by Ana Hoffman 48 comments

Friday Tips for Keeps: How I Made Post Publishing Mistake and Why You Never Will

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Last week, all of a sudden I get a comment from Mavis Nong, saying something like “wow, 2 posts in one day - kudos to you, Ana!”

Two posts in one day???

I am swamped enough right now that I am barely publishing 3-4 times per week, let alone twice per day!

Alas, sure enough, I made a mistake and scheduled two of my pending posts for the same day.

It can happen to anyone, but it doesn’t have to any longer because I found a cool plugin that will keep track of your scheduled/pending/draft posts in a form of a calendar.

As a matter of fact, it’s called “Editorial Calendar” and you can find it in your WP plugin directory.

Here’s what the plugin creators have to say about it:

Did you remember to write a post for next Tuesday? What about the Tuesday after that? WordPress doesn’t make it easy to see when your posts are scheduled. The editorial calendar gives you an overview of your blog and when each post will be published. You can drag and drop to move posts, edit posts right in the calendar, and manage your entire blog.

That was definitely me before the plugin.

But no more.

Marketing Takeway

Install it. Use it. Love it. It’s free.

Friday Tips for Keeps. I think I like it. Quick and simple. Every Friday. Here on Traffic Generation Cafe.

Image credit: http://modeledbehavior.com/

Comment to show me that you’re alive!

ana hoffman editorial calendar

traffic generation cafe comment below

{ 48 comments }

Wayne Lambert July 3, 2011 at 12:11 pm

Hi Ana,

I’ve never understood why they don’t have “Are you sure you want to publish this post?” as a simple confirmation dialogue box as part of the WordPress core?

When I started blogging, I accidentally published draft posts too. I even thought you needed to publish it to see what it looks like until I understood that you could “save as draft”. I must have forgot to read “WordPress for Dummies” before I started blogging. :)

I’m not referring to the editorial calendar, however I really wish some of these little utility plugins were just a part of the WordPress core.

For example, a simple little plugin called ‘Duplicate Post’ which can be helpful to duplicate a post, when you want to publish a similar post to an existing post. Superb little plugin but should be part of the core.

I think I need to investigate how to submit suggestions for the WordPress core, or forever hold my peace.

Harry June 25, 2011 at 11:44 am

Very nice plugin, thank you for the tip.

Ana June 25, 2011 at 2:07 pm

You are welcome, Harry.

Brad Harmon April 25, 2011 at 4:01 pm

Thanks for letting us know about this tool, Ana. I’m starting to ramp up my postings again, and will need a good way to keep track of my future posts.

It took me a minute to figure out that this shows up under the posts tab on the admin page, but that makes perfect sense. I’m not always the brightest on these intuitive things. ;)

Ana April 25, 2011 at 11:12 pm

My pleasure, Brad. There is a lot to learn when it comes to perfecting the art of blogging. :-)

Diana Simon April 22, 2011 at 11:57 am

Hi Ana,

Thanks for these Friday tips. I had the Twitter @Anywhere Plus plugin installed a few weeks ago and did a step-by-step post because it was more complicated than I had expected. I am new so I thought it would be helpful to others. I really like the idea of the Tweet Old Post and I hopped over from that post to check this one.

I have just started an editorial calendar so this plugin is meant for me at the right time :)

I will keep an eye out for your posts every Friday or for that matter, everyday!

Ana April 24, 2011 at 4:47 am

All these plugins increase useability, Diana, and help us automate our blogging - win-win for all.

Jeevanjacobjohn April 19, 2011 at 4:37 pm

That would be a great plugin to have. But, I don’t think it might be useful to me. You see, I tend to write my posts when I want them published (for my site). Nowadays, If everything goes right, I publish 3 times a day. It might be useful to me, in the future.

Anyway, thank you for sharing !

Jeevan Jacob John

Ana April 24, 2011 at 4:44 am

3 times per day??? Wow, Jeevan, you are a machine! If you want to write for me instead, would love to have you! :)

Jeevanjacobjohn April 24, 2011 at 11:12 am

Oops. My mistake, Anna. I meant 3 times a week (that’s nothing compared to yours :D ). Note : Yes, I will try to write for you (I try to write at least one post a day, that’s 3 for my site and the other 2 as guest posts).

Anyway, thank you for the reply !

Ana April 25, 2011 at 7:59 am

That’s a good enough start. You can always increase from there.

Mavis Nong April 19, 2011 at 2:22 am

Thanks for sharing this plugin and for the mention, Ana :)

All the best,
Mavis

Ana April 25, 2011 at 8:00 am

Always a pleasure, Mavis.

Stacy @ Grow With Stacy April 18, 2011 at 9:28 am

Hi Ana,
I was thinking about this plugin over the weekend because I am starting to write posts ahead of time again (now that I have completed a blogging challenge which kept me too busy to schedule any posts).

Thanks!
Stacy

Ana April 24, 2011 at 4:43 am

Staying ahead is always a challenge for most of us, Stacy. When I take a look at my calendar and see nothing scheduled, it definitely motivates me! :)

GabrieIe Maidecchi April 18, 2011 at 1:57 am

Been using it for a while, it’s a truly useful plugin, nothing fancy, it just does its job and it’s good at it.
Too bad it doesn’t also write the post for you but I guess it wouldn’t be much fair :p

Ana April 24, 2011 at 4:41 am

A post writing plugin, huh?…. Whoever comes up with that will become an instant millionaire for sure. :)

Mel April 17, 2011 at 5:58 pm

That is a FANTASTIC tip! Thanks! Off to download now :) Just found your site.

Blessings,
Mel
Please feel free to stop by: Trailing After God

Ana April 24, 2011 at 4:40 am

Welcome to TGC, Mel - and He is risen!

Jacqueline DeWylde April 17, 2011 at 1:19 pm

Ana is this available to wordpress users who are using the free blog? I can’t find a plug in option on my dashboard. Thanks for the tips! :)

Jacqueline

Sandeep@CuriousLittlePerson April 17, 2011 at 10:17 am

Hey Ana - Thats a pretty good plugin and it does a pretty good job too.. hand y plugin

Maria Pavel April 17, 2011 at 8:09 am

Well, these kind of mistakes can happen to anyone, i wouldn’t dwell on it too much.
Maybe you’re tired one day or just in a hurry, it’s just a fluke.

Ana April 24, 2011 at 4:38 am

It’s happened a couple of times here and there. :) Not a fluke…

Ian Belanger April 16, 2011 at 8:13 am

Hey Ana,

Great tip! Right now I am lucky to get 3 posts out a week, but I plan to change that very soon and this calender will really help.

Thanks for the tip Ana and have a great weekend!

Ana April 17, 2011 at 7:41 am

Quick tip, Ian - as soon as I started publishing 5 times per week, by traffic soared. :)

stacey herbert April 16, 2011 at 7:18 am

That definitely sounds like a plugin I would find useful. Since I began blogging I have made a few publishing boo boos in Wordpress; like pressing publish instead of save..ooops. I remember cringing with embarrassment as my half finished post went out into the world. This plugin sounds like it will really help people to get more organised. Thanks for letting us know about it.

Ana April 17, 2011 at 7:40 am

Yes, have been there, have done that, Stacey. :)

There’s another plugin I need to dig out; it asks you to confirm if you want to publish something before it’s published.

Sounds like you and I could use that one as well. :)

Ana

stacey herbert April 17, 2011 at 1:41 pm

Glad I’m not the only one who has done that, I was sure I didn’t have the monopoly. Once you have found that other plugin give us a shout, its good to have as many tools in your arsenal as you can, so long as they don’t slow your site down. You can’t win : )

Thanks for getting back to me

Ali Mujtaba April 16, 2011 at 4:38 am

Hi, Ana. I think this plugin is a must have plugin for bloggers. I love the idea behind this plugin, simple idea but help much.
by the way you have great articles here, I love to read it, easy to understand.
Thanks

Ana April 17, 2011 at 7:37 am

Welcome to TGC, Ali!

Yes, it’s simple and very helpful; hope you’ll make good use of it.

Justin | Mazzastick April 15, 2011 at 9:43 pm

I like the idea of writing all of your posts for the week on one day and then scheduling it using this plug-in. I’m a same day poster as Gabriel.

Ana it’s hard to believe that you have grown your blog so much in nine months. It’s very inspiring.

Ana April 16, 2011 at 8:37 pm

Thank you, Justin.

I wonder how long it takes you to write a post? I know it takes me at least 1-2 hours to fully complete one; there’s no way I am doing more than 1 a day at that rate… Yes, I am pretty slow… :)

Justin | Mazzastick April 17, 2011 at 8:00 am

It takes me about two hours to write a post, but the way my mind works I will create a formula for writing, that will save me time when I start writing all of my posts in one day for the entire week.

I think this method would allow me to focus on other things without the nagging feeling that I need to remember to write another post.

I read from another blogger how he writes all his posts or most in one day and then schedules them for the week. He doesn’t post on weekends though.

Ana April 24, 2011 at 4:50 am

I love this method in theory, but in practice, I just don’t have enough creativity to write 5 posts per day.

Wish I could… Makes a lot of sense to do it that way.

Adrienne April 15, 2011 at 2:38 pm

Okay, I’ve never made that mistake before. Want to know a secret? I’m annoyingly organized (that’s the name my friends pinned on me years ago). When I write a post, I schedule it right then and there. In other words, I write my posts ahead of time and schedule them to post on Monday, Wednesday or Friday. Of course I’m fixing to change that up soon because I’ve been blogging consistently for 2 years now 3 times a week. I’m getting worn out!!!

But plug-ins like this one are extremely helpful because I know not everyone is like me. And no, I’m not saying I’ve never made a mistake like you did unfortunately. That stuff happens right! But plug-ins have saved me numerous times so thanks for sharing this one with us Ana. Another life saver for us.

Have a blessed afternoon and a wonderful weekend with your family.

Adrienne

Ana April 15, 2011 at 9:32 pm

I used to be annoyingly organized, Adrienne - then, I had a child. :) Lots of things changed since then…

You have a blessed weekend as well!

Caleb Wojcik April 15, 2011 at 1:37 pm

Pretty cool idea for a plug-in. Maybe this will get me to write my posts further in advance.

I had a problem this past week with my RSS feed not pulling so it looks like I posted two on the same day and my aweber pushed two updates as well. Frustrating, but a lesson learned!

Ana April 15, 2011 at 2:09 pm

I hate it when things like this happen - makes me think I am not in control of my own blog…

Haven’t seen you around here before, Caleb - if so, welcome to my blog!

Ana

Caleb Wojcik April 15, 2011 at 2:38 pm

Thanks Ana. I came across your site as a recommendation from Eric of Think, Market, Act.

Ana April 15, 2011 at 9:28 pm

Yay to Eric!

Paul Salmon April 15, 2011 at 11:23 am

The “Editorial Calendar” plugin is just what I have needed since I have been publishing posts 5 times a week. Each time I schedule a post I have to look at an actual calendar and the currently scheduled posts to see the next available date. This plugin should make my scheduling so much easier.

Thanks for the heads up on the plugin.

Ana April 15, 2011 at 2:05 pm

It definitely will, Paul - definitely made my day the day I got it. :)

Matty April 15, 2011 at 11:01 am

Ana, I have to admit that my blog isn’t big enough to be concerned about when I’m posting. However, I do like this idea, and I can see myself using it ‘when’ I reach star status. Reading your blog daily is helping me get there.

Thanks for the helpful tip…….Matty

Ana April 15, 2011 at 2:04 pm

A couple of things, Matty:

1. Thanks for reading my blog!

2. My blog is only 9 months old.

3. The more often you post, the more traffic you get. That’s what happened to TGC.

So maybe you should roll up those sleeves - oh, wait, you don’t have any :) - and start writing more often. Give them something to read and they will come to read it!

Ana

Adam April 15, 2011 at 10:23 am

Editorial calender is exactly what I need (O: I am fixing to install it as soon as I finish this comment.

Thank you for the share Ana. You so rock!

Ana April 15, 2011 at 2:01 pm

Yes, I am quite a rocker, Adam! :)

Glad you’ll be using it; you’ll love it I am sure.

Riya April 15, 2011 at 9:52 am

Thanks Ana,

You’re the best because you always try to provide something new to your readers and ready to help them with small things that they even don’t think about it like today “editorial plugin”.

Ana April 15, 2011 at 1:59 pm

I figured a nice and easy tip on a Friday should be a winner, Riya. :)

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