What is Content Decay?

Imagine this.

You’ve invested hours putting together the perfect piece of content.

It’s insightful, engaging, and it gets an impressive traffic after hitting ‘publish’. You’re thrilled, watching it climb the rankings and deliver consistent value to your audience. But then, as the months roll by, you notice a shift. The numbers start to drop. And over time, the engagement that once defined your content begins to diminish. Although both common and frustrating, this decline is known as content decay.

Content decay might seem like an unavoidable challenge for both content marketing and SEO, but it’s entirely manageable with the right strategies. In this post, we’ll discuss what content decay entails, how to spot it, and, most importantly, how to revive your content effectively.

The Anatomy of Content Decay

Content decay is when the performance of a piece of content gradually declines over time. It’s not that your content suddenly becomes irrelevant or unhelpful, but it’s a combination of factors that lead to its diminished visibility and engagement. It’s a bit like a bouquet of flowers – vibrant and beautiful at first, but eventually, it starts to wither unless you refresh it.

Here’s what contributes to content decay:

Changing Search Intent

Search intent evolves. What users searched for and found useful six months ago might not match their current needs. As new questions, trends, or solutions emerge, what was once relevant content may no longer align with what your audience is looking for.

Algorithm Updates

Search engines like Google frequently update their algorithms to deliver better results to its user. Sometimes, these updates favour newer content, different formats, or alternative keywords, pushing your older content further down the rankings. Every time Google releases an update – whether a major one like Google’s core updates or more subtle changes – the content that once ranked high might get pushed aside in favour of fresher or more optimised content.

Increased Competition

The internet is a crowded place. New content is published daily, and competitors might create fresher or better optimised pieces that overtake yours in search rankings. Even if your content was once considered authoritative, the sheer volume of new material flooding the web can quickly eclipse older articles, causing a significant decline in your content’s visibility.

Broken Links and Outdated Information

Broken links or old data make your content seem irrelevant. This can make your content less trustworthy and much less valuable to readers (and search engines).

Decreased Engagement

Over time, audience interaction with your content (clicks, comments, shares) might decline. This reduced engagement then tells search engines that your content might not be as relevant or valuable as it once was.

The Consequences of Ignoring Content Decay

Your content represents time, effort, and resources. Letting it fade means:

• Loss of Traffic: As rankings drop, so does organic traffic. This can affect your entire website’s performance.
• Reduced ROI: Every piece of content represents an investment of time, effort, and money. Content decay diminishes the returns on that investment.
• Weakened Authority: Consistently high-performing content builds authority in your niche. When that content loses steam, your reputation may also take a hit. Losing content authority can make it harder to regain that standing in your industry or niche.

How to Spot Content Decay

Identifying content decay is the first step in addressing it. Here’s how to spot it:

1. Track Organic Traffic: Use tools like Google Analytics to monitor traffic trends for individual pages. A consistent decline over time is a red flag. Regularly checking the traffic data for your content can help you identify where and when they begin to underperform. Detecting this early allows for prompt action to prevent any further declines.
2. Analyse Rankings: Keep an eye on your keyword rankings with tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush. A drop in rankings for important keywords is a sign that your content might be decaying.
3. Engagement Metrics: Declining click-through rates (CTR), fewer social shares, and reduced time on page indicate waning interest. Engagement is a powerful indicator of content health.
4. Backlink Health: Use tools like Majestic or Moz to check if your backlinks have decreased. Losing backlinks can contribute to content decay. As authoritative sites link to your content, your rankings rise. However, if these links are lost, your content’s credibility diminishes, leading to a loss of organic traffic.

How to Combat Content Decay

The good news? Content decay is reversible. Here’s how you can bring your fading content back to life:

1. Audit Your Content

Start with a comprehensive content audit. Identify which pieces are underperforming and categorise them based on their potential for improvement. A content audit should also be a regular part of your content strategy.

• Keep: Content that’s still performing well.
• Update: Content with outdated information or opportunities to target new keywords.
• Consolidate: Combine similar, underperforming pieces into one stronger post.
• Remove: Irrelevant or extremely outdated content that no longer serves your audience.

2. Refresh and Update

• Add New Data: Incorporate recent statistics, studies, or examples.

• Optimise Keywords: Update your keyword strategy based on current trends. If certain keywords are losing popularity, find new ones that better align with your audience’s current search intent.

• Enhance Readability: Improve formatting, add images, or include multimedia elements.

3. Improve On-Page SEO

Ensure your content is well-optimised:

– Use updated meta titles and descriptions. These elements are crucial for improving CTR from search engine results pages (SERPs). – Optimise images with alt text. Search engines can’t ‘see’ images, so optimising them helps boost SEO.

– Add internal links to newer content. Note: Internal linking is vital for improving SEO and directing users to other relevant pages on your site.

4. Promote Your Content Again

Treat refreshed content like new. Share it across social media, send it to your email list, or even consider running ads to reintroduce it to your audience.

5. Leverage Evergreen Content

Focus on creating evergreen content that remains relevant over time. While it’s impossible to avoid decay entirely, evergreen pieces tend to have a longer lifespan.

Tools to Help You Tackle Content Decay

Here are some tools to help you combat content decay effectively:

1. Google Search Console: Track performance and spot declining pages.
2. Ahrefs/SEMrush: Monitor keyword rankings and backlinks.
3. ContentKing: Perform real-time audits to keep your site optimised.
4. BuzzSumo: Identify trending topics and optimise content for better social engagement.
5. AnswerThePublic: Another great tool to identify trending topics.These tools can make the task of combating content decay more manageable. With the right resources, you can stay ahead of the curve and maintain high-performing content.

These tools can make the task of combating content decay more manageable. With the right resources, you can stay ahead of the curve and maintain high-performing content.

Why Content Decay Matters

Don’t think of content decay as a failure – it’s all part of the content cycle. If you’re able identify and address it early, you can breathe new life into your existing content and maximise the value of your efforts. Regularly refreshing your content not only keeps it relevant but also lets your audience (and search engines) know that your site is a reliable source with up-to-date information.

Don’t let content decay slow you down. Refresh your posts, keep them relevant, and watch them perform like new. The effort you invest in combating content decay today will pay dividends in sustained growth and long-term success. Your audience, and your results, will thank you. If you’re looking for help with either your content marketing or SEO, get in touch to see how we can help.