Revitalize your content: why and how you should refresh it

In today’s fast-paced digital world, it is easy to get caught up in constantly creating new content and discovering new keyword opportunities in order to maintain your audience. However, along with generating new content, it is equally important to remember about your existing content – a goldmine that you can tap into and build upon. Regularly updating and refreshing your previous content not only keeps it current and accurate but can also lead to increased traffic and engagement. Neglecting your existing content is like leaving potential customers on the table – why not tap into this valuable resource and uncover its full potential?

Why refresh your existing content?

Enhance user experience

As content gets older, its usefulness diminishes and, in some cases, such content may even become detrimental. Even more, evergreen content eventually faces this challenge too. So when visitors come to your website, they want to see fresh and relevant information. Updating your outdated content can provide them with the latest knowledge, keeping them engaged and reducing the bounce rate.

Revive lost rankings

Google tends to favor websites that are regularly updated, rather than websites that have old and outdated content. When you update your existing content, Google will recognize that your website is actively maintained, which can result in better rankings. Additionally, you can optimize your updated content for relevant keywords, which can further boost your website’s search engine rankings.

Improve click-through rate

If your content is outdated, it’s likely that your click-through rate will suffer. By updating your content and making it more relevant and engaging, you can attract more clicks and increase traffic to your website. You can also add internal links to your updated content, which can lead to increased pageviews and more time spent on your website.

What content should be refreshed?

Content that is losing organic traffic

Your website may have content that used to receive a lot of traffic, but now the traffic is slowly diminishing. This is where updating content comes in. The first step is to identify the content that is losing the most organic traffic and figure out why it is happening. The easiest way to determine the pages that are losing organic traffic is via Google Search Console.

Pages with a good ranking potential

It’s quite possible that you have pages that are not optimized correctly but are still ranking relatively high on search results. Such pages are a valuable candidate for updating content as they have a good potential. The extent of that potential can be assessed through the following factors:

• Existing rankings. Pages that currently rank within the range of 6 to 15 have good chances to achieve higher rankings when content is enhanced and additional internal links pointing to those pages are included.
• Backlink profile. Pages that have established a robust and organic backlink profile but fail to generate any traffic are worth attention. In most instances, the issue stems from a lack of searchable keywords targeted by these pages.

Seasonal Content

When a new season is approaching, updating your existing seasonal content provides greater opportunities to rank for relevant search queries than creating new pages dedicated to that season because your existing URLs may have already accumulated external backlinks. By refreshing the content and featuring it prominently on your blog’s homepage, you can leverage the existing links.

How do you properly update your content?

Analyze competing URLs

Before you start updating your content, it’s important to know what your competitors are doing. Analyzing competing URLs can help you see what keywords they’re targeting, what topics they’re covering, and why they’ve been gaining rankings that you have been losing. You can use tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush to get a better sense of your competitors. Once you have a better understanding of what’s working for your competitors, you can create a strategy for updating your own content.

Determine new rich snippet opportunities

Rich snippets are a great way to increase your visibility on search engines. Rich snippets can appear in search results, showing additional information about your content. In order to create rich snippets, you need to use schema markup. Determine what rich snippet opportunities are relevant to your content and implement schema markup to increase your visibility in search engines.

Find fresh and relevant keywords to expand content

Finding new, relevant keywords can help you expand your content and attract new traffic to your website. You can use tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush to find new keywords. Make sure to use long-tail keywords; they are more specific and can help you attract visitors who are looking for exactly what you’re offering.

Update or add new screenshots and videos

Updating your screenshots and videos can help you improve the visual appeal of your content. Make sure your screenshots are up to date and high quality. If you don’t have any screenshots, consider adding them. Screenshots can help break up long blocks of text and make your content easier to read. Videos are another great way to improve your content. Add captions and transcripts to make your videos more accessible to all users.

Update such data like stats, dates, etc.

You don’t want your visitors to stumble upon an article from three years ago and think it’s current. Keep such information fresh and relevant by updating it regularly.

Refresh your forms and CTAs

Forms and CTAs are essential for capturing leads and nurturing relationships with potential customers. Are you offering a new product or service? Make sure your forms and CTAs reflect that. Keep your CTAs clear and concise. Use action-oriented language to encourage visitors to take action.

Republish with a new date to highlight your refreshed article

Finally, consider republishing your updated content with a new date. When you republish your content, make sure you update the publish date and add a brief note explaining that the content has been updated. Alternatively, you can add an “update” section at the beginning or end of your article to show your readers what’s new.

How often should you refresh your content?

The answer to this question may vary depending on various factors, such as the age of your website, the amount of old content it contains, and how quickly your niche changes. It’s recommended to follow the 25% rule by adding an update of existing content to every four new articles published. This is a great rule to help keep your website organized and continuously offer your audience something new and exciting.

Recap

When it comes to content refreshes, the key is to always think of what extra value you can bring to your users. By keeping up-to-date with your content and technology trends, you are giving yourself the best chance for success. Though refreshing content takes some time and effort, it can be made easier when broken down into smaller tasks and tackled regularly over time. Content refreshing is an important part of staying competitive, so utilize it to get the best out of your content!