. 5 WAYS TO MAXIMISE YOUR BLOG CONTENT .
If like me you blog frequently (I personally blog daily, and have done for nearly 4 years now) and are constantly producing fresh, new content, you might sometimes feel a little bit like one days piece of content may get a little lost, missed or less appreciated than you thought it was worth.
I find myself constantly thinking this, whether it’s a day of lower traffic than normal, an outfit post I absolutely love or just a piece of content I’m really proud of, I sometimes wish it’s shelf life was a little longer than it perhaps is on my blog. It’s part and parcel with daily blogging, you’re constantly providing new content, making yesterdays feature old. One simple way to resolve this would be to simply reduce your content regularity, but that’s not something that I want to do right now, so instead i’ve found a few other ways to increase the shelf life of my blog content and truly maximise the features I write.
. LINK BACK .
Linking back to old features is a really simple way of ensuring old posts still get seen and appreciated. Within my blog tips features I often share links back to older posts if they’re relevant or provide more information on a specific topic i’m talking about, equally in my outfit features, I might have another post styling a particular piece of clothing which I can link back to, to show an alternative styling.
Linking back is a really easy way of providing readers with simple & quick ways to finding other interesting content which they may like, which is relevant to the topic you’re righting about.
. SHARE IT .
Extending the reach of your content beyond just your blog or website, is another easy way to ensure a) the content gets seen but b) that it lives beyond one day. Whether that’s sharing imagery and teasers on instagram, sharing your features on Facebook, Bloglovin, or twitter, or pinning your best images to pinterest. All of these additional platforms provide another opportunity for your content to get discovered and help your hard work live beyond just that one blog feature.
There are also other ways of sharing your content, particularly if you’re a fashion blogger as well, the likes of Lookbook, Chictopia, ASOS FF & Look magazine are all great ways of sharing your daily content & also provide a great opportunity for further recognition. I’ve frequently been featured in Look Magazine & ASOS’s website due to sharing my outfits.
. RE USE .
I mentioned the prospect of ‘re using’ content in last weeks blog tips feature (how to make blogging & working easier), but it really is a great way of maximising your content & overall reducing the sheer volume of fresh content you need to create, shoot & edit for a live feature.
When I talk about re-using, I mean things like curating a series of features to create one overall feature on the topic (e.g. best burger joints in London, curating your historic images & reviews to create one new overall feature, or 5 ways to style a denim skirt, curating 5 of your previous outfit posts into one new feature to showcase the versatility or various ways to style etc). I know many people find posts like this really engaging, I personally quite enjoy reading ‘mini guides’ & it’s a great way of making sure your content is really maximised.
. BLOG NAVIGATION .
Making sure your blog is easily navigational is another really easy way of making sure all your content gets seen & used beyond just the day you post it. Some easy ways to help this are adding a ‘popular posts’ feed on your home page, ‘related posts’ within each of your features (I have this) and of course making sure your archive of content is easily findable but also categorised so people can find what they’re looking for.
I’ve spent a hell of a lot of time updating and redesigning my site specifically to help navigation and help my content be more discoverable to people. You’ll find in my nav bar links to all my categories of content (like tips or outfits), my collaborations, my archive as well as other key pieces of information like contact details, press accreditation & a little shop boutique too. Feel free to have a little play around :)
. EARNED SHARES .
Another really lovely way to help maximise your content is of course earned & organic reach or sharing. This is obviously something you personally cannot ensure happens, but I often find that when I write a really great piece of content (usually my blog tips posts) sometimes you lovely readers then credit it or refer to it within your own blog features, for example a round up of your favourite posts. Beyond blogger shares, sometimes brands will also share your content if you’ve featured them within it (for example on instagram & re-tweet your links), even better is when they might create a piece of content specifically on you, your blog & your posts within their own sites, either as part of a collaboration or as a nice gesture for all the coverage & features you’ve created for them.
As I mentioned this last tip isn’t something you can really control, but through hard work & great content, earned and organic sharing is another really great way to extend the life and reach of your content, really maximising your efforts.
So there we go, 5 ways to maximise your content, and really ensure each feature gets the coverage it deserves. I’d love to know if you have any other tips or if you personally use any of the tips i’ve mentioned on your own sites?
Eden says
Great tips. I like the idea of linking back to older posts in new ones. I try to do this every now and then and should do it more. Have a nice weekend!
http://www.mintnotion.com
Vera says
Really great tips, thank you for sharing!!
http://www.blondeincashmere.com
Lindsey says
Love this!
blousesandblush.com
Vanessa says
What an incredibly helpful post, some really useful advice which I am running across now to action, thanks for sharing this
Sarah says
I try and link back to old posts as and when it’s appropriate too. I definitely think having a “similar posts” widget helps, I find myself utilising that feature on other people’s blogs too.
Sarah xo | PolkaDotLemon
Karolina says
I recently installed the popular post plugin on the sidebar which I think is working great. I also do the link back to older posts when I write but I find that I’m not utilising it to its full potential. I have to remember what post I wrote in the past which is quite hard to do after writing blogs everyday. I have also noticed that some large lifestyle blogs use something like related posts at the bottom but it’s just a headline e.g “Don’t miss” with the post titles as links underneath. I’m just testing it out myself. Did you also notice that some bloggers interrupt the post in the middle and have Related post links in few places within the post?
Alisha says
Great tips!
Alisha x
http://alishaxa.blogspot.co.uk
Lauren says
I definitely like the idea of re-using i.e. a blog series, and also linking back – a fab way to get some of your old favourites seen more!
Lauren x
Britton Loves | Lifestyle Food Fashion Beauty – http://www.brittonloves.blogspot.co.uk
Camille says
This is all great advice! I never would have thought of consolidating content to create new posts. Have a great Easter!
Silly Medley: Lifestyle and Travel
Stefanie says
I try to write some posts as “series” in order to stretch out my information and not inundate my readers. It also gives me 2 or 3 posts in one! I feel that I’m more dedicated to the series posts because I want to provide better content with each post. I like the idea of linking back too!
Thanks!
Stefanie
http://thefocusonyou.com
Tasmin says
Great tips! I recently started sharing old blog posts, bringing them back to life for people to see and I’ve seen that it’s had a positive effect on audience engagement. So, it’s lovely to see that you’ve featured this in your tips! One thing that I sometimes forget to do is share my blog posts with some of the brands featured in it…I wish twitter had more character space for this! But it’s something I’m working on so fingers crossed I can track the effects of this too :).
Thanks for this informative and sweet post :)
Tasmin | Grandiose Days
jovana says
I love these kind of posts :) I just started blogging and find myself coming back to your blog for advice & tips. Thanks for that ;) Have a great week!
xx jovana – http://www.jookea.de
Rebecca Kelsey Sampson says
This is something I’m only recently getting into but it is already making a huge impact, in particular changing my blog navigation! I can’t believe I didn’t start optimizing my older content sooner.
Kindness is the best accessory,
Rebecca Kelsey Sampson
RebeccaKelsey.com
Anu says
I should do resharing and re-purposing old posts. Since I started med school, I have been super busy and rarely have time to blog. It is partly my fault being unorganized for sure. Thank you for sharing great tips!
Anu,
http://www.visceralmaze.blogspot.com
PaSha says
Hello,
Thanks you so much, I’ll apply some of these tips to my site.
technliving.com