Marketers value “content” because it’s a subtle way to sell your company’s values, its image, and its products or services. Most companies do this extremely well, churning out original material on a regular basis.
While this is admirable and in many industries necessary, the wise marketer’s eyes are not set solely on the present and future production of web content, blogs, newsletters, emails, videos, etc. They’re also focused on content of the past.
Content has two primary goals: to build brand awareness and to promote customer engagement. Engaged customers learn something from the content your company creates. They’re entertained by it. They’re enlightened by it. They’re inspired by it. They learn to trust it—and you—and will look back at the other content you’ve created.
And that’s where it gets sticky.
If you’re so focused on creating new content and ignoring what you’ve already published or shared, you may be heading for trouble.
Content gets old. Information gets outdated. If you’re not occasionally going back and reviewing time-, price-, or subject-sensitive topics, the information you’re putting out to the world is irrelevant. And soon, you may be, too.
So what’s the best way to keep all of your content up to date?
First, make it a point to regularly review your information, particularly the stuff that’s easily accessible to the hungry, eager consumer, including web content, social media sites, and blogs. You may want to do a monthly audit of your sites, or you may find it easier to keep a running list of content published and key words or topics addressed in each so that when circumstances or regulations or prices change, you know exactly where to go.
Second, acknowledge in the original material that the information has been updated. Provide a date and an explanation of what changed.
Finally, use the opportunity to reach out to your audience. Instead of hoping readers will find your old content and the new information, or instead of simply creating new content based on the new information, address the update in a positive, “here’s how things stand today” approach. You’ll keep the original content alive while also creating new content to share.
Taking the time to assess what you’ve already written instead of focusing only on new material will not only show your customers you’re a respectable, serious operation, but it will also show them that you take their needs seriously.