How to Create a Podcast Editorial Calendar

Caitlin Van Horn -

Is your podcast publishing schedule all over the place? Are you finding it hard to stay on track and keep your podcast content consistent? Then it sounds like it’s time for you to setup a podcast editorial calendar. Let’s talk a bit about what a podcast editorial calendar is and why you need one.

What is a Podcast Editorial Calendar?

How many show ideas do you have for your podcast? Do you know who will be a guest on your next show? On which dates will you publish each episode? The answers to all these questions can quickly get lost without a plan. That’s where a podcast editorial calendar becomes incredibly useful. This calendar is an organization tool that gives you a high level overview of your podcast production process. It helps you keep track of where episodes are in development, what the topic for each show is, when the podcast will be published, and more.

Why Do You Need an Editorial Calendar?

The editorial calendar helps you to maintain some consistency within your podcast and publishing schedule. This is important because fans of your podcast usually except your show to be published in regular intervals. If you can’t meet your publishing deadlines, you’ll may lose your fans’ investment in your podcast–or at least see a few bummed tweets. On the production side of things, a calendar is important for keeping your content, publishing tasks, and dates with guest speakers aligned. Especially if you work on a team, having an editorial calendar keeps everyone on the same page about the production of upcoming podcast episodes and gives your team a window into when things need to get done.

What Usually Goes Into an Editorial Calendar?

Podcast editorial calendars can vary depending on your show and what elements are important to production. Usually you’ll structure your calendar in a spreadsheet or project management tool like Trello, Airtable, or Asana, but it could also live in a share Google Calendar or even on a spreadsheet depending on what your team is comfortable with. Some things to include in it are:

  • Episode Name
  • Episode Number
  • Season
  • Guest Speakers
  • Host
  • What stage of production your podcast is in
  • The release date
  • The episode description
  • Duration
  • Sponsors
  • Where you’ll distribute your show
  • If this piece of content is for premium listeners
  • If the show is being transcribed

Now that you’ve got some of the basics covered, try setting up an editorial calendar for you and your team. It's totally possible that your editorial calendar will evolve as your show does–it may grow to include your social media schedule, when you start doing guest outreach, or when your editing deadlines are. Don't be afraid to change it up and check in with your team for what works!