Quarterly Content Review: Q[N] [YEAR]
Canonical template for quarterly retrospective and Q+1 portfolio planning.
Quarterly Content Review: Q[N] [YEAR]
ProActive ReSolutions — Writing Studio Review date: [DATE] Participants: [Richard / Suzanne / Agent] Quarter covered: [Month–Month YYYY]
This document is the output of the Quarterly Planning Ritual (Content Strategy, Steps 1–5). It retrospects the completed quarter and produces the locked plan for Q+1. Complete the retrospective sections before writing the forward plan.
Part 1 — Retrospective: What Happened This Quarter
1.1 Business Context at Review Time
Answer before reviewing performance data — this prevents performance from distorting strategic judgment.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What is ProActive actively selling or pitching right now? | |
| Which sectors are generating the most conversations? | |
| Any regulatory events or sector news that matters? | |
| Has anything changed in ProActive's service offering or team? |
1.2 Pieces Published This Quarter
| Project ID | Title | Primary Venue | Published | Distribution complete? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1.3 Performance Summary
Pull from each piece's Performance Record (90-day summary).
| Project ID | Tier 1 (Reach) | Tier 2 (Engagement) | Tier 3 (Business Impact) | Overall Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EQS: | Inquiries: / Referrals: | H / M / L | ||
| EQS: | Inquiries: / Referrals: | H / M / L |
Engagement Quality Score reference: EQS = (saves×5) + (long_comments×2.5) + (short_comments×1) + (reactions×1) — canonical in PERFORMANCE_TRACKER.md
1.4 Winners and Underperformers
Highest-performing piece: - Project ID: - Why it performed: [topic resonance / angle / channel / timing] - What to do with this: [follow-up piece / more of this topic cluster / replicate format]
Lowest-performing piece: - Project ID: - Diagnosis: [wrong audience / wrong channel / topic not resonant / distribution failure / too early in the compounding sequence] - Decision: [Retry with different framing / Pause this topic cluster / Adjust channel / Discontinue]
1.5 Audience Intelligence Update
Based on who actually engaged — does the audience picture need updating?
| Persona | Expected Engagement | Observed Engagement | Update Needed? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Healthcare HR Director | Yes / No | ||
| Employment Lawyer | Yes / No | ||
| OH&S Professional | Yes / No | ||
| Executive / Board | Yes / No | ||
| Unexpected audience | N/A | → Add to persona if pattern |
Persona update actions this session: - [ ] [Specific update to specific persona file]
1.6 Sector Intelligence Update
Did any sector show unexpected activity — more engagement, new regulatory signal, inquiries from a new sector?
| Sector | Signal | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare | ||
| Universities | ||
| [Sector] |
Sector file update actions this session: - [ ] [Specific update to specific sector file]
1.7 Referral Network Update
Were any relationships activated by content this quarter?
| Contact | Which Piece | Context | Outcome | Network Update |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Attribution signals: Did any inquiry mention a specific piece? → Log in Content Attribution Log (Referral Network)
1.8 Content Hypothesis Validation
What did we predict last quarter? What actually happened?
| Hypothesis | Predicted | Observed | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| [e.g., "Healthcare HR Directors will save the first article"] | High saves from this audience | Confirmed / Disconfirmed / Unclear | |
1.9 Pattern & Template Fitness
Did the patterns and templates used this quarter perform as designed?
| Pattern / Template | Pieces Used | Performance Signal | Fitness Verdict | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PATTERN-PRACTITIONER-ARTICLE-v1 | Confirmed / Friction / Gap | |||
Part 2 — Forward Plan: Q+1 Portfolio
Complete retrospective (Part 1) before writing this section.
2.1 Business Alignment Check
Apply Filter A from Content Strategy (Step 3):
| Candidate Topic | Business Hook | Business Alignment |
|---|---|---|
| HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW | ||
| HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW | ||
| HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW |
2.2 Sequencing Check
Apply Filter B — does the Topic Map sequencing constrain any candidate?
Topics requiring a prerequisite not yet published: - [Topic X requires Topic Y first — Y not yet published → defer X]
2.3 Q+1 Portfolio (Locked)
| Slot | Topic ID | Working Title | Target Venue | Audience | HITL Mode | Target Publish | Business Hook |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q[N+1]-01 | |||||||
| Q[N+1]-02 | |||||||
| Q[N+1]-03 | |||||||
| Q[N+1]-04 |
2–4 pieces per quarter. Quality over volume.
2.4 Distribution Plan for Q+1
| Project ID | Primary | LinkedIn Posts (themes) | Newsletter | Speaking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1: / 2: / 3: | ||||
| 1: / 2: / 3: |
2.5 Q+1 KPI Targets
Set against the Q[N] baseline. First quarter: no targets, establish baseline only.
| Metric | Q[N] Baseline | Q+1 Target | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| LinkedIn avg EQS | |||
| Blog avg time on page | |||
| Tier 3 signals (cumulative) |
Part 3 — Feedback Loop Actions
Changes to system artifacts triggered by this review. Every loop must close.
Loop A — Performance → Strategy
Topic clusters being elevated or deprioritized: - [ ] Elevate: [topic cluster] → [reason: conversion signal / consistent high Tier 2] - [ ] Deprioritize: [topic cluster] → [reason: two quarters low engagement + no Tier 3]
Loop B — Audience Signal → Personas
- [ ] [Persona file to update] → [what to add/change]
Loop C — Sector Signal → Intelligence
- [ ] [Sector file to update] → [what to add/change]
Loop D — Referral Signal → Network
- [ ] [Referral Network update] → [contact / touchpoint to log]
Loop E — Pattern Performance → Pattern Files
- [ ] [Pattern file to update] → [what to add/change]
Part 4 — Decisions and Commitments
Formal decisions made in this review that affect the studio system:
| Decision | Rationale | Owner | By When |
|---|---|---|---|
Next Quarterly Review: [DATE — 3 months from this review]