Four reasons why republishing old content makes great sense

If you have a library of previously published content there is nothing wrong with freshening it up a bit and republishing it for a little extra benefit. After all, if you have spent time and money producing some really good stuff for your company, it makes sense to give it a new lease of life and make it work a little harder for you right?

Done correctly, republishing can be a very powerful way of maximising the derived benefit of your content. It is more widely used in the industry than you probably imagine and for good reason. Few content marketing methods can reward you so much for doing so little.

Here are four other good reasons why republishing old content can work for your business.

1. Republishing gives great content a second chance

If you have some pieces that have performed particularly well or that you are extra proud of you can give them another shot at stardom. The audience who enjoyed it the first time round get an updated version of the content and your new audience that have come along since get to see something new.

2. Reusing authority

Authority is an important aspect of SEO and one all content marketers try to gather as they work. Republishing uses the existing authority gained in the original piece and builds on it which is a very powerful, but very legitimate SEO trick. Any goodness the piece gathered from being shared will be repeated when republished, with a little extra juice if you?re lucky.

3. Use lessons learned

As content marketers and more importantly, as writers, we are always learning and always developing our skills. Something that may have been cutting edge a year or two ago has likely moved on, such as headlines that work, particular editing methods, writing styles and image and video use. Revisiting old content allows you to use everything you have learned since writing that original to make it even more successful than before.

4. Get more shares

As far as the social networks go, any fresh content has around four to five days to get shares before it drops off the radar. Republishing, if done correctly, gives the content another chance at being shared. So not only does the original audience get another chance to share, your new audience does too.

Next week we will discuss how to properly republish old content so you don?t risk duplicate content penalties or annoy your readership by repeating yourself. Join us then if you can!