A social media workflow template that tells you what happens next without requiring a project manager.
A workflow should remove questions. If it creates a new meeting to explain the workflow, something went wrong.
This template uses a small number of states and forces one useful detail at each handoff: who owns the decision and what has to be true before the post moves.
Most workflow diagrams describe the happy path and ignore the Tuesday problem.
The Tuesday problem is ordinary: the price changed after approval, the image was edited, the platform failed to publish, or someone needs the post moved by two days.
A real workflow tells the team what state the content returns to when reality interrupts it.
The default path plus the recovery rules.
SOCIAL MEDIA WORKFLOW
1. DIRECTION
Owner:
Done when: weekly goal and priority are clear.
2. PLANNED
Owner:
Done when: post purpose, platform and format are chosen.
3. DRAFT
Owner:
Done when: copy + media exist together.
4. REVIEW
Approver:
Done when: facts, visual, account and timing are checked.
5. APPROVED
Rule: material edits return the post to REVIEW.
6. SCHEDULED
Owner:
Done when: approved revision + destination + time are locked.
7. PUBLISHED
Record: provider/post ID + final URL where available.
RECOVERY RULES
Publish failed:
Offer/date changed:
Wrong account selected:
Post must be paused:Example: a two-person small team.
DIRECTION — Michael sets weekly goal Monday morning.
PLANNED — Michael selects 3 posts.
DRAFT — Tola prepares copy + visuals.
REVIEW — Michael checks exact revision.
APPROVED — v4 signed off.
SCHEDULED — v4 queued for Instagram.
PUBLISHED — release ID stored.
RECOVERY:
Publish failed → keep approval, retry delivery if safe.
Price changed → edit post → approval invalidated → REVIEW.
Wrong account → stop before release and correct destination.
Urgent pause → remove from queue; keep content record.Make the template earn its place.
Define 'done' for each state.
A state name alone is not a workflow. The team should know what must exist before the post moves forward.
Keep ownership obvious.
One person can own several stages, but each decision should have a clear accountable person.
Write recovery rules now.
Failures are easier to handle when the normal workflow already says whether content state, approval or delivery state should change.
A template dies when every possible field becomes mandatory.
- Do not add a state for every tiny task.
- Do not make 'feedback sent' a permanent workflow state.
- Avoid parallel copies of the same post in several tools.
- Do not reset editorial approval because a provider had an operational outage.
What are the basic stages of a social media workflow?
Direction, planning, draft, review, approval, scheduling and publishing are enough for many small teams.
What should happen when an approved post is edited?
If the edit is material, return it to review. The approval belonged to the older revision.
What should happen when publishing fails?
Treat the failure as delivery state first. Do not erase editorial approval unless the content itself needs to change.