Want more traffic to old blog posts? Make a list

This summer marks 12 years that I’ve been blogging. I’ve learned a few tricks along the way to generate traffic and create awareness of old content. Here is one particular trick I like to use that works particularly well on blogs with a lot of content.

Make a list.

Combining old but related posts into a list with a common theme is a great way to improve SEO and to drive traffic to old content.

Take some time to go through some old posts and check to see if there are any that have something in common. Then write a paragraph summary for each post, link to the post, and create a numbered subheading for each summary (perhaps the original post’s title).

Not only will it drive traffic to your old content, but web readers love list posts, so it is a way to make your post stand out in RSS readers and social media streams.

Here is a handful of list posts I’ve written using this technique:

• Proof that hard work increases social media engagement
• The top 10 writing articles my readers read the most
• 5 critical components of creating compelling copy

What tricks do you use to raise awareness of your old content? Let me know in the comments.