do you have evergreen content?

If you’ve been blogging long, you’ve probably heard bloggers talk about evergreen content. Perhaps you find yourself with some questions about what this is and why it matters. I admit, for the first few years I blogged I didn’t grasp this concept and I certainly didn’t understand how to craft evergreen content. However, in the past year, I’ve invested time in learning why crafting posts with this view can be incredibly beneficial both to me and to my readers.

Today, we’ll explore four questions about evergreen content and in the process you will be equipped to develop a plan for creating this kind of rich content for your blog.

What is evergreen content?

Quite simply, evergreen content is the content on your blog with these two qualities: timelessness and primary interest to your readership. Basically, these are the posts you could tweet or share on social media at any time and they would be applicable to your audience. For example, here at Design by Insight, posts like WordPress.org and WordPress.com: What’s the Difference? is an evergreen post. The information contained isn’t time sensitive, and it is valuable to the primary readers of blog.

Why do I need evergreen content?

Evergreen content provides the backbone of your blog content. Think of this as the skeleton of your blog, it’s bones. These are the posts which support everything else you write. I recently read this great explanation of the importance of evergreen content:

While seasonal, event and other date-focused articles can be a part of your marketing strategy, it’s essential that the majority of your content is evergreen. Evergreen content leads to higher search-engine rankings, an increase in website traffic and more lead-generation opportunities. This is because evergreen content remains relevant, and in the future people will continue to search for the information you’ve provided, whereas topics that aren’t considered evergreen might never be searched again. {source}

How do I create evergreen content?

Okay, by now you are hopefully convinced of the value of evergreen content. But you probably have questions about to create it. Here’s the good news: It’s pretty easy! Look at the main topics you write about on your blog {hint — these should be your categories.}  At DBI, I primarily write posts concerning blogging tips or strategy, social media, and the technical side of blogging. When I am planning posts for DBI, I try to consider the common questions bloggers might have and how I can write to answer those questions. I’ve written several posts about Facebook in the past year or so. Some are evergreen {Invest in Your Website not Your Facebook Page} and some are not {Facebook Changes … Again!}. As you develop evergreen content consider list posts that deal with your topic. On my blog, the most popular post I have is almost three years old — 10 tips for a great quiet time. The information isn’t seasonal, it’s a question my readers have, and it’s in a simple to understand format. For a deal blogger whose daily posts center around coupons and time-sensitive information, evergreen content may include FAQs about couponing. If you wonder if a post is evergreen just remember the two questions:

1. Is it timeless?
2. Does it apply to the majority of my primary readership?

What do I do with my evergreen content once I’ve created it?

Ahhh, the million dollar question, right? Now what? First of all — don’t forget about it! It’s easy to write a post and move on to the next post. Be strategic with your evergreen content. In fact, I’d say be the most strategic with your evergreen content. After all, these are the posts that will be relevant the longest. Here are few ideas for getting the most with these great evergreen posts you have written:

• Internal linking. Be sure you link to these posts when you write non-evergreen content. For example, if I write about a lesson I’ve learned from my quiet time recently, I always link back to that 10 tips post. Another way to emphasize your evergreen content is in your sidebar. Create a most popular posts widget.  And be sure to add these great posts to your about page as part of your introduction to who you are and what you write.
• Social media. Evergreen content can be a gold mine for you on social media. These are the posts you plan to promote every month! I recently heard a podcast with Erin Odom, and she said she intentionally schedules those evergreen posts on her Facebook page every month. Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest feeds can move incredibly fast, and your content can easily be missed. Don’t be afraid to share those great posts more than once.
• Guest posts and contributor sites.  When you write for another site, make sure it’s okay for you to include meaningful links back to content on your own blog. For example, when I write my quarterly posts for Mothers of Daughter, I try to always include a link to an evergreen post on my personal blog about parenting such as 10 ways to parent with purpose.

Hopefully, this post gives you a solid foundation for developing and promoting your evergreen content. I recently had someone ask me how many evergreen posts I create each month. My goal is one. I know, that seems low probably. But these posts take longer to write, more energy to promote, and more time to find a quality graphic. My yearly plan is to write quarterly evergreen content for each of my main categories. That means each year I’m crafting four evergreen posts about faith, family, and living well. Sometimes I may do more but I work diligently not to have less. Perhaps that is encouraging to those of you who are concerned about this being one more thing you “have” to do.

Do you intentionally create evergreen content? What is a tip you’d add to this post?