If you’ve consistently produced content over the past several years, you probably have some content that doesn’t get as much traffic or attention as it used to. Often, this content is useful, informative, and high-quality, but it doesn’t get the interest that it deserves. You may be wondering if you should retire this content, or if it still has value. Let’s take a look at a few ways to refresh old content, get more value out of it, and what to look for to find content that deserves a refresh.
Why Refresh Old Content?
First, why bother to refresh old content at all? Of course, not all content will benefit from a refresh; some content should simply be retired. We’ll discuss this more in the next section. However, there are several compelling reasons to refresh old content in many cases.
– Save time: The first reason to update your content is a no-brainer; it’s faster and easier to update your existing content rather than produce new content.
– Make site updates: Keeping your site regularly updated can impact your SEO significantly. Regular updates indicate to Google that your site isn’t stagnating, and that you’re staying current.
– More value: Adding to and updating your content can improve it, and help you get more value out of it.
– Keep SEO value: If you update your content instead of replacing it, you can maintain the original SEO value of the page. Backlinks, for example, are important for SEO, and you can keep the backlink profile of the page as long as the URL remains the same.
Which Content Should You Refresh?
As previously mentioned, not all content is a good fit for a content refresh. If you’re wondering which content you should refresh and which you should retire, consider these aspects.
– Previously valuable: At some point, did the content provide value to your customers, clients, users, or employees? If the content missed the mark to begin with, it might not make sense to update it. However, if the content previously generated traffic and conversions, but it’s become ineffectual, an update can help.
– Accurate and correct: If the content overall is misleading, or the information in it is no longer accurate or relevant, considering retiring it. However, if a few elements can be updated, it can still provide value to your customers or web visitors.
– Accessible: Content can refer to almost anything, from blog posts to web pages to guides to videos, infographics, images, and much more. However, some types of content are more accessible and useful than others. For example, physical copies of a book or brochure are ideal for in-person interactions, but they can be difficult to translate into a digital format. If it’s especially time-consuming or difficult to update the content in its current form, it might not be a good candidate for updating.
Conduct a Content Audit
It can be difficult to determine what content you should refresh. Before diving into updates, conduct a thorough content audit. Identify pieces that have potential, but need a facelift. Look for evergreen topics or content that can be repurposed in different formats.
Use tools like Google Analytics to take a closer look at your high-performing pages. Look at previous years, or examine longer histories, so you can see which pages performed well in the past, but might not perform well now.
12 Ways to Refresh Old Content
1. Update Information and Statistics
One of the first and best ways to refresh old content is to ensure your content is current by updating outdated information and statistics. This not only maintains accuracy, but also signals to search engines that your content is fresh and relevant.
2. Reformat and Update
Take a look at the formatting of the content. If you’ve made changes to your website or tech stack, your content might not look nice and neat. Whether you’re refreshing text-based or video content, it’s important to test the content on different devices. Enhance the formatting, break up long paragraphs, and add subheadings to improve the overall readability.
3. Optimize for SEO
SEO is an important element of your content. Informative, helpful content that isn’t well-organized or easy for search engines to read will probably be overlooked. Take a second look at your old content’s SEO. Update keywords, meta descriptions, and headers. Incorporate long-tail keywords to align with current search trends.
4. Revise and Expand
Give your old blog posts a makeover by revising and expanding on the existing content. Add new insights, elaborate on concepts, and include recent developments to make it more comprehensive.
If you’re not sure what to add to your content, consider searching for your content as your target audience might. Take a look at the competing content that you find; what topics do your competitors cover, or what insights do they provide? Can you add this to your content as well?
5. Repurpose Across Platforms
There are many ways to repurpose your content and move it to other formats and platforms. For example, you could use some of the text in your blog post in a podcast, video, or infographic. Or, you might add your videos to relevant blog posts or landing pages. These elements can also be transformed into social media posts. This not only broadens your audience but also breathes new life into the material.
6. Create Follow-Up Content
For content that still holds relevance, consider creating follow-up pieces. Provide updates, share additional tips, or explore the topic from a different angle. This keeps your audience engaged and informed. You can also link between these pages, so they’re easier to find.
7. Enhance Visuals and Media
Visuals play a crucial role in content engagement. If your written content doesn’t have any images or videos, add some. Or, if your existing images don’t add much to the content, consider adding an infographic or adding a relevant video. A visually appealing piece is more likely to capture and retain your audience’s attention.
8. Implement User Feedback
If your audience has provided feedback or asked questions, use this valuable information to improve your content. If you’ve seen relevant questions asked on forums like Reddit or Quora, consider how you could address these questions and provide an answer. This can also give you an opportunity to link to your page. Addressing user suggestions not only enhances the quality of the content, but also fosters a connection with your audience.
9. Cross-Link Content
As previously mentioned, links play an important part in SEO. Examining your links can help you refresh your content and make it easier to find. You can strengthen your content ecosystem by cross-linking between related pieces. Guide your audience to other relevant articles, increasing their time on your site and improving SEO.
10. Update Links
Your internal links are those that connect pages on your own site. External links go to other sites. Some content creators hesitate to use external links, because they don’t want their audience to click away from their site. However, external links can show where your information is coming from, and whether or not it’s reliable. Check your external links and insert links to more recent, relevant, or reliable content on your site. This can improve SEO and keep readers engaged.
11. Update Video Descriptions
If you’re updating videos, take a second look at your video descriptions and transcripts. Revise video descriptions to include the latest information or links to related content. Take a look at best practices for video SEO, and make updates so users can find your videos more easily.
12. Promote Your Refreshed Content
Once you’ve revamped your content, don’t forget to promote it. Share it across your social media channels, include it in newsletters, and consider paid promotion to give it the visibility it deserves.
By breathing new life into your old content, you not only cater to your existing audience but also attract new readers. Keep your content strategy dynamic by regularly assessing and refreshing your valuable archives. Your evergreen content has the potential to continue providing value—it just needs the right touch to shine once again.