Blog Plan Schedule Template – Monthly Goals to a Full Time Income
Do you need the perfect working blog post schedule, bonus if it comes with a easy to follow template? Are you stuck trying to grow your blog? Can someone just give you a step by step plan so you’re not floundering around anymore and chasing every shiny object?
Sure! I can! I’m Suzi, a mom of three gorgeous little kids, and I’ve built my blog into a huge success, payed off our mortgage entirely and allowed us to become FI before our oldest even goes to kindergarten. And no, this did not happen overnight, it took a lot of work, early mornings, late nights and long weekends. But it payed off and has been completely life changing.
THE RIGHT BLOG POST SCHEDULE + TEMPLATE FOR RAPID GROWTH
One of the biggest reasons why I was able to grow my blog into a success was a relentless laser focus and a plan. A month by month blog schedule that kept me focused and working towards my goal.
Below is the plan I followed at a high level to grow my blog from $0 to over $9,000 per month in its first year.
- In a year I replaced my engineering salary.
- In a year I worked in every spare moment I had and built a business.
- In a year I changed our lives forever.
Just imagine how much your life can change in a year from now. Maybe you won’t get to $9,000 per month, maybe you’ll go higher, maybe you’ll only get to $2,000 per month. But by golly, that covers most people’s mortgage!
THE BLOG SCHEDULE TEMPLATE TO A FULL TIME INCOME
Here is the blog schedule and plan that I followed to grow my blog dramatically in its first year. In short, here are the key factors I focused on:
- Grow a solid blog with great content
- Grow my email list
- Create and launch a product
There are multiple methods to grow a money making blog. This is what worked for me and I know this plan has worked for others too.
If you’re serious and want to change your life, you can join my free 12 Month Blog Plan course.
THE FREE 12 MONTH BLOG PLAN COURSE + TEMPLATE HELPS YOU:
- Discover what type of blog YOU should start
- Get access to a successful step by step growth plan
- Learn exactly how blogs make money
- Establish a strong foundation for your blog
- Find out what to name your blog
- Stop feeling so confused and lost when it comes to starting your blog
- Grow your blog to a huge success.
Over 32,000 students are enrolled in the course. You’re joining a movement.
In this post, at a super high level, I’ll cover the month by month blog schedule below. (there are more details and a PDF printable plan in the free course – you can sign up at the bottom of the post)
You can go through this blogging schedule at your own pace. You may move a bit faster or a bit slower – and that’s fine! Progress is progress no matter how small. Also, keep in mind many of these activities are ongoing. You may start pinning to Pinterest in month two, but it doesn’t end there, it’s an ongoing activity.
With that, let’s get into the 12 month blog plan!
THE 12 MONTH BLOG SCHEDULE TEMPLATE TO SUCCESS
Remember, you can do this. It takes a lot of work. But just imagine where you can be a year from now if you challenge yourself. The time will pass regardless. How will you make the most of it?
Enroll below
… for free in the Blog Plan course and get the 12 Month Blog Schedule Template to help you stay focused and accountable.
WHAT IS A SMART BLOG POST?
Before you start writing post after post after post, I want you to have a purpose behind each blog post. The more you blog, the more you’ll realize that there are a lot of goals you want to hit. Grow your traffic, build your email list, make money, etc.
Each blog post that you write should have a dedicated purpose.
To help you, I’ve covered a few of the basic smart blog posts below. These types of blog posts are a part of the 12 Month Blog Plan, and like a recipe, I’ve laid out which ones you need to write each month in the Editorial Calendar template.
Now, let’s start your blog and grow it to a full time income!
January
START YOUR BLOG
The goal of your first month blogging is to get everything set up. Get familiar with the vocabulary of blogging, setup and customize your site and do research. Take this time to learn and be a beginner. It’s okay! Enjoy being new and don’t be afraid to ask for help.
We all start with a blank blog and work our way up. Embrace that you’re starting a new journey. Use the 12 month blog plan to keep you focused and organized.
BLOG POST SCHEDULE
Setup a self hosted blog on the wordpress.org platform
RESEARCH AND PLAN
Research niche and market & brainstorm ideas.
CREATE YOUR FIRST FREEBIE
Create a freebie based on your market research. Don’t know how? Here is how you can create printables easily!
AFFILIATE PROGRAMS IN YOUR NICHE
Research affiliate programs in your niche.
February
PLAN A SOLID FOUNDATION
In your second month, I encourage you to write three solid pillar posts. Now that you’ve done some research, you should have an idea of what your audience’s key problems are. Write in depth, amazingly helpful articles helping your audience overcome those problems.
Additionally, don’t be afraid to learn the basics of SEO early on. I don’t want you to spend months writing blog posts that aren’t structured correctly. Even if you just know a bit of the essentials, that will give you a good foundation!
BLOGGING SCHEDULE
Write 3 pillar posts based on market research.
Use the fill in the Blank templates provided in the Blog by Number course.
WRITE SMART POSTS
Learn the basics of SEO to write well formatted posts
START GROWING YOUR LIST
Add a freebie to your pillar posts
MAKE MONEY BLOGGING WITH PILLAR POSTS
Add affiliate links to your pillar posts.
March
CREATE GREAT CONTENT
In the beginning few months of blogging, focus on creating great content, growing your email list and promoting your posts. Don’t worry too much about making money yet, that will come. Once you have a solid blog, an engaged email list and traffic – it is easy to monetize.
The hardest part about blogging is not making money, it’s consistently creating great content. So focus on that first. The money will come.
BLOGGING PLAN SCHEDULE
Write 3 posts – for help use the list of 8,000+ Blog Post Ideas
GET TRAFFIC TO A NEW BLOG
Promote your pillar posts on Facebook and Pinterest. Learn everything you can about Pinterest.
SHARE YOUR FREEBIE AND GROW YOUR LIST
Promote your freebie to grow your list
LIST POST OF THE BEST STUFF
Create a roundup post of the best products for your niche.
April
PROMOTE ON PINTEREST
You’re four months in now, congrats! Most beginning bloggers give up around month three. Don’t give up. You can do this. The first few months of blogging is the hardest, but every blog post you write is another brick in the foundation of your business.
Continue to write super helpful blog posts and add content upgrades to each post to build your list. In the Blog Plan I’ve included which types of smart posts you should be writing each month to grow your blog.
BLOG POST SCHEDULE
Write 3 posts – stay consistent with publishing on your blog
GET SOCIAL
Join Facebook & Pinterest groups and network with members – use the Blog by Number course for extensive lists of groups to join.
GROW YOUR EMAIL LIST WITH CONTENT UPGRADES
Add content upgrades to your top 3 posts to grow your list
MAKE MONEY BLOGGING – PRODUCT POST
Show your reader how you personally use a product.
May
BUILD YOUR LIST & MASTER PINTEREST
Now that you’ve been writing for a few months, continue to focus on building your email list and growing your traffic. Like I’ve said before, the more engaged your list and the more traffic you get, the easier it will be to monetize.
The money will come, but laying a solid foundation and building an engaged email list is the *key* to your success!
BLOG PLAN AND POST SCHEDULE
Write 3 posts – do a review post of your favorite affiliate items
MORE PIN IMAGES!
Create additional Pinterest images to your posts to increase traffic
HELP YOUR READERS
Build relationships and email your list weekly
THE “HOW TO” AFFILIATE POST
Write a “how to” post on an affiliate product
June
KEYWORD RESEARCH AND GUEST POSTING FOR SEO
Let’s get serious about increasing your SEO rankings. As a brand new blogger, it’s hard to boost your Google rankings because your blog is still only a few months old.
Google doesn’t start to take you seriously until your blog can walk, around 18 months old. That’s what I’ve heard from the experts. 🙂
So yes, it will take some time for your blog to age and look legitimate to Google, but don’t let that stop you from working on strategies to increase your SEO.
The best way to boost your Google rankings is by getting backlinks from more authoritative sites. And guest posting is a fantastic method to gain solid backlinks.
BLOG POST SCHEDULE – BE BRAVE
Write 4 posts – experiment with a video or Facebook Live post
GUEST POST TO BOOST SEO
Guest post on a higher-ranking site to boost your SEO
EMAIL LIST, WHAT’S YOUR BIGGEST STRUGGLE?
Ask your list what their biggest struggle is
PLAN YOUR PRODUCT
Brainstorm product ideas based on responses from email list
July
JOIN A SMALL MASTERMIND TO STAY FOCUSED ON YOUR SCHEDULE
Depending on your niche, you may experience a bit of a summer traffic slump. Don’t worry! Your audience may just be out enjoying the summer holidays and not reading blog posts.
For some bloggers, the summer could be their highest traffic month.
If you’re experiencing a lack of confidence or motivation, create your own small mastermind of fellow bloggers and keep each other accountable.
Continue to posts consistently on your blog, engage with your email list and guest post to boost your SEO.
BLOG PLAN SCHEDULE
Write 4 posts – do a roundup of your top posts if you are low on time
MASTERMIND AND GUEST POSTING
Create a small mastermind group and help each other grow. Continue to guest post.
TEST DIFFERENT FREEBIES TO GROW YOUR LIST
Continue to grow list and test out different freebies
MAKE MONEY WITH AFFILIATE LINKS
Share your affiliate links in your small mastermind to help each other out (think: amazon purchases)
August
PLAN AND OUTLINE PRODUCT IDEA
You’ve been blogging for eight months now, by this time you should have a very solid understanding of your audience. You should also know how you can best serve them.
Brainstorm a printable, ebook or course idea that can improve the lives of your readers. Run the idea by your list and get their feedback.
Take their answers and outline your product idea. Oooh, this is exciting! You’re about to create a product and launch it! Don’t be intimated, this is your first product. It’s okay if it’s small.
Make it amazing, super helpful and beautiful. And then offer it for a ridiculously affordable price. This is not only to build your confidence and get sales, but it’s also to build your brand and let your readers know you’re in it to help them!
BLOG POST SCHEDULE FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Write 4 posts (great time to create seasonal posts for the holidays)
ANALYZE YOUR TRAFFIC
Analyze your content on Pinterest – create more of what is performing well.
ASK YOUR EMAIL LIST
Run your product idea by your list to see if they like it – adjust as necessary
MAKE MONEY BLOGGING
Outline product idea (ebook, printables, courses)
September
CREATE FIRST MINI PRODUCT
Take this month to create your product. You can ask a friend or another blogger to guest post on your site so you can free up a bit of time to work on your project. If you need help, here are my best time management tips for moms!
I encourage you to write blog posts that build awareness of your product. So that when you launch it, your readers are already familiar with your expertise on the topic.
BLOG POST SCHEDULE AND PLAN
Write 2 posts about your product and allow 2 guests posts (to give you time to work on your product)
PLAN TO PROMOTE SEASONAL POSTS
Promote Seasonal Posts on Pinterest
GROW YOUR EMAIL LIST
Let your list know your product is coming, give them a teaser
MAKE YOUR FIRST PRODUCT
Create product (ebook, printables, courses)
October
LAUNCH YOUR PRODUCT AND GUEST POST
This is your launch month! Every blog post you publish this month should have the purpose of building awareness to your product. It also builds trust in what you’re selling.
Launching is a lot of work, so I encourage you to have a few blog posts already scheduled so you can focus on the launch.
BLOG PLAN SCHEDULE FOR LAUNCH
Write a series of posts about your product
GUEST POST
Guest post and promote your product
LAUNCH TO LIST
Launch product to list
SETTING UP THE LAUNCH
Create sales page and launch product
November
PLAN, CREATE, PROMOTE
Congratulations! You’ve created and launched a product, even if it was a $9 printable pack, that is amazing! Your goal with your first product is not to make $10,000 – it is to build your confidence and the trust of your readers.
Over the years I’ve created and launched dozens of products. Each launch and product builds on the one before.
If you made $100 or $10,000 with your first launch, congrats, I am so proud of you for having the courage to do it!
BLOG POST PLAN & SCHEDULE
Write 4 posts – do a roundup if you are low on time
GET TRAFFIC TO YOUR BLOG
Network with your mastermind and promote each others posts and products
BE A FRIEND
Continue to build relationships with your list
MONEY IN SALES
Run a black Friday special (roundup of affiliates or your own product)
December
MAKE YOUR BLOGGING PLAN FOR NEXT YEAR
Wow! What a year! If you’ve followed the Blog Plan you’ve worked extremely hard. Building a blog, growing an email list, getting traffic, guest posting and launching a product is an enormous accomplishment!
Take a few days and just reflect on all of your hard work. Make a list of what went well and what you can improve on. And put together your plan for the next year! Congratulations!
BLOG PLAN SCHEDULE
Reflect and work on your goals to start planning for the next year
WHAT TO PROMOTE TO GET TRAFFIC
Promote New Year / new beginnings posts
THANK YOUR LIST
Thank your email list for supporting you in your first year as a blogger
HOW TO MAKE MONEY BLOGGING
Promote seasonal items and do gift guides
You can do this, just enroll below!
… for free in the Blog Plan course and get the 12 Month Blog Schedule Template to help you stay focused and accountable.
100% Free Blogging Course!
Get the exact plan I followed to grow my blog from $0 to over $9,000 per month in my first year.
I’ve recently launched my blog mstessasclassroom.com and I’m trying to develop a consistent schedule to grow. There’s so much to learn, but this plan and Suzi’s blog course has really helped me organize my thoughts to make this process more digestible and realistic since I’m also an online teacher and homeschool mom of 3. My time is so stretched and some days seem impossible to do anything other than cook, clean, homeschool, and teach. But I’m getting there. Thank you Suzi for such wonderful information and advice. You are awesome!
Very practical and realistic blog plan.thanks
the download is not working
Ahrefs
While we’re on the topic of SEO, I wanted to mention Ahrefs. Ahrefs is a tool that allows you to do keyword research to ensure you’re targeting the best keywords with the highest traffic and lowest difficulty to rank for.
While this tool isn’t free or cheap, they do offer a free two-week trial. Alternatively, you can use their competitors like Moz or SEMrush (who also have free trials, hint hint). Whichever one you choose, if you’re serious about ranking on Google, I highly recommend a keyword research tool. Without them, you only have access to Google Keyword Planner, which doesn’t really help you find the right keywords.
first I have to thank you for this great post and your lovely writing style. Second I have a question. You’ve heard it probably a lot, but I was wondering why not many people are reading my blog. I am sharing it on facebook in multiple groups. But I guess I post to little.
This post is very insetting and usefully.
I entered my email to receive the download but nothing is in my inbox 🙁
Great, in depth resource, thank you! another recommendation that I would like to add is to do list excel template. It is also very userfriendly and provides a clear overview about your performance: https://www.someka.net/excel-template/to-do-list-template/
Wow! What a wonderful piece of article this is! I really needed something like this to keep me hooked. Thankyou so much
This is one of the smartest posts I ever come across with as I browse online for contents. The idea of having a specific focus in each phase will be very helpful. I am lucky to come across this blog post. The different kinds of posts really amaze me and suddenly have a deep thought of my own actions. I will use certainly this guide. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you Suzi!
The information you provide is always so helpful. I found you in December 2018 and you have really helped me to get a better grasp on how to blog…even though I really have just begun.
Thank you so much, Suzi. From reading your post, I can already tell 2019 will be a great year. I started my site around a year ago but due to lack of time and consistency, I gave up pretty quickly.
I decided to take it seriously this year but I did not have a roadmap to follow so everything felt confusing and mixed up. I did not even know one needed a blogging calendar or schedule to attain success.
Once again, thank you. You’re a lifesaver 🙂
Thank you so much Nahashon! 🙂 Make it a success this time!
Hi Suzi!
This is a great plan! I love having a map for the year that has so much flexibility but also so much structure! That’s hard to create.
Quick question for you – do you have an opt-in at the bottom of each post or just the “e-mail posts”? Can you explain a bit more about how an e-mail post differs from the pillar posts?
Yes! I did a walk through here – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ut3GJTupPcY
Thank you Kristen!
Hi Suzy, I’m working through your courses! I downloaded the plan template and have a question that may be obvious…but not to me. :-/ Is there a template that I can type into or print and write in? Or is it all filled out and we do our own? Sorry, can’t seem to see any links to blank forms.
Thanks so much.
Hi Robin! Thank you for the comment. 🙂 There is a blank content calendar that you can fill in – but the actual 12 month blog plan is prefilled out with steps to help you succeed 🙂
Excited!!
Oh-my-days this is soooo needed thank you… Having sat here for hours trying to do exactly this but getting ridiculously overwhelmed, I am relieved I took a break and found ‘You’ haha.. So cool
Suzi-
It is so easy for me to get overwhelmed with all of the blogging information that is out there! My blog has been on line for almost two years and I feel as if I have been spinning my wheels. The way you have laid out your courses and all the work that you have done to take us step through step through getting a blog going is just what I needed. Thank you so much for all the work you have put in. I love watching your videos, too, because you are the blogger that I aspire to be. Someone who invites me to be a friend and to learn together. Of all of the blogs that I have read over the years about blogging, yours is the absolute best. Thank you so much!
By the way, I did receive my very first comment on my blog today from someone I don’t even know! I hope to have more than that in 2019!
This is such amazing info Suzi. Looking forward to kicking off my blog journey in 2019. I have dabbled in blogging for a few years now and stopped & started several times within different niches. Now I want to really go for it, get stuck in & start making an income. I know your blog plan & schedules are going to be super helpful in getting me there!! Thanks so much again for sharing all the wonderful information you put out to help everyone 🙂 🙂
Wow, amazing, Suzi! I’m sure a number of people will find this plan post very helpful. Having a plan can really make all the difference!
Thank you Kim! I hope so too. It has helped me a lot!
Sizing, I also want to express my gratitude for your through teaching. When I don’t know how to do something I know you will have it in your courses.
Would it be possible for you to show us how to enter code in our Pinterest account to track where visitors are searching in Pinterest and our website? Thanks Suzi!
I am super excited about diving in and staying on task. You Rock and are so generous in all you do to help your students to be their best. I’ve been patiently waiting on the plan. 🙂 Thanks for all your hard work to provide us with this powerful tool. I was laid off from my job back in August and have no desire to return to anyone’s job.
I am the Nana of 11 grandbabies and want to make life better and more enjoyable for them. I need funds to do that and believe by following your plan I can more than accomplish that. LOL
I can’t wait to hear about your life change… I pray it has to do with travel and seeing the world. You so deserve it. 🙂
Lisa Renee
Lisa! Wow, 11 grandbabies – congratulations! That’s a little army of love 🙂 And I love your goal of wanting to make life better and more enjoyable for them 🙂
The big life change is that John is leaving his job to come home and hustle with me 🙂 Which opens us up for more travel and seeing the world!! So thank you so much for your support and kind comment.
Suzi, thank you so, so much. I have travelled this road before, as you know, dipped my toe in several times and got stuck, due to lack of time and worry about finances etc. I’d like to encourage other bloggers like myself to keep going, and start again if you have to – as I am going to do with Suzi’s help – again!
The depth and generosity of your work is astounding, Suzi, and I’m so very glad to see you continue to thrive.
Emma x
Aww Emma, thank you so so much!! I truly appreciate your support and can’t wait to see how the plan helps you! 🙂
Wow! Your commitment to your work is amazing and inspiring. Thank you so much for this!
I really do love this stuff – and I adore helping my readers!
Suzi, you are heavensent! You never fail to amaze me. Thank you for your generosity. Your support is unparalleled!
Oh Donna! You make me blush!!
Thank you for this helpful article! Starting a blog is something I’ve thought about for a few years now. Is there a way to predict how soon someone could expect to make any money? I’m sure it depends on the niche, but do you think if someone were to follow this schedule, could they expect to see some money by 6 months in?
Also, if I have multiple interests/things to talk about, should I restrict my number of topics to a certain amount?
Thanks! 😀
Hey Andrea! Fantastic question! This plan puts you on the track to make your first $1,000 by the time you launch your product. Of course it depends on how engaged and how big your audience / email list is – but it’s definitely definitely doable!
If the topics are loosely tied together, then you can talk about all of them. Just don’t go all over the board with topics that are clearly not related 🙂 Hugs!
Awesome! Thanks for your response! 🙂
Amazing blog planner Suzi! I can’t wait to dig into the details. I hope it will help me actually follow an editorial plan in 2019
Yes, definitely Nicole! We all need a plan to follow 🙂 🙂
Suzi, I can’t even begin to express how excited I am for this updated blog plan! I’ve taken this last month to get a jumpstart on January with your previous plan and Blog By Number Course to really crush it in 2019! You’ve been such a big help to me, so much so that even reaching out in a comment is something I’ve never done. I’ve encouraged several people to take your whole bundle of courses because they’re so amazing and to show a little of my gratitude! Onward to 2019!
Awww golly, thank you so so much Whitney! I appreciate your support and recommendations so much! I hope you love the new 2019 Blog Plan and that it brings you major success! Keep me updated!!
Suzi, you are the epitome of everything I want to be in a blogger! Thanks so much for going the extra mile in your posts. You’re guidance and generosity goes so far. I can’t wait to utilize this calendar. It is exactly what I needed going into the new year with a new blog!!
Aww Brooke, you make my knees weak 🙂 Thank you!
Thank you so much for creating this planner, Suzi! It’s just what I needed – I feel like I’m all over the place and get easily distracted. This will really help me focus and get some traction. Thanks again for taking the time to put this together!
Yes! That’s exactly why I created the Blog Plan – thank you Jen!!
Thankyoubso much for this. I started my blog with you at the beginning of the year then became sick I’m hoping to restart my blog in January so this is perfect. I have a few of your courses to guide me and now this asca great overview
Yes! This plan will be your golden guide – and I’ll be using the editorial calendar too – 🙂 Right there with you!
Love that your email with this info found me when it did. My blog has been up for a little over 2 months and I feel like I’m spinning in circles! So excited to get on track with this schedule! Thank you 🙂
Yes, thank you so much Britney! I know this plan will help you a ton!!
This blog planner is amazing! Thank you for all your help and training. I need help with one thing. I have the blog by numbers course and am working my way through it. I see that you have several more courses and I don’t know which one is the right next step. Do you have a list like that somewhere I just haven’t found, or can you make one? Thanks!
Of course Kate! You can follow the path down the list on this page – http://www.startamomblog.com/vip 🙂 That has the overview of all my products!! 🙂
This is amazing. I LOVE the value you provide every single time you create a blog post or send me an email.
Thank you for being here for me in my blogging journey, i am so grateful for your guidance.
Thank you so much Elizabeth! I try my best to give you the best value I can! I want you to have the tools to be successful and not overwhelmed, thank you so much for the sweet comment! You made my day!