Keep a content idea backlog that never empties

Key takeaways

A content idea backlog is one shared list where every post idea is written down the moment it appears, one line each, tagged with its pillar and format. In the monthly session you fill slots from the backlog before thinking of anything new. It never empties if more ideas go in each month than come out, which takes only the habit of writing them down.

• 1 shared list, 1 line per idea, open all month.
• Tag each idea with a pillar and a format.
• Fill slots from the backlog before brainstorming.
• Add more ideas each month than you use.

What is a content idea backlog?

A content idea backlog is a running list of post ideas that are not yet in the calendar. It is different from a content bank, which holds finished posts ready to publish. The backlog holds raw ideas; the bank holds made posts. Most small businesses need both, and the backlog feeds every planning session.

• How to build a monthly social media content calendar
• Build a social media content bank for quiet weeks

What should each idea include?

One line: the specific post, not the topic. 'Before and after: the Leeds loft conversion' beats 'loft work'. Add a pillar tag, a format tag and where the material is, such as 'photos in the shared folder'. Ideas written this way can go straight into a slot without more thinking.

• Content calendar fields: what each row needs

Where should the backlog live?

Somewhere everyone can add to from their phone in seconds: a shared note, a tab in the calendar spreadsheet or a chat group pinned for ideas. If adding an idea takes longer than 20 seconds, people stop doing it. The calendar owner tidies the list before each planning session.

• Collect content ideas from your team every month

How do you keep it from emptying?

Make adding a habit at the moments ideas appear: after a job, after a customer question, after a sales call and after any post that did well. Aim to add more ideas each month than the calendar uses. If the backlog is shrinking, the capture habit has slipped, not your creativity.

• Turn sales calls into next month's content

When should you delete ideas?

Delete ideas that have sat for three months without being used, that no longer fit the business, or that depended on a moment that has passed. A long list of stale ideas is as hard to use as an empty one. A quarterly tidy keeps the backlog useful.

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see: good ideas mentioned in meetings and lost by the next planning session. A pinned chat for ideas, tidied monthly, usually means the session starts with more ideas than slots.

• See client work
• Social Media Marketing for UK businesses

Backlog checklist

• Set up one shared list.
• Write ideas as specific posts.
• Tag pillar, format and material.
• Add after jobs, questions and calls.
• Tidy it every quarter.

• How to fill a content calendar when ideas run dry
• A monthly shot list for social media photos and video

Next step

Create the backlog today and add ten ideas from the last month's work. That is most of next month's calendar.