Content Decay
Natural degradation of search ranking over time
The Fix- Content Refresh
Which Content to Refresh
Google Analytics
- Go to landing page report in Google Analytics
- Look at only organic traffic
- Set date range (6 months over previous 6 months)
- Look for posts which have lost traffic over that time Note: session loss != ranking lost
Google Search Console
- Filter search console to property
- Filter pages to your blog
- Set date range to compare 6 months to previous 6
- Export CSV
- Calculate position difference to find lost rankings
Prioritize
- By conversion rate
- Can sort in GA
- Trending topics
Process
- Export and filter for ranking keywords for the target page
- See who is ranking for those keywords
- See if there are consolidation opportunities
- Filter by query in search console
- See if there are multiple posts vying for the same keyword
- Look for opportunities for internal linking
- Search on your site for the keyword
- Link back to the page you’re refreshing
- Audit existing internal links
- Make sure links are not broken and not being redirected
- Ask, “What will give us a competitive advantage?”
- Do research with survey software
- Include original expert quotes
While you’re in there…
Look for search engine results page enhancements.- add appropriate schemas
- add jump-to on-page links
- test with Google’s rich results test
- Make sure there’s a call to action
- Include CTA
- Write clear compelling messaging
- Try multiple placements
- Be mindful of funnel stage
- Make offer relevant
- Iterate
- May see quick gains after a refresh
- Site gains may not show gains
- Content must be maintained