Evergreen content is the type of video, article, infographic, or other content that continues to be relevant over the long term. Compared to breaking news or articles about recent trends, evergreen content typically addresses problems or questions that never dissipate.
Evergreen content is a valuable part of your marketing strategy, specifically for search engine optimization (SEO). Let's take a deeper look at what evergreen content is, how to use it, and some of its key benefits.
What are some types of evergreen content?
Evergreen content is defined by its timelessness. Therefore, any type of content can be evergreen, as long as you craft it well. Listicles, tips, how-to content, and product reviews are common formats of evergreen content. However, you can make any content evergreen with the right approach.
"Writing about the newest iPhone would be an example of content that's not evergreen because that blog post won't be relevant to readers in a year or two," wrote Mailchimp. "If you wanted to turn that into evergreen content, you could focus on smartphones as a whole or offer tips on saving battery life with any type of phone. The goal is to create content that provides value to readers whether they're reading it a week, a year, or a decade after it's written."
To make content evergreen, use keywords that have consistently high search volume. Many free keyword research tools can help you find the most common search terms for a specific topic, like Ahrefs Keyword Generator, Semrush Keyword Magic Tool, Moz Keyword Explorer, and Google Trends. Those keywords should give you some ideas for topics that are timeless, such as answers to frequently asked questions or glossaries of industry terms.
Avoid topics that have jargon or slang in the keywords, since that language can quickly become out of date or irrelevant. Likewise, evergreen content should be time-agnostic, so avoid discussing dates or specific events, such as an election period.
To make content evergreen, use keywords that have consistently high search volume. Many free keyword research tools can help you find the most common search terms for a specific topic.
What are the benefits of evergreen content?
Evergreen content can deliver a consistent stream of traffic, leads, and potential sales.
"You can use it as part of your social media marketing strategy, allowing you to reuse content over and over again that remains relevant to your followers," wrote Mailchimp. "You can also use it as part of your email marketing strategies to help you engage and attract new customers."
Successful evergreen content can also form the backbone of your SEO strategy. Evergreen content often becomes what experts call "link bait." Link bait attracts backlinks, or links from other websites to your site. These backlinks boost your site in search results and help build your authority in your industry.
[Read more: 9 Free SEO Tools for Your Business]
Evergreen content can help others find your content, which leads them deeper into your site and hopefully into your sales funnel. The content itself helps position your brand as an authority, thought leader, and trustworthy business. That trust is vital for convincing a new customer to buy your product or service.
Best practices for using evergreen content
Evergreen content is just one component of your overall marketing strategy. While it offers many advantages, not all of your content should be evergreen.
"Timely and topical pieces are also important. These pieces are perfect for short-term marketing campaigns when you want to drive a lot of traffic and leads in a small amount of time," wrote the Digital Marketing Institute. "The best content marketing strategy includes a mix of long-lasting evergreen posts and more topical articles."
It's also worth noting that evergreen content needs to be updated semiregularly.
"No matter how evergreen your content is when you first publish it, stuff WILL get out of date," wrote Brian Dean, an SEO expert at Backlinko. "I audit every post on my blog at least once or twice per year. And I'll give high-priority posts a small update every quarter."
Since SEO best practices also change from time to time, it's worth revisiting your evergreen content to make sure your keywords are still relevant.
[Read more: How to Build a Small Business Content Strategy]
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