When it comes to SEO content, you can choose from two types: trending content and evergreen content.
In this article, we’ll go over what trending content and evergreen content are, the pros and cons of each, and why you should create both for a successful SEO strategy.
Let’s get started!
Table of Contents
What is Trending Content?
Trending content is content that’s relevant now but won’t be in the future. Think of it like a fashion trend. It could be the hot new thing for a season and then quickly become outdated.
Some examples of trending content include:
- Breaking news
- Event coverage
- Holiday or seasonal topics
- Anything time-sensitive
Content related to COVID-19 would also fit into this category. It’s highly relevant now, but once the pandemic more fully ends, not so much.
You see a lot of trending content from news websites. That’s because it’s their job to report on the latest to the masses.
But businesses can leverage trending content as well. Anything that’s eye-grabbing, controversial, or creates some type of buzz may be worth creating content about because it could increase your web traffic.
And who knows? Your trending content might go viral, giving your brand a lot of sudden exposure.
To create trending content, look for topics that are just starting to become popular. For example, type a topic into Google Trends to see if it shows an upward search trend. If it does, it might be a good opportunity to take advantage of the increased search volume.
The Benefits of Trending Content
So why create trending content? Well, many reasons.
For one, there’s less competition to rank for trending topics. If the keyword hasn’t been on many people’s radar until now, there won’t be much content ranking for it. That means it’ll be easier for you to stake your claim in the SERPs.
Once you publish trending content, you’ll also see SEO results faster. With less competition, your trending content could rise to the top of search results in just a few days.
All in all, trending content can help increase your brand’s online visibility by a lot in a short amount of time. The key is to identify trending topics early on and then be the first to publish about them.
The Drawbacks of Trending Content
Of course, the one big downside to trending content is that the SEO benefits aren’t guaranteed to last.
Sure, you might make the number one search result for “2022 real estate market trends in Orlando, Florida,” but nobody’s going to be searching for that in a year.
In other words, once the trend goes away or the keyword becomes irrelevant, you’ll see your web traffic start to drop.
What is Evergreen Content?
Now that you know about trending content, let’s talk about evergreen content.
Evergreen content is anything that is relevant now and in the future. No matter what happens, there will always be people interested in the topic.
Content types that work great as evergreen pieces include:
- Ultimate guides
- Whitepapers
- Case studies
- Checklists
- Infographics
The key is to focus on quality over quantity. Cover the topic in full and in a way that nobody has done before. That way, your content has a better chance of standing the test of time.
Creating evergreen content starts with keyword research. See how much search volume a keyword gets with an SEO tool like Keywords Everywhere. If the search traffic is steady, then it may make a good evergreen topic.
Ideally, you want to identify keywords whose search volume is growing. Then create content on it. By getting on the bandwagon early, you have a better chance to stake your claim in the SERPs.
Once you’ve published an evergreen piece, review it at least once per year. This helps you make minor updates to keep it from becoming outdated.
Say you publish the “Ultimate Guide to Creating a WordPress Blog.” Then WordPress releases an update that slightly changes the process for creating a new site. In that case, you’ll want to update your guide quickly, so that Google doesn’t demote it for containing outdated information.
You can also repromote evergreen content. Chances are you’ll gain new audience members over time. So by re-promoting your evergreen content, you give them a chance to consume the great stuff you made in the past and thereby increase your web traffic even more.
You can also repurpose evergreen content into different content forms.
For example, you could turn a blog article into a podcast episode or summarize a video into a social media post. Publish your content across different mediums to reach the most amount of people.
And you can always boost your evergreen content by doing link-building outreach. That means contacting relevant high-domain authority websites, sharing your evergreen content, and requesting a backlink to it.
As your site becomes more recognized, this type of outreach will get easier.
Source: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/evergreen-content/362554/
The Benefits of Evergreen Content
The main benefit of evergreen content is that it can be a permanent source of web traffic. Once you publish it, you can enjoy a steady and reliable stream of visitors to your site.
And the higher your evergreen content ranks on search engines, the easier it will be to gain backlinks. Sites looking for a source are more likely to link to yours, which then boosts your SEO even more, creating a kind of snowball effect.
Finally, there’s usually already a lot of content on an evergreen topic out there, which means you’ll have plenty of resources for your research.
The Drawbacks & Disadvantages of Evergreen Content
That said, evergreen content still comes with some disadvantages.
For one, when other evergreen content on the topic already exists, it’s highly competitive to get yours to rank. Finding a foothold in the SERPs can become extremely difficult.
Secondly, developing good evergreen content takes a lot of time. You’ll have to do extensive research and go through several revisions to make the piece stand out.
And lastly, promoting evergreen content also takes a lot of effort. You may need to do cold outreach and be more active on social media.
Balancing Trending and Evergreen Content
For the best SEO results, create a good mix of trending and evergreen content.
By publishing trending content, you can keep your brand engaged in current discussions and win sudden bursts of exposure.
And by publishing evergreen content, you can maintain a steady stream of traffic at all times.
Whatever you do, always optimize your content for search intent. It’s what ultimately matters most in SEO.
And if you don’t have the time or skill to create evergreen and trending content, SEO company, SEO.co can help.
Our SEO experts have been creating high-ranking content for years, and we can do it for you too. Contact us today for a free consultation.
Over the years he's written for publications like Forbes, Entrepreneur, Marketing Land, Search Engine Journal, ReadWrite and other highly respected online publications. Connect with Tim on Linkedin & Twitter.
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