Things must be updated on a regular basis. Content could also become outdated and require updating with new information. As technology advances and trends change, keeping information up to date is critical.
Refreshing old blogs can help you increase readership and extend the life of your content, saving you money and time when compared to creating new blogs. In this post, we will discuss how to update old blog posts to boost organic traffic and clicks.
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Why to update old blog posts?
Old content can raise your bounce rate and harm your SEO. As such, it is important to regularly review and update the content on your website in order to keep it relevant and engaging. By updating your content on a regular basis, you not only increase your chances of being discovered by search engines but also entice readers to read your posts.
Redesigning your website’s content allows you to optimize it for the best possible results. Additionally, when you update your content, you have the opportunity to include keywords and phrases that will boost your ranking in search engine results. Some of the benefits of updating your content are:
- Google prioritizes content relevancy and value it generates to the user. Updating your old posts signals Google the freshness of the content leading to high ranking on Google SERPs.
- New content invites more clicks and conversion rates.
- You can obtain all the benefits of writing a brand new post by revamping an old blog post.
- Quality standards have been improved because the updated post has in-depth information.
How to select the posts to update?
Identify the under performing posts: Analyse the inbound links, traffic, number of social shares, and top ranking keywords. Find the posts that rank low for the primary keyword. You can identify those posts using the Google Search Console. On the Google Search Console page, select the Search Results report, toggle the average ranking selector, and then filter the report for keywords with an average ranking position of four or higher. It is recommended to republish posts that are at least twelve months old.
Analyse the backlink factors: Page content is not always the cause of your posts’ failure to rank. Competitors who outrank your site may have high-quality backlinks and link authority. As a result, when republishing content, it is critical to consider the backlink factors that may be influencing its ranking.
Ensure that it is an informational query: If product, category, or landing pages are surpassing your site, then it is possible that searchers aren’t looking for blog posts. In such cases, we could not outrank them just by updating the old posts, as visitors here are not looking for blog posts but tools.
Ensure that your blog post matches the search intent: Here, two factors play an important role. Content format and content angle are two examples. The most common formats that have a high chance of ranking include tutorials, list posts, guides, opinion editorials, and so on. The content angle is the selling point of your post and indicates catching the readers’ attention. Beginner’s guides, complete guides, and top lists are the most common content angles. Our suggestion is to go for a complete guide angle if you are updating old posts, as it will cater to a broad audience.
Evaluate your top ranking posts and your backlink profile: Next, point is to evaluate the top performing pages and review its structure, readability and headings. Before updating your post, it’s best to check its backlink profile to see how it earned its existing links. This is required to ensure that the existing links stay contextually relevant and attract more links in the near future. This evaluation of the top posts and backlinks will allow you to identify opportunities to improve, such as increasing readability or rewriting headings.
Top practices for updating old blog posts
Edit the existing post: Instead of publishing a new blog post, it is better to modify and edit the original post. Also, keep the URL consistent. Editing an existing post is not only more time-efficient than creating a new post, but it also ensures the original content remains relevant.
Avoid altering the keywords in the Title: If you are updating the page title, make sure to keep the keywords the same. Changing the keywords could affect your SEO rankings and also make it more difficult for people to find your post.
Add a subnote: At the end of the post, it’s best to mention the original date of publication with a note that the post has been updated for accuracy and relevancy. This is a good way to let readers know that the content has been updated and remains current.
Check the content for accuracy: Keep an eye on the accuracy of the content. Remove any content that is no longer relevant. Replace old texts and data with newer information. It is critical to replace old screenshots with new ones. Check and update internal links and call-to-actions as well.
Review the meta description: The meta description has no effect on post ranking in Google search results, but it does have an effect on post click-through rates. Ensure that the description captures the essence of everything in the posts while also engaging the readers.
Analyse the metrics: It is best to track the post’s performance before and after updating it after publishing it with the updated date and time. Data, statistics, and studies should not be more than three years old, according to a good rule of thumb. You can view metrics for the post’s URL, title, number of comments, number of inbound links, post views, number of comments, and so on.
To rank higher in search results, you must update your content on a regular basis. Updating old blog posts is a great way to increase traffic and improve readability. Having fresh and relevant content on your website is the key to improving your rankings.
Although search traffic should not be the only reason for a blog post to be updated, the emphasis should always be on content accuracy and relevance. Furthermore, updating a post should be based on the quality of content and its relevance to current topics.