Having Trouble Updating Content? Remember the 3 R’s
Much of content work is content creation. Putting out new content is an effective way to display thought leadership by giving your take on trends relevant to your organization’s interests. But there’s more to content than content creation, and best practice involves updating content, reworking older material to reflect the latest developments.
Don’t just create new content for the sake of it—be intentional. Before embarking on a fresh project, it’s worth looking at posts, pages, and articles which you have already created. Especially if you’ve been putting out new content regularly for some time, you may have already done much of the heavy lifting in a previous piece. If so, consider how to refresh or rework this older material.
A well-written piece of content isn’t just a one-off affair. It’s a long term investment which can help your brand for years to come. When updating content, remember the three R's—Refresh, Repurpose, Review—and you will stay in good shape.
Refresh
Content refreshing is the practice of revisiting your published content assets to keep them accurate and relevant.
This is a key and overlooked practice. More often than not, there is no need to reinvent the wheel. Look at what content you already have published, and give it a fresh spin.
Be forensic in your analysis. On the quantitative end, have a good handle on how the piece is performing from an SEO perspective. On the qualitative end, reread the piece to see how its message has aged, and whether addressing recent industry developments might help strengthen your piece.
The key to updating content is to be methodical and strategic. Here are some things to look for when refreshing your piece.
For editorial content, do you want to add copy or is it better to chunk down? Are there sections which have become moot and should be removed, or is a new section necessary to address some recent industry development?
What changes can you make to its structure to better convey the original message? If you’re adding new material, is it worth expanding an existing section, adding a new section, or splitting an existing section in two?
Details matter. Check any links in the piece, and replace them if they’re dead or if they lead to outdated articles. Make sure any stats, graphs, and facts all reflect the most recent information available.
A picture is worth a thousand words. If applicable, add some visuals to break up text and make your piece more readily digestible.
At the heart of content review is the principle of continuous editing. Always be removing or adjusting copy, deepening and adding perspectives where needed. The more you edit, the stronger and richer your overall content will be.
“Update time sensitive references, add in fresh research or perspectives, and reconsider the piece’s look and feel. What doesn’t look so sharp in retrospect?”
Repurpose
When updating content, you should also consider updating the context in which it appears. Content repurposing is a critical method in any company's content playbook. Not to repurpose is to miss the point of content. Invest in your content, and it will be a gift which keeps on giving.
Think of your existing content as assets. Each article or video or infographic represents an investment. What can you do not only to keep each asset contemporary and relevant, but to use it as the basis for related material? With some creativity, your assets can be crucial building blocks to repurpose in future projects.
The content repurposing playbook is deep and varied but some quick examples illustrate the point:
A series of blog posts can be the basis for an e-book or even a print book if you really want to solidify the message. Much of the work is already done, and what’s needed is just a collective refresh making sure that the posts complement one another in presenting a narrative.
An infographic containing a series of smaller visuals can be separated out for display across your site as well as social and email channels. Think about how these assets can be used in LinkedIn posts, or used to add visual flair to written pieces.
Footage from a corporate promo can be used in related videos. Every video shoot your team undertakes should be planned as the basis for as many different video assets as possible.
“Content repurposing is a critical method in any company’s content strategy playbook. Not to repurpose is to miss the point of content.”
Review
Content review or content gap analysis is the practice of identifying those subject areas that your target audience will find of interest but your content doesn't yet address.
Use keyword research tools to isolate topics that your target audience are searching for with low content supply in that area, or where it is possible to create highly-differentiated content.
Look at your own analytics to see which content items performed most strongly in terms of visits, time on site, and bounce rate. What keywords drew these visitors in, or how else did they discover this content? Research fresh content in this area, with new information and a smart twist that will help meet the demand for this topic.
Keep an eye on industry discussions, and decide when and how to cover them. Have an opinion, or at least a slant, on the topic you are covering. It positions your content and defines your message.
Be constantly reviewing your content assets to ensure you are leading industry discussion across search, social, and email on the areas of importance to you. Pick one or two subjects for sustained treatment. Conferences and webinars are a great source for original reporting. Become synonymous with the topic, and aim to cover it in depth over time.
The three R's may sound like additional work on top of an already hectic schedule. However, applied correctly while updating content, they will save you time and headache and let you deliver your clients and prospects a richer and more interconnected content experience at your hands.
“Keep an eye on industry discussions, and decide when and how to cover them. Have an opinion, or at least a slant, on the topic you are covering.”