In the forest of content marketing, keeping your audience engaged and interested can be a challenging task. One strategy that has proven effective time and time again is the creation of evergreen content—content that consistently flourishes, season after season.
What Is Evergreen Content?
In the vast expanse of content creation, evergreen content stands as a beacon of timelessness, shining bright amidst the fleeting, ephemeral articles that come and go with the ebb and flow of trends and current events.
But what is it that gives evergreen content its unwavering, enduring appeal?
Evergreen content, as the name suggests, is akin to the evergreen trees that maintain their vibrant foliage throughout the year, defying the ravages of time and the elements.
Think of an article like say, SEO 101: A Comprehensive Beginners’ Guide or A Complete History of Google Algorithm Updates vs The #BeanDad Twitter Drama Explained: Everything You Need to Know.
The first is high-quality, timeless material that remains informative and useful regardless of when it was originally published. The second was never informative or useful, but you get the idea.
(Our article on The Complete History of Google Algorithm Updates is evergreen in the sense that it will always be relevant—though it will require more frequent updates than say, a how-to guide for how to install a baseboard heater.)
Unlike time-sensitive pieces that lose their value after a specific event or trend has passed, evergreen content continues to attract readers, drive traffic, and generate leads—saving your site’s content from the perils of irrelevance.
Evergreen content is the dependable workhorse of your content strategy, the wise old oak tree that keeps on giving—the content marketing equivalent of a classic “little black dress” that never goes out of style. (So I’m told.) No matter how many years pass or how many trends rise and fall, evergreen content is always there, ready to be your brand’s rock; your digital anchor in the stormy seas of the internet.
In other words, it’s really good for your SEO.
Why Should You Post Evergreen Content?
There are several reasons why evergreen content is essential for a successful content marketing strategy:
- Consistent traffic: As evergreen content stays relevant, it continues to attract new readers and generate organic traffic to your website, even months or years after its initial publication.
- Improved search engine ranking: Search engines, such as Google, reward high-quality, relevant content with better rankings. By producing evergreen content, your website is more likely to rank higher in search results, driving additional traffic to your site.
- Increased brand authority: By providing valuable information that remains useful over time, you establish your brand as an authority in your industry. This can lead to increased trust and loyalty from your audience, ultimately resulting in higher conversion rates.
- Reduced content production burden: While it’s essential to keep your content fresh and updated, evergreen content reduces the pressure to consistently produce new material, as it remains valuable for an extended period.
How to Create & Maintain Evergreen Content
- Choose timeless topics: Focus on subjects that will remain relevant over time. Consider the problems and questions your target audience frequently encounters, and create content that addresses these issues.
- Prioritize quality over quantity: Invest time and effort in producing well-researched, comprehensive, and engaging content. Your goal should be to create a piece that serves as a valuable resource for your audience.
- Update and refresh content: Monitor your evergreen content to ensure it stays current and accurate. Update statistics, facts, and links as needed to maintain its value and relevance.
- Optimize for SEO: Use keyword research tools to identify relevant keywords and incorporate them into your content. This will help improve your search engine rankings and drive more organic traffic to your site.
- Promote and repurpose: Share your evergreen content across various platforms and repurpose it into different formats, such as infographics, videos, or podcasts, to reach a wider audience.
15 Examples of Evergreen Content
- How-to guides: Create comprehensive, step-by-step guides that teach your audience how to accomplish a specific task or goal.
- Listicles: Compile a list of valuable tips, tools, or resources that cater to your target audience’s needs.
- Case studies: Share real-life examples or success stories that demonstrate the effectiveness of a product, service, or strategy in your industry.
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): Compile a list of common questions and provide detailed, helpful answers to address your audience’s concerns.
- “Ultimate” guides: Produce in-depth, comprehensive guides on a specific topic that offer valuable insights and serve as a one-stop resource for your audience.
- Expert interviews: Conduct interviews with industry experts, thought leaders, or influencers, and share their insights, tips, and experiences to provide valuable knowledge to your audience.
- Glossaries: Create a comprehensive glossary of essential terms, jargon, or acronyms in your industry to serve as a reference guide for your audience.
- Beginner’s guides: Develop easy-to-understand introductory guides for newcomers to your industry or niche, covering essential topics and concepts.
- Checklists: Design practical checklists that help your audience navigate processes or tasks more efficiently, ensuring they don’t miss any crucial steps.
- Top tips: Share tried-and-true advice, best practices, or industry secrets that help your audience achieve better results in their personal or professional lives.
- Evergreen webinars: Host webinars that cover timeless topics, and make them available for on-demand viewing to continually educate and engage your audience.
- Templates: Provide downloadable templates, worksheets, or forms that simplify complex tasks, streamline processes, or aid in planning and organization.
- Resource roundups: Curate a collection of useful articles, tools, or resources from around the web, offering a comprehensive resource for your audience on a specific topic.
- Historical overviews: Write detailed articles covering the history and evolution of your industry, highlighting key milestones, developments, and trends.
- Opinion pieces: Share thought-provoking, well-argued opinions or perspectives on evergreen topics that encourage discussion and reflection among your audience.
Final Thoughts
Evergreen content is an indispensable asset in any content marketing strategy. By focusing on timeless topics, prioritizing quality, updating and refreshing content, optimizing for SEO, and promoting and repurposing your material, you can ensure that your evergreen content continues to drive traffic, improve search engine rankings, and increase brand authority.
By implementing the discussed strategies and incorporating evergreen content into your marketing efforts, you can establish your brand as an authority in your industry and build a loyal customer base. Evergreen content is a valuable long-term investment that can continue to generate traffic and leads for your business over time.
By consistently creating high-quality evergreen content that resonates with your target audience’s needs and interests, you can lay the foundation for sustainable growth and success.
It’s important to remember that producing evergreen content is an ongoing process that demands creativity, dedication, and a focus on delivering genuine value to your audience. Through this approach, evergreen content can help you expand your reach, build your brand, and drive long-term growth for your business.
Remember, creating evergreen content is like planting a tree—it takes time, effort, and a lot of patience. But unlike a tree, your evergreen content won’t just sit there looking pretty; it’ll work tirelessly to bring you traffic and leads.
So, roll up your sleeves, grab your gardening gloves, and get ready to plant some evergreen content that will make your competitors green with envy—or at least make you some green. (Hopefully, both.)