For Higher Rankings, Content Is Best Served Fresh

Google recently updated its algorithm and “fresh” content is one of its key areas of focus.  Designed to show more current, relevant results, the update potentially rewards websites that have new, recently added content with higher rankings.  This impact of this new “freshness” algorithm is significant, affecting about 35% of queries.

It’s pretty easy to see how the update affects news and informational websites. For example, the top search results for “weather” would be the updated forecast for the location Google thinks you are typing the query from, even if you didn’t put in a qualifier like “New York.”  The top search result for “diabetes” may be a new research study that was published online just minutes ago, while a search for “LCD TV” may rank recently posted reviews or a new model release announcement highest.

For non-news sites, however, where content may not be as timely, appeasing the freshness algorithm may not be as obvious.  Here are some ways your website can stay competitive in the rankings:

Create New Pages – Build out your website to include new pages targeted to long tail keywords. But remember – quality still matters. Creating random pages just for the sake of satisfying the search engines is not enough.  Relevance and topicality sill matter. Think strategically. New pages can focus on specific products and services, or can be purely informational by offering tips and advice.

Write Press Releases – Press releases are ideal for announcing company news and can be optimized for specific keywords. Distribute the press releases as well as post them on your website.  If your current website does not have a “news” section, now would be a great time to create one and aim to post press releases regularly.

Create a Blog – Blog about your company or industry news, keeping in mind your targeted keywords.

Update Your Current Pages – Keep your content fresh by changing your content consistently and frequently.  It can be as simple as highlighting new promotions or seasonal products, or adding product reviews and updated testimonials.

The good news is that if you have been implementing SEO best practices all along, chances are you are already doing much of the above!