How to plan a month of content for a handmade brand

Most small brands post when they remember to, and then wonder why Instagram feels like a second job. A month of content does not need more ideas. It needs a simple plan that you can repeat, so you are never staring at a blank caption on a Sunday night.

Here is a way to plan thirty days of content for a handmade brand in about an hour.

Start with three questions your customers really ask

Open your messages, comments and emails. What do people ask before they buy? How big is it, how long does it last, how is it made, is it a good gift, how do I care for it. Write down the ten you see most often. These are your topics, and they are better than anything you would invent.

Group the ideas into four kinds of post

1. Making. How it is made. A step, a tool, a mistake, a batch coming out of the kiln.
2. Using. The product in someone's life. A gift, a morning, a shelf, a customer photo.
3. Answering. One real question, answered in a few lines.
4. Asking. A post that invites a reply: a choice between two colours, a poll, a question about what people want next.

Selling posts are the result of these four, not a fifth category. A product link at the end of a good "making" post sells more than a post that only says "buy".

Pick a rhythm you can keep

Three posts a week for a month is better than seven in the first week and none after. Choose a number that fits your real schedule, and write it in the plan as a promise to yourself. A simple pattern is one making post, one using or answering post, and one asking post each week.

Fill in the month

Draw a calendar with the days you will post and write one line in each. Not the caption, only the idea. For example:

• Week 1. Making: the first step of a new batch. Answering: how long does it last. Asking: which colour next.
• Week 2. Making: a tool you could not work without. Using: a customer photo, with permission. Asking: what would you gift this for.
• Week 3. Making: a mistake and what it taught you. Answering: how to care for it. Using: the product in your own home.
• Week 4. Making: a finished batch. Answering: shipping and gift wrapping. Asking: what should we make for winter.

Write the captions in one sitting

Once the ideas are on the calendar, write all the captions in one or two sessions. It is much faster to stay in a writing mood than to switch in and out every day. Keep the files in a notes app or a spreadsheet, and schedule the posts if you can. Leave a few spaces empty for things that happen on the day.

Look back at the end of the month

Check which three posts got the most saves, replies or messages. Do more of the same kind next month. You do not need a dashboard, only the honest question: what did people respond to?

A quick checklist before you start the month

• Do you have ten real customer questions written down?
• Are there ideas in all four kinds of post?
• Is the rhythm one you can keep when you are busy?
• Does every post have one line of idea in the calendar?
• Are the captions written in advance?
• Is there a date to look back and compare?