Do I Need to Update Blog Articles That Have Already Been Posted?
Writing a blog is no easy feat as it takes a lot of time and attention. Fortunately, all that work pays off when it’s done right. You can position yourself as an expert in your niche and boost SEO, ensuring that more people visit your website.
Because a blog can be so time consuming, most people move on after each post. The trouble is, what was new can quickly become old. Does it matter if you have old articles on your website that haven’t been updated?
The Bad News—Old Articles Should Be Updated
Just when you thought you could post some articles and move on! The truth is, a great blog and visitor-friendly website regularly updates old articles. Think about it. Other things in your life get old and need to be replaced. You most likely updated your VCR and replaced it with a DVD player. Updating to the latest trends is the whole reason why we head out and snatch up the latest fashions. It makes sense that other areas of your life may need to be updated too.
It’s important to update old content because you never know who might stumble upon your blog. Chances are, they will be directed to an existing article and that article could be months or years old. They could be reading inaccurate information and not even know it or they could stumble upon content that is no longer relevant. It’s worth the extra time to update old articles.
The Good News—Updating Articles Is Easy
Now that you know old articles should be updated, you’re probably worried about how much work it’s going to take. After all, you probably spent a good chunk of time writing that article in the first place. You don’t want to spend the time to rewrite it all over again!
Fortunately, updating articles is a lot easier than you think. Here are a few tips:
- Republish the same article with the updated information. It’ll not only save you time but it’ll also keep you from suffering the wrath of Google for duplicate content.
- Keep the URL the same. This ensures visitors are directed to the location of the original article.
- Keep the keywords the same. If your article gets traffic, it’s important to keep the keywords the same. You can even keep the title the same if you want.
- Add an editor’s note so that visitors know the content has been updated. This is especially important if there are comments from the old article that are dated before the new post.
What Should I Update?
Your updates can be as minor or extensive as you want. Here are a few ideas:
- Replace outdated content with new content
- Completely eliminate outdated content
- Update statistics · Check and replace internal links
- Update the post’s call-to-action
The best part is, you can republish the article and share it with readers as if it was newly written! If you’re looking to provide your content with a bit of a facelift, give us a call. We can dig through your content, getting rid of the old and making way for the new.
