Generate a weekly content calendar with OpenAI GPT-5-mini, RSS feeds, and Notion

Generate Weekly Content Calendar with AI from RSS Feeds

Categories: AI, Content Creation, Marketing Automation, Productivity

Never run out of content ideas again. This workflow transforms trending industry news into a week's worth of structured content ideas, automatically organized in your Notion workspace—all while you sleep.

Benefits

• Save 3+ hours weekly on content ideation and planning

• Stay relevant by automatically tracking trending topics in your industry

• Consistent publishing schedule with 7 ready-to-execute content ideas every Monday

• Structured output with title, format, target audience, and key points for each idea

• Flexible customization to match your content style and publishing cadence

How It Works

Every Monday at 9 AM, the workflow springs into action:

1. Gathers fresh content from multiple RSS feeds (TechCrunch, Ars Technica, MIT News by default)

2. Filters recent articles published in the last 7 days to ensure relevance

3. Analyzes trends by sending the top 20 articles to OpenAI

4. Generates 7 content ideas using structured output with strict JSON formatting

5. Distributes across the week from Monday to Friday with varied content types

6. Creates Notion pages automatically with all metadata ready for your workflow

Each generated idea includes:

• Clear, actionable title (max 80 characters)

• Content type (LinkedIn post, carousel, thread, video, etc.)

• Target audience segment

• Recommended publish day

• Key talking point to develop

The AI prompt is carefully engineered to produce practical, professional content ideas that balance trending topics with original angles—avoiding generic summaries.

Required Setup

RSS Feeds:

• Default feeds included: TechCrunch, Ars Technica, MIT Science & Tech

• Easily swap with your industry's top sources

• Duplicate nodes to add more feeds (no limit)

OpenAI API:

• Model: GPT-5-mini (latest generation, fast and cost-effective)

• Average cost: ~$0.01 per weekly execution

• Alternative: Use GPT-5 for even more creative ideas

Notion Database:

Create a database with these exact property names:

• Title (title type)

• Content Type (select or rich text)

• Target Audience (rich text)

• Publish Day (select: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday)

• Status (select: Draft, In Progress, Done)

• Key Points (rich text)

Configuration in Code Node:

Customize the filtering behavior by editing constants at the top:

• DAYS_BACK: How many days to look back (default: 7)

• MAX_ARTICLES: Maximum articles to send to AI (default: 20)

• SNIPPET_LENGTH: Preview length for descriptions (default: 150 chars)

Business Use Cases

Content Creators & Marketers:

• Generate LinkedIn content calendar based on industry trends

• Transform news into educational threads for Twitter/X

• Plan newsletter topics with current relevance

Agencies:

• Scale content planning across multiple client industries

• Maintain consistent posting schedules without manual research

• Demonstrate ROI by tracking trending topic engagement

Solo Founders & Thought Leaders:

• Stay top-of-mind by consistently sharing timely insights

• Reduce decision fatigue with pre-structured ideas

• Focus on execution instead of ideation

Content Teams:

• Coordinate multi-format campaigns (posts, videos, carousels)

• Distribute workload with clear assignments by day

• Track status from Draft → Done in one view

Set Up Steps

1. Import the workflow into your n8n instance

2. Configure RSS feeds:

• Click each RSS node

• Replace URLs with your industry's top sources

• Duplicate nodes for additional feeds (right-click → Duplicate)

1. Add OpenAI credentials:

• Click "Generate Content Calendar (Structured)" node

• Add your OpenAI API key

• Confirm model is set to gpt-5-mini

1. Create Notion database:

• Open Notion and create a new database

• Add the 6 required properties (see Required Setup above)

• Configure select options for Content Type and Status

1. Connect Notion:

• Click "Create Database Page in Notion" node

• Add your Notion credentials

• Select your content calendar database

• Verify field mappings match your property names

1. Customize filtering (optional):

• Open "Filter and Format Articles" code node

• Edit DAYS_BACK, MAX_ARTICLES, SNIPPET_LENGTH at the top

1. Test the workflow:

• Click "Execute Workflow" to run manually

• Verify 7 pages are created in Notion

• Check that fields are populated correctly

1. Enable the schedule:

• Toggle "Active" to enable weekly execution

• Confirm trigger is set to Mondays at 9 AM

Troubleshooting Tips:

• If no articles appear, check that RSS feeds are accessible

• If AI returns errors, verify your OpenAI API key has credits

• If Notion fails, ensure property names match exactly (case-sensitive)

• For field mapping issues, use "Add Field" in the Notion node

Difficulty Level: Intermediate

Estimated Setup Time: 20-30 minutes

Monthly Operating Cost: ~$0.10-$0.30 (OpenAI API at 4 runs/month)

Why This Template Stands Out

Unlike basic RSS-to-Notion workflows that just dump articles, this template:

• Analyzes and synthesizes trends into original content angles

• Structures output with strict validation for reliable automation

• Distributes strategically across the workweek

• Mixes content formats to maintain audience engagement

• Includes fallback handling if no recent articles are found

The code node is heavily documented with configuration constants, making it accessible even for non-developers to customize behavior without touching complex logic.