The Indexed Web contains at least 4.6 billion pages with an increasing volume of content being added every day. A typical website contains multiple content types including not only web pages but also blog posts, videos, articles, white papers, news items, infographics, user generated content, press releases, articles and more. Have we reached peak content and are we actually consolidating our content effectively? What’s the most effective way to benefit from such extensive business collateral?
One element of a successfully implemented content lifecycle is the requirement for content to be reviewed regularly and either re-used, re-purposed or retired. Rather than constantly adding more content with no consideration for curation of existing assets, organisations can apply some simple rules to managing their content via a regular review cycle.
Initially this cull can appear rather daunting but once outdated content has been reviewed, assessed and evaluated, the impact of offering revised and optimised content can be significant. The volume of page views may drop but customer engagement will be greater, the site will be less cluttered and the available content will be relevant, useful and informative. The rules need not be complicated and organisations can set their own goals in line with their business needs. These might include for example:
- Evaluating performance based on number of pages visits or call to action response
- Removing news items which are more than a certain number of months/years old
- Reviewing articles for relevance and usefulness
- A/B testing to define which content types drive engagement
By carrying out an assessment of current content performance, those content types which are driving value can be identified, reinforcing the message that this content is meeting the business needs and should be included as a core element of the organisation’s broader strategy. Consolidating content should offer benefits for users including better results found via the search engines and intuitive navigation, enabling easier findability of informative content which is both authoritative and relevant to prospective customers.