Would You Trust a Blog Post From 2018?

Hi reader,

Recently, my team and I started a very not-glamorous-but-necessary project: auditing and cleaning up the 400+ blog posts on Vervology’s website.

I’ll admit, this is something I’m always preaching to clients, but I hadn’t made it a priority myself.

You always hear me talk about how important it is to add new content to your website is…but what doesn’t get talked about enough is updating the existing content.

Today’s advice

Don’t let outdated content drag down your website.

Old content can quietly kill your search rankings and your credibility.

You don’t need to have hundreds of blog posts for this to apply to you. Content means everything from your service pages to FAQs, bios, landing pages…anything on your site that a visitor might read or that Google might index.

I usually recommend updating anything that’s 2+ years old. At that point, there’s a good chance something’s changed. Your services are probably different, the stats or examples might be out of date, and there might be broken links. All of these things chip away at your website’s performance.

Don’t worry, this doesn’t mean you need to completely rewrite everything. A lot of times, it’s just a matter of making a few small edits, refreshing some language, swapping in a newer data point, or updating the publish date so Google knows it’s current. 

Really, it’s about remembering to treat your website like the living, breathing entity that it is.

Why this matters

It gives search engines a reason to keep ranking your site.

Google’s goal is to show users the most helpful info available. So if certain pages of your website haven’t been touched in years, they’re going to gradually start to lose favor in the algorithm.

Updating existing content basically signals to Google that your site is active and relevant. And when that happens, Google is much more likely to show your website in results.

Here’s some data to back it up: marketer Neil Patel shared a case study where he updated a few of his older blog posts (just by refreshing the content and improving formatting) and saw a 96% increase in clicks over five months. 

Just think about what that kind of increase could mean for your business.

It shows visitors that your business is current and credible.

People make judgements about your business from the second they land on your page. If someone spots a stat from 2018 or a reference to a service you no longer offer, it immediately creates doubt.

That tiny moment of hesitation is often all it takes for someone to leave your site and move on to a competitor.

On the flip side, when your content feels current and looks like it’s been maintained, it sends the message that you know what you’re doing. People are more likely to trust what you say and take the next step.

Here’s how to start

Find 1-2 older pages on your website to update.

If you’re not sure where to begin, open up Google Search Console and go to the ‘Performance’ report. Look for pages that are still getting impressions or clicks but haven’t been touched in a year or two. 

Once you’ve picked your pages, read through them. Ask yourself:

• Is the information still accurate/ relevant?

• Do all of the links still work?

• Does this reflect how I still talk about my business today?

Make any edits that are needed, then update the publish date so search engines know it’s fresh.

If you give this a try, let me know how it goes. I’d love to hear what page you tackle first.

Best,

Jono