Real-Time vs
Evergreen Content:
Which Works Better?
Content marketing pertains to two types of content: real-time and evergreen. Real-time content is timely and relevant to current events, trends, and news. It is the type of content that is meant to be consumed quickly and provides a snapshot of what is happening right now. On the other hand, evergreen content is timeless and always relevant, regardless of its creation time. Evergreen content is forever and provides long-term value to its readers.
At this point, our curious minds ask, which type of content will better work? The answer is: it depends. Both real-time and evergreen content have their strengths and weaknesses, and the type of content one should focus on will depend on our goals and target audience.
So, without further ado, dive into some excellent tips on how to leverage your business with personal branding:
Real-time content refers to content that is created and delivered instantly without any delays or lags. It is an outstanding option for creating buzz and generating engagement for recent happenings. Such type of content gets quick attention. And most commonly published on social media platforms, as social media users scroll through their timelines for the latest information and events – making the real-time content news cycle quick circulations.
Advantages of Real-Time Content
Real-time content can take many forms, such as live streams, social media posts, news articles, and blog posts. It is highly beneficial to every business in many ways:
Timeliness: Real-time content allows corporations to engage their target audiences with recent events and happenings. Real-time content facilitates business accounts to share breaking news, live updates, and instant reactions to events as they happen. Eventually, help to build brand awareness and establish domain authority in the specific industry.
Engagement: Real-time content boosts engagement and interaction with the audience. It can help start conversations and Q&A sessions to create a sense of community around the brand. Such interactive sessions can lead to increased brand loyalty and customer satisfaction.
Flexibility: Real-time content can be easily adapted and customized to different platforms and audiences. It can get published through various channels, including social media, websites, and mobile apps. This flexibility can help to reach a wider audience and increase overall reach.
Authenticity: Real-time content is often considered more authentic and genuine than pre-planned content. Since the content gets curated in response to current events and trends, it reflects the real-time experiences of your audience.
Competitive Advantage: Real-time content can give any business a competitive advantage. By being the first to share breaking news or offer real-time insights, brands can establish themselves as thought leaders and gain a loyal following.
However, real-time content has a short lifespan and can quickly become outdated. It also requires a lot of resources to produce, as it requires constant monitoring of the news cycle and a team that can create content quickly.
Evergreen content is the more focused form of content with long-term value. The evergreen content is not associated with current events, trends, or time-sensitive information. Instead, it focuses on providing information that is always relevant and valuable, regardless of when it is accessed. It’s the content that is always relevant and could be consumed over time, regardless of its curation time. How-to guides, product reviews, educational content, and industry insights are some forms of evergreen content.
Advantages of Evergreen Content
Evergreen content is an essential part of content marketing and offers several advantages, such as:
Longevity: Unlike time-sensitive content, evergreen content remains relevant and valuable to readers over a long period. It can continue to drive traffic to your website or blog long after it gets published.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Evergreen content is mostly optimized for search engines, which can help it rank higher in search results and drive more traffic to your website. It increases websites’ visibility and attracts more potential customers or readers.
Brand Awareness: By consistently publishing evergreen content, brands can increase online visibility and attract new followers or customers. As such content is shared and recommended, more people will become aware of your brand.
Cost-Effective: Creating evergreen content is a valuable investment because it can continue to provide value. It attracts traffic over long periods and helps businesses save time and resources in the long run.
However, evergreen content is less likely to generate a spike in traffic and engagement in the short term, and that could be difficult to compete with the large volume of existing evergreen content on the internet.
Which Works Better?
The success of any content strategy highly depends upon business types, their defined goals, and audience demographics. As mentioned earlier, both types of content work better. If you are looking to generate buzz and engage with a wider audience quickly, real-time content is the perfect option for you. However, if you are looking to provide long-term value and establish your brand as a thought leader in the industry, evergreen content is the better choice.
Pro Tip
Ideally, every content marketing strategy should include a mix of both real-time and evergreen content. By leveraging the strengths of both types of content, businesses can create a well-rounded content strategy to achieve their marketing goals.