5 Ways to Elevate Old Blog Posts

WebsiteBlogging

Jun 17

Have you ever stumbled upon an old blog post and realized it just wasn’t it? Instead of scrapping it, revise it.

This allows you to recycle old content, take advantage of SEO (which rewards content that’s been up for a long time), and reduce embarrassment from your early days.

It’s best to go through your blog a few times a year to ensure the content is still current and that your post is as optimized as it can be.

Below are five ways to elevate old blog posts.

1. Check links

Broken links not only irritate your readers, they harm your search engine optimization (SEO). Whenever you go through an old blog post, check every link to ensure that it’s still working.

If you’d like to check the links on your entire website at once, try Check My Links, a Google Chrome browser extension.

While re-reading your post, find opportunities to link to your newer posts. Cross linking is an SEO boost but it also gives your reader a chance to explore your blog further.

2. Re-write

Along with adding new links to your blog, there may be certain sections that need updating. Whether you have new information, additional thoughts, or there’s a better way to write some sentences, re-writing is an excellent way to refresh old blog posts.

3. Boost SEO

You’ve probably learned much more about SEO since publishing earlier blog posts. But if you haven’t, here’s a guide:

How to improve a blog post’s SEO:
• Add more backlinks/outbound links. This might seem counterintuitive, but linking to external websites actually boosts your SEO- especially if these websites are well established.
• Link within your website.
• Verify that the post’s title is in the URL.
i.e. The title of this blog post is “5 Ways to Elevate Old Blog Posts” and its URL is “missmegabug.com/blog/5-ways-to-elevate-old-blog-posts.”
• Mention the blog post title in your copy.
• Rename photo files to “Your Business_Blog Post Title_Descriptor.” This is also known as alt text.

Dive deeper into SEO.

4. Refresh photos

Maybe you didn’t have official branding photos when you posted your blog, or perhaps the original photo you chose doesn’t align with the look and feel of your website.

Browse Adobe Stock or free stock photo sites like Pexels to refresh the photos in your blog post.

Planning a brand photo shoot? Click here.

5. Add calls-to-action

A call-to-action is a link to an offer on your website, such as a freebie, product, or your services page. The first purpose of blogging is to boost SEO to bring people to your website, and the second purpose is to get them to purchase your offer.

Calls-to-action can look like…
• Linked text, such as “Get an effective marketing strategy that doesn’t require you to be on all the platforms. Enroll in Self-Employed School.”
• Buttons
• Photos/graphics
Always make sure that these links are working properly!

Bonus: Add Pinterest graphics

You’ve heard of “pin now, read later”? By including a Pinterest graphic on your blog post, it’s not only easier for someone to pin your blog post and refer back to it later, they’re more likely to.

Creating Pinterest graphics is easy. Canva - a free, cloud-based design software - has Pinterest graphic templates that are quick to customize!

If you’re new to Canva, I share many tips and tutorials on my YouTube Channel.

Updating your old blog posts keeps them fresh, up-to-date, and boosts your website traffic (and potentially sales!) for years to come.