Fresh content on a website serves multiple purposes, including keeping you in the search engine loop. Updating your site is just as important to search engines as it is to your visitors. Search engines generally give high praises to websites that offer new information and sources for search requests. However, being desirable to search engines is not the only reason to update your site frequently. Some of the other reasons include:
Keeping your users informed with valuable information- Frequent indexing
- Increasing your site’s authority
- Using more valuable keywords
Knowing the reasons why you should keep your site up-to-date is great, but there are some specifics you should know about as well.
Fresh Content Pleases Customers and Search Engines like Google
Google is the most popular search engine, which means it has a lot of influence on what website owners do. To please Google, it’s recommended that your site be updated regularly; everyday or at least two to three times a week. More than once a day is definitely overkill and updating once a month can be to lax.
The search engine leader is constantly on the prowl for fresh web pages that they can add to their index. Your site will have a greater a chance of increasing your Google ranking if it’s filled with useful and reliable information. Blogs are a surefire way to provide this information and to get noticed by users and search engines alike. Comments on blogs also count as site updates, so make your posts as interesting as possible.
Your audience should be the first consideration when accessing the value of content.
Useful information will keep current customers updated while possibly converting simple visitors into new customers. An RSS feed will also send blog subscribers alerts when new posts are created. This way readers will have a greater chance of returning to your site, which will promote loyalty and add even more value to the site. Don’t forget to share your website content and blogs on your social networks. This is also a great way to drive traffic to your website and gain more reach.
Blog posts also give visitors information on your products or services, as well as give you the chance to relay why you’re the best source for those products or services, the benefits of those products or services, and more. Content like this will give customers the info they need to make informed purchases. Updated blog articles will also show customers that you business is active and thriving, which further gives you excellent standings with Google.
Frequent Indexing and Ranking
Frequent indexing is not always the same as higher indexing. But search engines will frequently visit sites that have a constant flow of updated articles, pages, and downloads. This will give you higher indexing and ranking.
Web crawlers like Googlebots constantly scan websites, then index them based on Google’s own predetermined algorithms. For example, a website can be indexed based on the number of keywords used, the number of inbound links it has, and how often it updates. Each time a site updates, their ranking is rearranged by Google.
However, simply having lots of content is not the ultimate goal. While updating once a day is paramount for higher indexing, a site that updates more than this or has a lot of low-quality, keyword stuffed articles will rank much lower than expected.
The Chance to Become an Authority Website
To become an authority website you must provide valuable and informative posts on your industry and expertise. Authority sites actually have tens of thousands of pages indexed by search engines, so to be competitive you must publish frequent, valuable articles. Additionally keep in mind that Google also measures page relevance by site saturation, so provide good content as often as possible.
Providing updates on news in your industry is also a good way to become an authority website. Choosing a specific subject to write about will also increase your chances of being branded an authority. The more accurate, expert information you write on a specific subject, the more trust you’ll build, the more likely your site will rank as an authority site, and the more likely visitors will purchase your services. Authority can also be built on social media networks, where you can post articles, answer questions on forums, and build a trustworthy reputation.
More Valuable Keywords
New content on a site means new opportunities for keywords. Google’s algorithm chart puts keywords close to the top of the list for high ranking and high indexing. Any articles written on your site can be optimized with keywords that are often typed into search engines, thus attracting searchers to your webpage.
With every new blog post, pertinent keywords can be incorporated to show search engines and users that your site is one of authority and one where they can find help on a certain subject or certain need. However, more keywords doesn’t mean more indexing or higher ranking. Google frequently gives low rankings to sites with keyword-stuffed articles.
Keywords are a major part of SEO (search engine optimization), but they aren’t the focus of it. Expert, quality content with natural keywords should be the focus of an SEO campaign, and posts should always be written based on the reader not the keyword.
Now is the time to start adding content to your website! Are you ready to get blogging?
Have questions? Ask us in the comments below!
