Updating Content for Search Visibility

One of the things that can help distinguish your website from your competitors is how often you update your content. We all know this, but yet some of us still find it difficult to make changes.  This might be the rationale behind Google putting stock into how recently and how frequently a site is updated.  Google prides itself on giving searchers the most relevant information available, which a lot of times will translate into the freshest information available.  Google will rank sites that administrators care enough to make changes to higher than their stale counterparts. 

Now obviously, Google isn't ranking sites soley based on frequency of updates, however it is one piece of the overall equation.  In my opinion, it is the easiest piece of the overall SEO equation to put into action.  Invest in a good content management system and swap out a picture or two every once in a while, blog about news worthy events, add a landing page that correlates to a new ad campaign.  Make your website work for you.  It's easy with the right tool.

I am headed to Yankee Stadium this weekend for the first time ever.  It is now or never for me.  Even if you don't follow baseball, you probably know what Yankee Stadium is, but you might not know why it has become a now or never scenario.  After this season, Yankee Stadium will be torn down.  The Yanks are moving across the street to 'New Yankee Stadium.'  All of the history and prestige will be gone.  The Yankees are updating one of the biggest things they are known for. 

This brings me to one question.  If the Yankees can part ways with their stadium and the lore that is associated with it, why can't people part ways with their old marketing strategies?  Today, people find their information through the web.  Even if a piece of mail reaches a potential customer, the piece of mail usually pushes the reader to find our more information about the company on the web.  Now it doesn't make much sense to create an identity on a postcard or letter and then send someone to an outdated website.  By using a content management system, you can change your website as your marketing changes.  Creating an overall brand is the goal isn't it? 

As I was sifting through all of the usual news stories on CNN this morning, I came across one that piqued my interest (thanks, Dave).  There is a new search engine in town.  Started by a couple of ex-Googlers, 'Cuil' has launched in the recent days and has a new, and perhaps better, method for indexing and ranking websites.  Cuil's idea is that popularity of a website shouldn't be the dominant factor to whether a site can be found or not.  Their philosophy is this:  relevant content matters. 

They aren't tracking users, counting links, or being picky about who gets indexed and who doesn't.  They have indexed over 120 billion pages so far, and you can expect that number to grow pretty quickly.  Cuil has the idea that the internet has grown, search should too. 

If content is in fact becoming king, then it has become very apparent that having a way to manage that content is extremely important.  An easy-to-use content management system can take away any frustration that updating a website can cause.  No longer does it need to take an hour to make a change, with the right system (Marketpath CMS, hint hint) it can take only a few seconds.  If I have said it once, I'll say it again, providing relevant and up to date content can be the difference in driving traffic to your website.      

Lately, when I have been asking people 'what does your company's website do for you?', I have been getting the same response.  'Well, it doesn't really do much of anything.  It is mostly informational and that information never changes.'  I dread this response.  I wonder to myself, why even have a website?  If the information hasn't changed since the site was launched circa 1998, then why people keep paying for hosting? 

Exisitng customers aren't using it, because they know what is there...the content hasn't been updated in years.  New, potential customers (if they can find your site) see an outdated website and wonder if the company still exists.  This isn't the best first impression that a company could be making.  It really takes a paradigm shift to realize what you could be missing out on.

Everyone knows that when people want information nowadays they turn to the internet.  Everything that you need an answer or a service for is right at your fingertips.  Potential buyers are looking for sites that make sense, are usable, and the content is up to date.  A content management system and a fresh web design are two of the most cost effective ways to spend marketing dollars.  Your site is available 24 hours a day to people that are looking for the information you provide.  What could be better than that?  Its targeted marketing at its finest.  When used effectively, web content management can be what seperates you from your competitors.    

I was in a meeting with a friend of mine, Jill Harding, last week when she told me a great analogy for keeping a website's content up to date.  She asked me the question, 'How many times can you watch the same Seinfeld episode before you just change the channel?'  I know that Seinfeld is one of the all-time great shows, but with no new episodes coming out, you know what to expect out of each show.

You had a great run guys, but I'm ready for something new

The same goes for stale content on a web page.  Users, and potential clients, will only come back so many times to view the same content before they realize that what they are looking for isn't there.  They will find their information somewhere else, leaving your website to become more and more outdated and obsolete, and you are left with your same old customer base. 

Search engines operate in the same fashion.  If they crawl your website every month and realize that nothing has changed, they are less likely to come back and index your website for search.  Updating content on a regular basis can remedy this situation and invite the search engine spiders to re-index your site more frequently.  Increasing how frequently you update the content can greatly improve your overall web presence and help your website become a source for information for your customers.