Do you ever wonder what to do with out-of-date blog posts? The majority of people appear to be primarily concerned with creating new content. Nevertheless, updating old content and refreshing current pages is another excellent technique for improving your site’s SEO and performance.
The reason for this is that producing high-quality content is difficult and time-consuming. So, if you have a small team or do everything yourself, competing with the big blogs out there is hard. If this is the case, re-optimizing your content may be a good option.
This post will show you how to optimize existing content for better rankings, conversions, and traffic. You’ll discover why updating information is a good idea and how to accomplish it step-by-step.
1. Examine the data and choose which content to update first.
The value of content depreciates over time. One of the most effective approaches is determining which content receives the most traffic. Use tools like Google Search Console, Google Analytics, and Ubersuggest to determine which content is performing well and which is not.
Select content that ranks well for the keyword being searched for and has the appropriate intent. Go to your Google Search Console to see the average search volume for your interesting keywords. Please keep track of your most popular articles and update them at least once a year.
2. Improve the usability of older content.
Helpful content provides information that readers can use immediately. Useful content addresses the reader’s needs, problems, and questions.
Add interactive elements to your content, such as:
- Survey
- Poll
- Quiz
- Assessment
- Calculator
- Video
- Slideshow
Include evidence such as facts, statistics, data, and expert quotes. Furthermore, make sure your formatting allows readers to digest your content by including more whitespace and visuals to break up the text. To help your readers connect to your call to action, you should simplify your content by removing fluff words, avoiding complex words, and using an active voice.
Check for broken links and update old screenshots and company logos once you’ve decided which articles to update. Include a paragraph or two mentioning newer tools and data.
Correct any grammatical or spelling errors.
We’re reading an old post from months ago and notice a horrible spelling error. Instead of ignoring it and hoping for the best, take the time to correct the mistakes.
Poor grammar and spelling have a negative impact on the user experience. That will be reflected in your rankings directly or indirectly.
Show Google that your content is up-to-date.
It’s no secret that Google appreciates new content. Recently published content ranks higher, especially for topics that change frequently.
So, if all you do is publish new content, you’re passing up a huge opportunity. Your old content will die slowly in the search engine rankings. Instead, you can bring that content back to life. In reality, updating your content is a simple way to get twice as many visitors.
Improve the precision of your content.
Every Google update is aimed at improving the user experience. With Google’s multiple algorithm changes and constant refining of their ranking factors, you will succeed if your site is designed to provide a great user experience. You can make your content more useful for your visitors by updating it with new or updated information. This adds context for the user, makes the piece more accurate, and increases the overall value of the article.
You can still use the same strategies if you don’t have a news site or a large enough audience to warrant a personal response from Google. To accomplish this, look for new and updated information about the topic of your article and include it.
3. Increase the thickness of the content.
If content constists of fewer than 300 words, it is of little to no worth. Make sure your content is comprehensive.
The general rule of thumb for content length and density is between 700 and several thousand words per page, depending on how complicated the topic is and what the goals are.
4. Repurpose Old Content Into Pillar Pages
Because of changes in how people use Google search, how you organize your content has changed. With the introduction of Google’s knowledge panels and featured snippets, searcher behavior is changing, paving the way for the rise of pinball searches.
Users do not always process search results sequentially because today’s search-results pages are complex. They move their gaze across the page more than they did previously. This means that content creators and SEO professionals must improve their ability to fill these gaps.
Companies are creating pillar pages to fill gaps. A pillar page covers a specific topic in depth. For example, if you have many SEO topics, you can combine your articles on on-page SEO, technical SEO, and off-page SEO into a single SEO pillar page. When you have a pillar page, you can link to other related blog posts from it.
Google is becoming more adept at determining searchers’ intent and the true meaning of a phrase. It is critical to think beyond combining letters and words. Google wants you to cover a specific range of topics. Find the phrases that are related to the main one. Answer as many questions as possible about that broader topic throughout your content.
5. Revise Calls to Action (CTAs).
As your content is outdated, the chances are that the calls to action you included in it are no longer relevant. More powerful words can be added when reviewing CTAs. These emotional words will persuade your readers to click on your CTAs.
Other recommendations for updating CTAs consist of including trust signals such as privacy assurances to give your readers a sense of security. It will help if you use language that speaks directly to your target audience and that your CTAs focus on key benefits rather than features of your offer.
Conclusion
Since the value of your content goes down over time, it is important to update old content so that search engines will crawl your website more often. These aspects can help you:
- Examine the data and choose which content to update first.
- Make older content more useful.
- Combine old content into pillar pages to beef up thin content.
- Calls to action should be updated (CTAs).
Recognize that some of your content will fail. Optimize the content that didn’t perform well to give it a second chance. Contenist.com is available whenever you require assistance in enhancing previously published content. Don’t be hesitant to get in touch with us!