Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Flipboard 2 One of the things Google’s recent algorithm update, Penguin 2.0, highlighted is that many of us need to rethink our online marketing strategies to focus more on building a community around our brands. And, as most promotional strategies online begin with some form of content – eg, blog posts, video, infographics, etc. – many of us inevitably wrestle with the question of how often should we update our sites/blogs in order to rank well in SERPs. 3 Factors That Determine How Often to Update Your Site There are many factors that determine this. Following are three. I. Type of Business: Some site/blogs lend themselves to many updates per day, eg, a stock picking site. Others don’t. So ask yourself: “How often do things happen in my industry that my potential clients/customers must know about? II. Your Business Goals: Is it to generate immediate sales; to get consistent leads; to get more consistent with your brand marketing. If your goal is for some immediate results, eg, move merchandise via a sale, then you should probably update your site daily or at the very least 3-5 times per week. If your goals are more long range, eg, gain consistency in branding, then twice a month or monthly might be enough – depending on the type of business you operate. III. The Competition: If your competitors are updating their sites weekly, then it’d be prudent to update your site at least as often as they do; more if you’re new to the game. At my SEO writing firm, we look at a new client’s top three competitors and see how often they update. Then, based on client goals, we put together a content marketing plan that takes this into consideration, along with a host of other factors, eg, length of content, what to write about, where to distribute, etc. Content Marketing Food for Thought Poster Arjun Muralidharan from CupofChai.net (site no longer live on the web) said the following, which is something to keep in mind as you ponder how often to post new content . . . I don’t think that freshness of content weighs in that much compared to visitors and page popularity. I would think that Google ranks “Freshness” not only by creation date, but also by how actively the page is accessed …” (italics added) In my opinion, this makes a case for posting highly relevant content, as opposed to fresh content. For, if a post/article is relevant, it will be accessed frequently. This keeps in fresh in the eyes of the search engines, which means continuously high rankings. Opinions from Around the Web on How Often to Update Your Website/Blog In the beginning, a few times a month should suffice.~Derek Halpern, DIYThemes [Source: How Often Should You Update Your Blog?] If you can add one or two pages a week, you will be in really good shape. If that’s too ambitious, shoot for one or two a month. Anything less than one new page a month, and it’s pretty likely Google will see your website as stale. I also recommend dripping out new content at regular intervals, not in clumps. One article per week for four weeks in a row is much better than four articles one week followed by three weeks of inactivity.~Michael Gray, Gray Wolf SEO [Source: How Often Should You Update Your Website?] Blogging: Post weekly, at the very least. A good idea would be set the expectation with your readers from the start: Let them know the day you plan on posting; maybe even send an email to alert them to each new post. . . . After you’ve met your goals for readership and visitors, then you can dedicate more time to posting more frequently.~MarketingProfs Website [Source: How Often Should You Feed Your Content Marketing Programs?] Conclusion As you can see from these responses, there is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of how often to update your blog. Consistency is one of the most important factors in growing an online readership. It’s why I advise clients to create an editorial calendar and stick to it. Building an online community is an uphill battle in and of itself; don’t complicate it by confusing and/or alienating your readers. You don’t give them a chance to become fans if you employ do what I call “hit-and-miss posting,” ie, posting regularly for a week, then going several weeks without posting anything at all. Finally, in my opinion, a business website should be updated at least once a week. This is often enough to stay current and be able to stick to a regular posting schedule. What do you think? How often do you think a website/blog should be updated? Twitter Tweet Facebook Share Email This article was written for Business 2 Community by Kane Pepi.Learn how to publish your content on B2C Author: Kane Pepi Kane Pepi is an experienced financial and cryptocurrency writer with over 2,000+ published articles, guides, and market insights in the public domain. Expert niche subjects include asset valuation and analysis, portfolio management, and the prevention of financial crime. Kane is particularly skilled in explaining complex financial topics in a user-friendly … View full profile ›More by this author:VoIP Basics: Everything Beginners Should Know!Bitcoin Investment, Trading & Mining: The Ultimate Guide for BeginnersIs This a Better Way to Set Your 2020 Goals and Resolutions?