How Much Content Your Brand Really Needs; Monthly Marketing Foundations for Small Businesses

Let’s Face It, You Need More Content Than You Think

I know that you are trying to figure out how to market your company and grow your business. You know that you need a website, you know you need to be on social media, and you know you need to be on google. But holy Jesus figuring out how to get it all done has you ready to pull your hair out!

“Do I really need 500 pieces of content every month?”

“What ever happened to 3 posts a week?”

“Posting 3–5 times a day? That’s not even possible… right?”

“And how on earth am I supposed to link my google to my website and my website to my social”

I hear you. The overwhelm is real. You are trying to take care of your business, not be a social media manager. You’re stuck on what to post and when to post it, and even where to post it. There are so many options out there. But please hear this: Not everyone needs to be on Instagram. 

And while we’re dropping truth bombs, that “three-posts-a-week rule” is outdated, like still trying to use cold dm messages from 2016 in 2020.

I’m going to tell you what you need to know, and you don’t have to like it, but it doesn’t make it less true.

You need more content than you think, like 3 - 5 posts a day on most social media platforms.

Don’t freak out! That doesn't mean you need to be glued to your screen. It just means we've shifted into a new system, and content is your compass. AI has changed how people find and interact with you. And this is what is shifting the marketing strategies that need to be in play now. Everything from your website to where you show up online. Social media and non-social platforms included!

I know it feels like a lot, and it is. 3-5 posts a day on each platform can add up! But when you have a strategy, and you have tools in place to plan, create, and schedule your content, it won’t feel like you’re living online.

In this article I am going to walk you through:

• What “monthly marketing” even means

• Your Website is Home Base

• How to Be Where People Search

• What volume you actually need, not based on trends, but what works

• How to handle it without losing your sanity; quarterly strategy & content repurposing

So, get ready for screenshots, or if you’re truly a kindred spirit grab a notebook! Because you’re not leaving here without knowing the foundations of marketing that your business needs. And yes, you can do this all on your own.

Why Monthly Marketing Is Non-Negotiable in 2025

You’re not crazy. Marketing changed underneath us and AI is in every search browser now. People don’t type “lawn care Shawnee” anymore. They ask full questions like, “Who treats weeds near me, safe for kids and dogs, and what does it cost?” Search tools pull answers from brands that have actual content: articles, service pages, FAQs, videos, how-tos, social media, backlinks, reviews, and recommendations on places like nextdoor and reddit. It’s not just a homepage and a hope.

Here’s what that means for you:

• Visibility > clicks. If your content doesn’t exist, AI can’t find it, and people can’t either.

• Consistency beats keywords. One ad or one post won’t carry you. Showing up repeatedly does.

• Monthly marketing = Simple Strategy. A planned rhythm of website updates, blogs, emails, and daily short-form posts that keep you discoverable everywhere your people look.

Bottom line: You’re not chasing algorithms, you’re feeding answers. 

Think about your real life customers. What questions are they (or were they) asking you when they reach out? Because now they’re asking AI. So your content needs to be ahead of the questions. It needs to show up online the way you do in person. 

Be clear, helpful, and confident. There is no being afraid of giving away all the answers or waiting to charge for your knowledge. They will find the knowledge from someone else. You want to share your knowledge, earn their trust, and they will pay you when they’re ready to execute that service or purchase that product.

Your Website Is Home Base

Social trends come and go. Your website is the house your brand lives in. It needs fresh air and new paint. Regularly. 

The recent integration of ai to search platforms has shifted websites down the user journey. Sticking with the home analogy, a potential client used to type in an address (a phrase in a search browser) and your home with all the information they need would populate. They could click and be at your brand’s house, your website.

Now the journey is different. They are asking their chats and their search browsers all about the area you live in and what the locals like to do, and they are letting AI crawl the internet and give them the answers. And if your house isn’t set up with the right words and back end settings then the AI will crawl right past it and not even talk about your house.

Okay, so that may still seem foreign, but trust me, it’s how it works. Ask clarifying questions if you want and I will answer!

So what matters now? How do you make sure that your website is crawled by AI?

• Long, well-written copy. Say what you do, for whom, and why it matters. Depth reassures humans and gives AI something to index.

• Quarterly updates. New photos, updated services, fresh FAQs, recent testimonials. Stale sites slide into invisibility.

• Blog cadence, 1–2 per month (minimum). Answer real questions. One solid article can be repurposed into weeks of content.

• Structure that serves. Clear homepage sections (problem → solution → proof → next step), service pages with specifics and pricing ranges, and an “About” that actually sounds like you.

If your site reads like a brochure from 2019, or like AI wrote it, it’s time to make it a living, human-sounding resource, because that’s what AI (and people) find and trust.

Be Where People Search (it goes beyond social media)

Not everyone needs Instagram. But everyone needs to be findable. Your customers look in more places than you do, so meet them there. Depending on your industry, you may need to be on Instagram, you may need to be on Pinterest, you may need to be on NextDoor. That’s where research and strategy come into play. 

But for this article, let’s focus on the non-negotiables that every small business needs:

• Google Business Profile. This is prime real estate. It’s what shows up first when someone Googles your business name or service. Keep your hours, services, photos, and updates current. Post weekly. Ask for reviews (and reply to them!). Every review is not just credibility for people, it’s fuel for search engines.

• Facebook. Like it or not, people use Facebook like a search bar. If someone types your business name in and your page looks like a ghost town, they assume you’re closed or sloppy. A steady stream of posts and activity signals you’re alive and trustworthy.

• Local directories. Yelp, Nextdoor, Chamber of Commerce, trade associations, these may not be sexy, but they carry weight. They show up in search results, they push traffic your way, and they build backlinks (aka trust signals for search engines).

I’m not saying you need to be throwing money at Angie’s List or chasing every shiny directory, but you do need to show up where your people are already searching. Even if it feels boring. Even if it feels repetitive.

Think of it like putting signs at every intersection your customers drive through. One sign on one corner won’t cut it. But if your name keeps popping up… Google, Facebook, Nextdoor, Yelp, your website… suddenly you’re not just an option, you’re the obvious choice!

And here’s the kicker, this isn’t PPC (Pay per click). You’re planting presence. You’re building visibility that lasts longer than a 7-day ad campaign and works even when you’re not online.

The Content Volume Truth

Here’s the “don’t love it but need to hear it” part: you need more content than you think.

The new baseline: 3–5 posts per day on each of your chosen platforms.

Yep, every day.

But why this much?

Because algorithms and AI aren’t your cheerleaders, they’re gatekeepers.

Social media only shows your content to a fraction of your followers. Your post has to “perform” before it’s released to a wider audience. (This is why asking friends and family to follow your business page is a growth-killer. They won’t engage with your content the way your real customers will, and it drags your reach down.)

AI search generation isn’t just pulling from your website anymore, it’s scanning your entire footprint. Blogs, captions, videos, reviews, FAQs. The more relevant content you’ve created, the more likely AI is to pull from you instead of skipping over you.

That’s why posting more isn’t about being “loud” or “spammy.” It’s about:

• Staying in front of real people.

• Signaling relevance to algorithms.

• Answering more questions, more often.

• Building a body of content big enough that you can’t be ignored.

So how do you hit those numbers without burning out?

One word: Strategy.

The days of paying a few hundred dollars to have someone “post some content” for you are over. Random filler posts won’t cut it. You need a layered content strategy that works smarter, not harder:

• Long-form content → Blogs (1,500–2,000 words) or YouTube videos (10–60 min depending on your industry). This is your anchor content. The deep, helpful stuff AI and humans both trust.

• Mid-form content → Instagram carousels, 3–5 min videos, in-depth Facebook posts. This breaks your long-form into digestible chunks.

• Short-form content → Reels, TikToks, quick quotes, punchline graphics. These are the sparks that keep the fire alive daily.

Here’s the rhythm.

Create once, repurpose many. One blog can become a couple of carousels, three reels, a handful of quote graphics, an email, and a FAQ update. That’s how you scale up to volume without chaining yourself to your phone. Make sure you fill in the spaces with more topics from your brand’s Master Topic Library. One long form doesn’t give you everything you need.

The Perspective Shift

Volume isn’t punishment. It’s presence.

It’s how you stay visible long enough for people to trust you, remember you, and choose you.

Because if you’re not showing up consistently, clearly, and everywhere they look, someone else is.

Quarterly Strategy = Sanity (not hustle)

Let’s be real, posting 3-5 times a day sounds like madness if you don’t have a system. Without a plan, it is madness. But consistency at scale doesn’t come from hustle, it comes from structure.

That’s where quarterly strategy saves you. It’s not about cranking out endless content. It’s about building rhythms that work for you instead of against you.

Here’s the system I build with clients (and yes, it works)!

1. Quarterly Focus. Choose 1–2 core offers and build your Master Topic Library.

2. Monthly Anchor Content. Publish 1–2 blogs and/or one longer video/podcast. That’s your repurposing well.

3. Weekly Distribution Map. Decide where each idea goes (site, email, social, directories).

4. Batch Days. Protect your creation time. Once a quarter, schedule one filming day and one to two creation days. Then set aside a monthly scheduling day to load everything into your platforms. Guard these days like revenue days, because that’s what they are.

5. Daily Visibility. This is the human layer. You show up live, respond to comments, answer DMs, post in stories. This is 15-30 minutes a day, not hours.

Why This Works

Quarterly strategy turns content from a constant scramble into a repeatable rhythm. Instead of waking up to a blank screen and wondering what to post, you’re running a machine that already knows where it’s going.

And here’s the best part... structure creates freedom. When you’re not chained to the “what do I post today?” cycle, you actually have space to be present with your business, your clients, and your life.

You don’t need hustle. You need rhythm.

Monthly Marketing Checklist (save this)

This is the baseline for staying visible in 2025 and beyond. Screenshot it. Print it. Hand it to your VA. Tape it to your wall.

Quarterly

• Website review + updates (services, FAQs, images, testimonials)

• Refresh Google Business Profile + directory listings

• Re-align your 90-day theme, offers, and keywords

• Batch Days: 1 filming day + 1–2 creation days → record, write, and design your content for the quarter

Monthly

• Publish 1–2 blog articles (answer real questions)

• Scheduling Day: load and schedule your batched content into your platforms

• Batch graphics/reels/scripts as needed to fill in gaps

• Email your list at least 2x (announce, educate, or recap)

Weekly

• Map distribution of content across platforms (site, email, socials, directories)

• Repurpose from your anchor content to keep the flow consistent

Daily

• 3–5 posts across chosen platforms (mix of tips, proof, FAQs, CTAs, stories)

• Engage: reply to comments/DMs, thank reviewers, join local conversations

Presence

• Maintain at least 1 social platform + 1 non-social directory (minimum)

• Keep hours, service areas, and contact info consistent everywhere

Save this photo. This is your baseline for staying visible in 2025 and beyond.

Be Findable. Be Consistent. Be You.

Marketing is no longer optional. Visibility is survival. The businesses that win aren’t always the ones with the flashiest ads or biggest budgets. They’re the ones who answer more questions, more often, in more places.

Here are the two truths you can’t ignore:

• Show up online the way you do in person.

• You need more content than you think.

But don’t confuse “more” with chaos. This isn’t about hustle for hustle’s sake. It’s about running a system that works. Batch it, schedule it, repurpose it, and then show up with your human touch.

💡 Bonus Note

AI doesn’t run your business. Even with the best prompts, it’s still not human. Your voice. Your cadence. Your personality. These are non-negotiable in all of your content.

When you lead with clarity and consistency, people can finally find you, and choose you. And that’s the whole point. Not just to exist online, but to be visible, trusted, and chosen.

Now go make it happen! 

- Brenna 😉