When it comes to content marketing and search engine optimization (SEO), you have to make sure the content you write is timely and relevant for your target audience. What does it mean to be timely? The dictionary defines “timely” as meaning done or occurring at a favorable or useful time. These are the things search engines like Google look for when determining where you rank against your competitors.
Here are the three keys to keeping your SEO and content marketing timely:
1. Stay Current with Industry News to Fuel Your Content Marketing Strategy
Keeping up with the latest industry news is crucial for a successful content marketing strategy. When you’re in the know, you can create timely, relevant content that boosts your SEO and positions your organization as a thought leader.
Start by identifying key influencers and trusted sources in your industry. Who consistently provides valuable insights? Make a list of these thought leaders and publications, then use an RSS reader like Feedly to track their latest updates. By categorizing your feeds, you can quickly access new content for specific topics relevant to your content marketing goals.
To stay even more connected, follow these experts and companies on social media. Platforms like X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, and Instagram are hotspots for real-time updates. Use a social media aggregator to monitor trending hashtags and keywords within content marketing and your industry. Set up alerts to catch breaking stories and hot topics, so you can create content that resonates with your audience.
Staying on top of industry news not only strengthens your content marketing strategy but also helps you engage with your audience on current topics that matter most to them.
2. Curate Content From Recent Articles
Once you’re following the top thought leaders in your field, you’ll start receiving a steady stream of relevant updates. This is a powerful resource for your content marketing—allowing you to curate fresh, insightful content for your audience.
Here’s how to make the most of it: when you come across a great article, consider writing on the same topic but from a unique angle or fresh perspective. Share your unique insights, experiences, or a different opinion to make it specific to you or your organization.
If you disagree with a point made in the article, consider crafting a rebuttal to present your perspective. Writing a well-reasoned counterpoint not only makes for engaging content but also adds to the larger industry conversation. You can even engage directly with the original author by commenting on their post and linking to your article. This strategy can catch the attention of their audience and extend your content marketing reach.
Remember, the faster you publish your response to an industry update, the more timely and relevant it will be for your readers. Leveraging recent articles keeps your content marketing dynamic and positions you as a responsive voice in your industry.
3. Write New Articles Regularly
Consistency is key in content marketing. To stay timely and relevant with your SEO, it’s essential to write and publish new articles regularly. Writing about a trending topic months after it was relevant won’t drive the engagement or visibility you’re aiming for. By focusing on topics that are relevant right now, you increase the chances that people will find, read, and share your articles.
Aim to publish an article once a week, or every other week, on a timely topic and post it consistently. This routine helps build trust with readers and signals reliability to search engines. Once published, promote your article across your social media channels and include it in your monthly newsletter. Encourage readers, colleagues, and friends to share it to extend your content’s reach and enhance your content marketing efforts.
SEO Strategies for 2025 & Beyond
An important thing to keep in mind when writing your content is what Google cares about most when publishing new content. The best approach to SEO going into 2025 is in line with Google’s recent core update focused—also known as E-E-A-T. It stands for:
- Expertise
- Experience
- Authoritativeness
- Trustworthiness
Google doesn’t just care about the right keywords being in the right places anymore. In direct response to the rise of AI-written content, Google is focused on delivering people-first content to their users.
What does this functionally mean for you and your business? It means that Google and other search engines care about a content creator’s credentials, reputation, and experience/authority in speaking on a specific topic. Your content should be written by humans, for humans. And even beyond the content itself, the experience on your website should be seamless and user-centric with fast load times and interactive elements (e.g. videos, hover effects).
What’s a practical example? If you’re a doctor, Google likes seeing proof that you’ve written or at least reviewed and approved medical content on your website.
The world of SEO is constantly changing, and it can feel daunting to keep up with all of the ins and outs of what Google does and does not care about. But as long as you’re prioritizing relevant content for your industry and target audience that’s written with real humans in mind, you’re moving in the right direction.
I hope that you’ve found our tips useful. Be sure to leverage timeliness in your content marketing and SEO strategies next year and beyond.
If you do this, you will attract a broader, more qualified audience. Keep in mind that if you write evergreen content, or content that’s always timely, you’ll ensure that people always keep coming back to your site for information because it’s always useful and relevant.
Are you struggling to know where to start with your content marketing strategy? Baker Marketing’s team is built up of digital marketing experts who are not only passionate about what we do every day (like SEO), but they also understand what your audience wants most. Book a free marketing review to discover how you should reach your potential patients where they are.
Reach More Patients with Baker Marketing
Baker Marketing Laboratory supports healthcare businesses in East Tennessee and across the U.S. with a combination of inbound digital marketing and powerful messaging strategies. Whether you’re a solo practice or you represent a group of physicians, we can help you build a marketing campaign that resonates with your ideal patient base. Get in touch for a free marketing review.
This blog post was originally published in January 2016 and has since been updated for accuracy in October 2024.
