Why should you be making evergreen content?

23rd June 2023

Did you know that Cadbury’s Creme Eggs were once sold all year round? Though this sounds like music to the ears of Creme Egg lovers out there, the chocolate-making firm attempted year-long sales 20 years ago but it simply didn’t work and caused sales to drop. 

The little eggs of joy are now only available between January and Easter Sunday which creates hype around the product’s limited availability making it elusive and exclusive. 

Now I’m sure you can imagine the influx of Cadbury Creme Egg content between these months. Recipes, opinion pieces and so on would all make for some yummy yet seasonal content. 

Seasonal content is simply any type of content that is relevant to a specific moment in time, it could be an upcoming product launch, holiday or major event that brands want to associate content to. For example:

  • Holiday topics; Christmas, Ramadan, Hanukkah
  • Seasonal events; General elections, sporting events 
  • Current events; Celebrity stories, viral sensations

This type of content allows your brand to remain relevant; seasonal content shows you’ve got your finger on the pulse. However, within the world of content marketing, it can’t be your only focus. As current topics blow over, this content will stop pulling people onto sites and the steady stream of traffic will begin to plummet. What then? You need a more long-term content strategy. You need evergreen content.

‘What is evergreen content?’ I hear you say.

When you hear ‘evergreen’, your mind may run to trees and plants that retain green leaves throughout the year. But, we’re talking about content marketing here, not agroforestry. Evergreen content is simply content that maintains or increases in value over time because of its timeless relevance. Similar to how evergreen trees retain green leaves, evergreen content retains relevance throughout the year. 

Content marketing is all about delivering the right content to the right person at the right time. So, the best way to ensure you’re engaging your audience and providing long-term value is by using topical content that stands the test of time to form the backbone of your strategy. This evergreen approach to content marketing bolsters your brand’s reputation, saves time and lets you tweak quality content to offer insights that never get old.

So, what can you do to create evergreen content? Lucky for you, we have pulled together four key things you should be doing to drive long-term organic traffic and strengthen your brand’s reputation.

  1. Analyse existing content

Take a look at the content you’ve put out already. Now tell me, is it just another fad or is it long-lasting content that’ll stick around for a while?

With seasonal content, you’ll usually notice a spike in key metrics followed by a quick flatline. However, evergreen content will draw a steady stream of visitors and engage users more consistently. By sifting through your website analytics, you can source top topic ideas or discover existing posts which might just need a bit of optimisation to reach their potential.

  1. Understand the algorithm 

Quality content reaps rewards. ‘Black-hat’ SEO practices such as keyword stuffing and hidden links of sneaky redirects simply won’t wash anymore. Algorithms are now focusing on other parameters such as Google’s ‘E-A-T’, expertise, authority and trust. Use these as your benchmark and strive to position yourself as a thought leader in your field by identifying a broad topic to build your authority around.

  1. Start creating topic-clusters

Establish your brand as an expert voice by creating topic clusters. This is a way of streamlining your evergreen content by linking all your valuable information pieces on a particular subject to a common pillar page. This way, when someone stumbles upon your site, they’ll discover a goldmine, with tons of relevant, digestible content within a single source. 

  1. Keep finding a new spin 

Discovering what your audience is searching for is crucial. And so is keeping an eye on which of your topics are performing well. Once you do, it’s easier to keep content ticking over. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel, just find ways of adding valuable insights and keeping the conversation going. 

Keep these key things in mind when you’re crafting your content strategy and you’ll be well on your way to more sustainable, relevant content which will elevate your brand’s profile and garner valuable leads. 

Need a helping hand keeping it green? Why not get in touch with our team.