Many bloggers focus heavily on creating new content while overlooking the goldmine they already have older blog posts. Over time, even your best articles can become outdated, underperforming, or buried in your archive. That’s why conducting a content audit and strategically reviving older posts is a must for sustainable growth.
We realized this on https://theelectronmagazine.com when traffic began plateauing despite consistently publishing new content. Instead of pushing out more articles, we decided to review and optimize what we had already published. The results were impressive: increased rankings, better engagement, and a faster-loading site.
This guide shares how you can do the same even if you’re a beginner with step-by-step, actionable advice.
Step 1: Create a Content Inventory
The first step in a content audit is listing every post on your blog.
How to do it:
- Use a spreadsheet (Google Sheets or Excel).
- List each post’s title, URL, publish date, last updated date, word count, and target keyword (if any).
- Tools like Screaming Frog, Ahrefs, or even WordPress plugins like WP All Export can speed up this process.
Having everything in one place allows you to spot outdated posts, duplicates, or thin content easily.
Step 2: Assess Performance Metrics
Look at how each post is performing in terms of traffic, rankings, and engagement.
Key metrics to review:
- Page views (from Google Analytics)
- Average time on page
- Bounce rate
- Backlinks (use Ahrefs, Ubersuggest, or Semrush)
- Social shares or comments
Action Tip: Create color-coded filters in your spreadsheet: Green for high-performing, Yellow for average, and Red for underperforming posts.
Step 3: Identify Opportunities for Updates or Deletion
Not every old blog post needs to be revived. Some should be merged with others, redirected, or deleted.
For posts worth keeping but needing updates:
- Outdated stats or examples
- Broken links
- Poor formatting
- Missing internal links
For posts that should be deleted or redirected:
- Thin content (under 300 words)
- Duplicate topics
- Irrelevant or no longer useful to your audience
Example from our blog: We had a 2019 article on “Free Design Tools” that had outdated tools. After updating and adding new options, it jumped back into the top 10 search results.
Step 4: Refresh & Optimize Existing Content
Now it’s time to breathe new life into your old blog posts.
Actionable ways to revive content:
- Update outdated information
- Add new insights, tools, or examples
- Insert relevant internal links to newer posts
- Improve formatting (shorter paragraphs, bullets, visuals)
- Optimize for a better keyword (based on new research)
- Add a strong CTA (Call-to-Action)
Bonus Tip: Change the publish date to the current date (if your CMS allows) to reflect that it’s been updated.
Step 5: Improve On-Page SEO
If the content is good but not ranking, poor SEO might be the issue.
Checklist for on-page SEO:
- Keyword in the title, meta description, and URL
- Proper use of H1, H2, and H3 tags
- Alt text for images
- Internal linking structure
- Fast page load speed
Tools to help: Yoast SEO, Rank Math, Surfer SEO, or even Google Search Console for insights.
Step 6: Republish and Promote
Once your content is refreshed, don’t just hit “update” and move on—treat it like a new post.
How to promote it:
- Share across your social media channels
- Mention in your next email newsletter
- Submit to relevant forums, groups, or content curation platforms
- Add it to your homepage or popular posts widget
We used this exact process on our blog and saw a revived post bring in 3x the traffic within a month—all without writing anything new from scratch.
Step 7: Set a Recurring Audit Schedule
Don’t wait for traffic to decline before auditing again.
Recommended frequency:
- Quarterly for blogs with lots of content
- Twice a year for smaller blogs
Use your content inventory sheet to keep track of last update dates, so you know which posts to revisit next.
Final Thoughts
Performing a content audit isn’t a glamorous task, but it’s one of the most effective strategies for long-term blog growth. It helps clean up underperforming content, improves SEO, and enhances the user experience all using assets you already have.