Evergreen vs. Seasonal Content

Every blog post or article you’ve ever read falls into two categories: seasonal content and evergreen content. Some marketers and writers will tell you to “write timeless content”, while others will suggest focusing on trending topics.

The truth is, as you may have guessed, that both types of content serve an important purpose. Read on to find out how each one can contribute to a content marketing strategy, and examples that your own blog or content can follow.

What is evergreen content?

Evergreen content is timeless, always relevant and useful no matter when it is read or viewed. One way to test if the content is evergreen is to predict whether it will still be valuable to the intended audience one year later. If it is, then the content is evergreen, if not, it’s probably seasonal.

Why is evergreen content important?

If you want to generate a steady flow of traffic to your website, evergreen content is the way to go. Even if you don’t get a ton of views when it’s first published, over time you can continue to share and re-share, and slowly accumulate a following.

Evergreen content is generally easier to write about, as the information does not change as often. There isn’t any rush to publish right away. There’s no shortage of sources to reference.

Evergreen content also creates several opportunities for writers and marketers to continually build on the original post, by adding images, infographics, and links to more updated posts. Over time, evergreen content can help your business rank more highly for certain keywords.

Examples of evergreen content

• How-to guides
• Whitepapers and case studies
• Industry analyses
• Product or service reviews
• Infographics and presentations

What is seasonal content?

Seasonal content is time-sensitive, only useful during a certain time or period during the year. This type of content focuses on the present day. Ask yourself: what is trending right now? What holidays are coming up? What kind of topics would audiences want to read at this particular time?

Why is seasonal content important?

While evergreen content is great for long-term awareness, seasonal content is for creating immediate buzz. Since the content is only relevant for a short period of time, they have a greater potential to go viral on social networks.

Since seasonal content covers some new trend or development, there’s also less competition involved. Other publishers are typically working with the same amount of information, and the race becomes who can publish faster, or in a more presentable way.

Finally, publishing new or seasonal content gives off the impression that your brand is relevant right now. Compared to evergreen content, seasonal content requires keeping up to date with industry news and trends.

Tip: Check out Google Trends or Twitter’s Trending Topics for some topic inspiration based on what people are discussing right now.

Examples of seasonal content

• Holiday topics (Christmas, Ramadan, Hannukah, Thanksgiving etc.)
• Seasonal events (Playoff season, Summer/Winter vacation, general elections)
• Limited-time events (Festivals and concerts, Film or TV show premieres, product releases)
• Current events (Celebrity stories, Viral stories)
• Breaking news (Political, Economic, Social)

Seasonal vs. Evergreen content

You’ll hear arguments for both seasonal and evergreen, although the majority will claim that evergreen is what you should focus on. That’s true to a certain extent, but you’ll want to experiment and find a mix that works best for your brand. There’s no right answer- the best mix will vary depending on your industry.

News and gossip columns tend to focus heavily on seasonal content, with a few evergreen pieces (in-depth analyses and interviews).

Educational websites are primarily centered on evergreen content, such as lesson plans and explainer content.

Start off with a 50/50 split between seasonal and evergreen content. From there, adjust the ratio depending on the success of each post.

Creating both seasonal and evergreen content can be a major planning process. To learn more about how Arcalea can assist in your content strategy, learn more on our website today.