You’re here because you want to know how to increase blog traffic—and you’re in the right place.
At BlogWorks, we love seeing results, especially fast ones. And we especially love seeing client results using one of our favorite techniques: re-loving old posts.
The idea is simple… If you’ve been blogging for some time, search engines have already indexed your posts.
In other words, Google has evaluated and ranked each of your posts compared to similar content online. This is why some posts may appear on the first page of search results while others are buried on the 13th page.
Updating old content can fix that.
Let’s start with why updating old posts works.
Why You Need to Update Old Content to Increase Blog Traffic
Updating old content to increase blog traffic works best if you’ve published at least two dozen blog posts. This post explains in detail how to use this strategy.
In the meantime, here are the most important reasons why we love this strategy.
If you want to get started right away, book a call today to learn if this can work for your business.
1. Better click-through rates
When you update that old content, you improve your click-through rate—the number of people who click on your article—simply because the date is more current.
A more current publish date tells readers the material is relevant and current, increasing their likelihood of choosing your link over more outdated ones.
Your search engine ranking may also benefit from this rise in clicks, generating a loop of better exposure and interaction.
2. Google likes fresh content
One of the many factors Google looks for in posts is how fresh your content is.
With that in mind, you will also update the publish date when you update your old posts. More recent equals more results.
Your material will remain relevant from Google’s perspective if you routinely update your postings with relevant details, fresh ideas, or even formatting changes.
Regular updates let the algorithm know your site is still up and running and that you’re routinely checking your content for accuracy and value.
3. Improve your title
Your post title tells readers what the article is about, but it should also attract and intrigue them enough to want to read it.
Now is the time to turn that boring headline into a killer question or use any of the five techniques described in this article.
According to Convince and Convert a great title is clear (what will I get if I read this?) but intrigues the reader to dive in.
Remember, you are competing with everything else on their phone or laptop – you must get and keep their attention!
4. Link to “revenue” pages
Here’s a quick test: in the first third of your article, do you post a link to at least one “revenue” page, like a product or service page?
When you update the old post, also update internal links to your site. A good rule of thumb is to include between one and five internal links per thousand words.
5. One less article to post
Updating an old post takes a fraction of the time to write a new one. Many clients combine one new article (we also do that!) with one updated article each month.
Now that we’ve looked at the reasons we love blog repubs, let’s look at an example of how one BlogWorks client used this strategy.
The Speaker Exchange
Like many small business owners, Brittanny and Julie at The Speaker Exchange were aware of the value of content marketing but needed an outsourced solution.
They had been using newsletters to stay in touch with their audience.
They reached out to BlogWorks for a solution.
The goal was to create consistent inbound traffic using original blog posts targeted to the event planner audience. At BlogWorks, we have a team of local writers, each with their own specialties.
We write blog posts for various wonderful clients, from leadership authors and public speakers to cybersecurity experts.
In this case, we have writers who know the speaking industry.
How to Increase Blog Traffic: The BlogWorks Solution
Our solution was to write one original post, update one older post every month, and promote the blog through social media.
In the first 90 days, site traffic was up almost 30%!
Even better, sessions and page views both grew by over 20%. More consistent blog publishing was part of the solution.
Still, the biggest results were from updating old content with better keywords, headlines, and content. The client example we shared in this post could be yours!
Contact us today to learn how to increase your blog traffic by updating old posts.
Liked this post? Got another five minutes?
Here are three more of our most popular posts all about writing blogs:
- How To Start A Blog Post – 5 Examples That Really Work!
- 5 Brilliant Ways To Start Your Blog Post With A Bang
- 9 Blog Topic Ideas Your Audience Will Love