For:

Keeping a consistent posting schedule
Organizing and previewing brand feed
Team workflow and approvals

Course Activity Ideas:

Hands-On Project: Have students design a full week’s worth of content (3 image posts + 1 reel + 1 story) using Canva + CapCut.
Challenge: Use ChatGPT to generate 3 caption ideas per content type.
Presentation: Create a tutorial using InShot showing how to convert a blog post into a reel.

Pro Tip:

“Pick tools that simplify, not complicate. The best content is consistent, not perfect.”

Would you like ready-made video demos or walkthrough templates for these tools to embed in your course?

Writing engaging captions & hooks

Why Captions & Hooks Matter

The first line (hook) determines whether people stop scrolling.
Captions provide context, personality, and value to your visuals.
Good captions spark conversation, drive clicks, and inspire action.

“Your hook stops the scroll. Your caption holds attention. Your CTA drives action.”

What Is a Hook?

A hook is the first 1–2 lines of your caption. It must grab attention quickly and encourage users to read more, especially important on platforms like Instagram or LinkedIn where captions are truncated.

Types of Effective Hooks:

Ask a Question:

→ “Struggling to grow your Instagram in 2024?”
→ “What if you could turn followers into clients overnight?”

Make a Bold Statement:

→ “You don’t need 10K followers to make sales.”
→ “Most brands are doing content wrong.”

Share a Shocking Fact or Stat:

→ “80% of users never make it past your first sentence.”
→ “Reels get 67% more engagement than regular posts.”

Tell a Mini-Story:

→ “Last year, I nearly quit social media…”
→ “I spent $500 on ads and here’s what happened.”

Use Emojis or Formatting to Stand Out:

→ “ New Content Alert!”
→ “ Read this before posting another story!”

Anatomy of a High-Performing Caption

1. Hook

Capture attention with the first line.
Leave a question or curiosity gap to prompt “Read more.”

2. Body

Educate, entertain, or inspire.
Use line breaks, emojis, and bullet points to improve readability.
Add storytelling or personal touches.

3. Call-to-Action (CTA)

Encourage action: like, save, comment, click, DM, follow.

Examples:

“Comment if you agree!”
“Save this for later!”
“DM us ‘START’ for a free consultation.”

Caption Writing Best Practices

Keep it conversational – write like you talk.
Break up long text for mobile readability.
Use emojis sparingly to add personality or structure.
Match the tone to your brand personality (fun, expert, bold, etc.)
Address your audience directly using “you” or “your.”
Include relevant keywords or hashtags naturally.
Always include a CTA – even if it’s just “what do you think?”

Caption Examples (per objective):

Objective	Caption Example
Engagement	“What’s your #1 business goal this year? Drop it below “
Value/Education	“3 free tools to grow your content strategy (and how to use them)”
Storytelling	“I hit 10K followers in 60 days… here’s exactly how I did it.”
Lead Generation	“Want a free checklist? Comment ‘CHECK’ and I’ll DM it to you”
Conversion/Sales	“Only 24 hours left to grab this deal – tap the link in bio before it’s gone!”

Student Assignment Idea

Task:

Write 3 caption variations for a social post promoting:

A product
A blog article
A giveaway

Each caption must include:

1 hook
2–3 lines of body copy
A strong CTA

Pro Tip:

“Write 3 hooks for every caption. Choose the one that makes YOU want to stop scrolling.”