The Content Audit - How to Find Hidden Gems in Your Blog Archive
When was the last time you looked through your old blogs? If your answer is somewhere between “ages ago” and “never,” you’re not alone. Most businesses create brilliant content, post it, and then move on, leaving a digital treasure chest of forgotten gems buried in the archives.
But here’s the thing: your old content might be quietly costing you. Outdated advice, broken links, or missed SEO opportunities can all hold your site back.
Enter the content audit – part detective work, part digital spring clean. It’s your chance to rediscover forgotten content, fix what’s outdated, and make your best blogs shine again.
Why a Content Audit Matters
A content audit isn’t just another task to tick off, it’s one of the most valuable marketing exercises you can do. Here’s why:
- SEO evolves – what ranked two years ago might be invisible now.
- Your business changes – new services, tone of voice, and goals mean older posts may not fit anymore.
- Performance surprises – sometimes the content you forgot about is quietly driving the most traffic.
- It saves time – instead of reinventing the wheel, you can polish what already works.
In short: an audit helps you work smarter, not harder.
Signs You’re Overdue a Content Audit
Not sure if it’s time? Look out for these red flags:
- You’ve got duplicate or outdated blogs lurking in the background.
- Your “latest” post still references Brexit negotiations.
- Some blogs get traffic but zero enquiries.
- You’re not sure which topics perform best anymore.
- Your old images or CTAs are so outdated they could star in a museum exhibit.
If any of that sounds familiar… it’s audit o’clock.
How to Run a Simple but Effective Content Audit
Step 1 – Gather Your Data
Start with a full list of your blogs, export from your CMS or sitemap. Then hop into Google Analytics, Search Console or SEMrush to grab performance data (page views, bounce rate, rankings, conversions).
Step 2 – Review Quality & Relevance
Ask: Is it accurate? On-brand? Still useful? Mark outdated content for review and highlight “evergreen” posts that could easily be revived.
Step 3 – Assess Performance
Check what’s working.
- High traffic but low conversions? Maybe your call to action needs tweaking.
- Low traffic but great engagement? Time to promote it more widely.
Step 4 – Categorise Everything
Create a simple spreadsheet with these columns:
- Keep as is
- Update or repurpose
- Remove or redirect
This gives you a clear visual plan for what’s next.
What to Look For: The Hidden Gems
This is where the fun starts, spotting the buried treasure. Look for:
- Evergreen topics – still relevant, just need a refresh.
- Blogs that rank just off page one –-small SEO tweaks could push them higher.
- Content with high engagement but low conversions – update CTAs or add internal links.
- Articles that could become a bigger guide – combine them into one powerhouse post.
- Stories that still resonate – modernise examples or add visuals.
Pro tip: your biggest wins often come from small updates, sometimes a new title, intro or internal link can make all the difference.
If you’re refreshing older blogs, a great way to make them more engaging is by adding a human touch. Here’s how storytelling in business blogs can help turn dry content into something readers actually enjoy
How to Revive and Reuse Your Best Content
Once you’ve found your hidden gems, it’s time to polish them up:
- Update facts, stats, and references.
- Add fresh visuals, infographics or video clips.
- Improve formatting and structure for readability.
- Optimise metadata and internal links for SEO.
- Repurpose top performers into new formats: newsletters, short videos, or LinkedIn posts.
Sometimes, you’ll find several older blogs on the same topic. Instead of keeping them all, consider merging them into one comprehensive, high-quality piece, Google loves depth, and readers prefer one strong resource over five short ones.
Pro tip: this is also a great opportunity to create a new category or topic hub. Grouping related posts together makes it easier for readers (and search engines) to find all your content on a specific theme.
Once you’ve identified your top-performing posts, don’t stop there — check out our guide on how to repurpose your content to make it work harder across multiple platforms.
What if you decide to delete a blog?
Sometimes, a post is simply beyond saving. Maybe it’s irrelevant, duplicated, or just plain outdated. That’s okay! But before you hit delete, make sure you set up a 301 redirect from the old URL to a relevant page (like a newer blog or service page). This keeps the SEO value and prevents broken links that frustrate readers and Google.
Finally, while you’re reviewing your content, look for internal linking opportunities. Link from older blogs to newer ones (and vice versa) to help search engines understand your site structure and keep visitors exploring.
Tools That Make Content Auditing Easier
Save yourself some spreadsheet-induced headaches with these tools:
- Google Analytics & Search Console – for data and performance insights.
- SEMrush / Ahrefs – track rankings, backlinks, and keyword gaps.
- Screaming Frog / Sitebulb – find broken links, redirects, missing metadata.
- Airtable / Trello – simple ways to log progress and prioritise tasks.
Even a basic setup beats trying to remember which blogs you meant to “get back to” six months ago.
Using Data to Strengthen Your Stories
Your audit isn’t just about fixing, it’s about finding opportunities. Combining data with storytelling gives your content extra impact.
For example: Let’s say you wrote a ‘Top Tips’ blog back in 2020. It still gets the odd visit, but the advice is a bit dated. Add fresh insights, current examples and a sharper call to action suddenly it’s performing like new.
How Often Should You Audit?
A good rule of thumb:
- Light audit – every 3–6 months to update links, check analytics, and tidy up.
- Full audit – once a year for a deeper dive into performance, SEO and strategy.
Think of it like a car MOT – a little maintenance now prevents bigger problems later.
The Content Audit – How to Find Hidden Gems in Your Blog Archive
Your blog archive isn’t old news, it’s untapped potential.
Inside those forgotten posts could be high-performing content just waiting for a refresh. With a structured content audit, you’ll uncover hidden gems, improve SEO, and save yourself a mountain of time on new content creation.
Need help reviewing your existing content? Our content marketing services make it easy to refresh, repurpose and optimise your blogs for maximum ROI.
Book a content audit with The Last Hurdle, we’ll help you uncover hidden gems, update the outdated, and turn your archive into a content powerhouse that drives results. Call us on 01604 654545 or email [email protected]
