{"id":25006,"date":"2021-06-01T15:00:01","date_gmt":"2021-06-01T13:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/?p=25006"},"modified":"2021-06-24T14:44:30","modified_gmt":"2021-06-24T12:44:30","slug":"how-to-identify-underperforming-content-in-wordpress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/how-to-identify-underperforming-content-in-wordpress\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Identify and Improve Underperforming Content in WordPress"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\"><p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Content production is booming online, and it\u2019s not because of the untold thousands of fledgling writers and poets who are going digital to practice their craft and hopefully find an audience. Content production is on the rise because <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/ultimate-guide-to-content-marketing\/\">content marketing<\/a> in its many shapes and forms has proven to be successful \u2013 for those who manage to do it right, of course. But if you ever wondered why many <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/theme-category\/online-store-wordpress-themes\/\">WordPress store themes<\/a> have a blog, as do <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/theme-category\/wedding-wordpress-themes\">wedding themes<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/theme-category\/real-estate-wordpress-themes\">real estate themes<\/a>, it\u2019s because, when it comes to marketing, content works.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Except, of course, when it doesn\u2019t.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]The truth about content and marketing is that there are many ways to do it wrong \u2013 certainly more than the ways to do it right. It would be hard to say how many pieces of content that are online aren\u2019t the best-performing versions of themselves. Ask a content creator or a marketer, however, and they\u2019ll tell you that, at best, there\u2019s always room for improvement. Some might go so far as to admit that content that downright underperforms isn\u2019t a rare occurrence.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]We\u2019re here to address that. In this article, you\u2019ll read about:<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;22px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#a-quick-word-about-content-performance\">A Quick Word About Content Performance<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#why-does-content-underperform\">Why Does Content Underperform?<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#how-to-find-underperforming-content\">How to Find Underperforming Content<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#what-to-do-about-underperforming-content\">What to Do About Underperforming Content?<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;80px&#8221;][vc_widget_sidebar sidebar_id=&#8221;new-top-picks-banner&#8221;][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;80px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"a-quick-word-about-content-performance\"><\/a>A Quick Word About Content Performance<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;21px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder    \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"554\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/A-Quick-Word-About-Content-Performance.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"A Quick Word About Content Performance\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/A-Quick-Word-About-Content-Performance.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/A-Quick-Word-About-Content-Performance-300x172.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/A-Quick-Word-About-Content-Performance-768x439.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/A-Quick-Word-About-Content-Performance-620x354.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Do enough online searches, and you\u2019ll quickly come to believe that the performance of a piece of content is strictly tied to its ability to attract an audience or rank well in search engines. Certainly, these are among the more common reasons why you might create content, or commission its creation. <strong>But they are far from being the only ones.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Whenever you are devising a content strategy or thinking about using content as a part of a broader marketing strategy, you\u2019ll be in the position to consider different types of content to achieve different goals. <strong>Blog posts, if you write and optimize them well, might help your website\u2019s rankings in search results.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>But if you\u2019re a B2B software vendor looking for some content to help you out further down the sales funnel, those types of blog posts won\u2019t cut it.<\/strong> You\u2019ll need content that performs another type of role, which often means that you\u2019ll need a different type of content. In this case, a case study or a white paper might do better.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>The key takeaway is that content that performs well isn\u2019t just the content that brings you plenty of traffic.<\/strong> Content can persuade people to sign up for newsletters, buy products, or become repeat customers. You can also create content with the sole purpose of establishing brand authority or generating backlinks. You can use some pieces of content to test out things like time spent on-site or the ratio of new vs returning visitors. <strong>There are many performance metrics for content, and there are equally as many ways content might underperform.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"why-does-content-underperform\"><\/a>Why Does Content Underperform?<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;21px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder    \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"554\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Why-Does-Content-Underperform.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Why Does Content Underperform\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Why-Does-Content-Underperform.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Why-Does-Content-Underperform-300x172.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Why-Does-Content-Underperform-768x439.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Why-Does-Content-Underperform-620x354.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>There are many different reasons why your content might not perform according to your standards.<\/strong> It might be that the type of content you created wasn\u2019t the best match for the purpose you gave it. You might be trying to achieve a goal with the wrong type of content.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>It\u2019s also possible that the content doesn\u2019t align with the user intent.<\/strong> When the content creator or the person in charge of search engine optimization doesn\u2019t understand intent types and tries targeting queries with wrong keywords, it\u2019s easy to see how the content either won\u2019t reach the audience or, if it does, won\u2019t hold their attention for long.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>There are technical problems that can cause the content to be difficult to reach.<\/strong> It might have happened that your content has been <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/how-to-noindex-a-page-in-wordpress\/\">no-indexed<\/a> by mistake, or something else might have happened that interfered with the search engine\u2019s ability to index the content. Maybe it\u2019s not the search engine\u2019s problem, at all \u2013 <strong>maybe it\u2019s the website&#8217;s internal linking that stopped siphoning people to some pieces of the content.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>Finally, the content may be simply \u2013 bad.<\/strong> Poor-quality content comes in many shapes and sizes. It might be poorly written, littered with spelling mistakes. It can be thin, full of fluff, and critically lacking substantial or up-to-date information. Formatting issues can make the content difficult to read or prevent it from conforming with some standards that would make it well-performing.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"how-to-find-underperforming-content\"><\/a>How to Find Underperforming Content<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;21px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder    \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"554\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/How-to-Find-Underperforming-Content.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"How to Find Underperforming Content\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/How-to-Find-Underperforming-Content.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/How-to-Find-Underperforming-Content-300x172.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/How-to-Find-Underperforming-Content-768x439.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/How-to-Find-Underperforming-Content-620x354.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Sometimes, the signs that your content is underperforming can be obvious. <strong>If your website is relatively new, so there\u2019s not that much content to monitor, any change or deviation from the expected will be easy to notice.<\/strong> Then again, no matter how big your website gets, when content starts underperforming critically, you\u2019ll notice it.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]But that\u2019s a drop in performance \u2013 what happens when content simply wasn\u2019t performing well from the start? <strong>This is why it\u2019s important to set goals and keep a record of them for every piece of content or, more realistically, every campaign you launch.<\/strong> You\u2019ll monitor the KPIs that will tell you how well your content is doing, and if enough time passes and it fails to reach your goals, you\u2019ll know you have underperforming content.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Every webmaster should perform an occasional <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wordpress-content-audit\/#why-perform-it\">content audit<\/a>. <strong>It\u2019s a great opportunity to create an inventory of the content, analyze its performance, and then take some steps towards improving it.<\/strong> Whichever of the methods you choose, the tools you\u2019ll use will likely include <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/getting-started-with-google-analytics\/\">Google Analytics<\/a>, and tools such as <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ahrefs<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.semrush.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SEMrush<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/buzzsumo.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">BuzzSumo<\/a>.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"what-to-do-about-underperforming-content\"><\/a>What to Do About Underperforming Content?<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;21px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder    \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"554\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/What-to-do-About-Underperforming-Content.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"What to Do About Underperforming Content\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/What-to-do-About-Underperforming-Content.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/What-to-do-About-Underperforming-Content-300x172.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/What-to-do-About-Underperforming-Content-768x439.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/What-to-do-About-Underperforming-Content-620x354.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>What you need to do to fix underperforming content will depend on the types of issues you find.<\/strong> If you\u2019re thinking that rewriting the content is the worst thing that can happen at this point, you should know that it\u2019s not \u2013 some content can\u2019t be salvaged and needs to be scrapped completely.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Some of the things you are likely to do while mending your content and improving its importance include:<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;22px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><strong>Repurpose content to match a specific goal<\/strong> \u2013 this is especially important if you\u2019re trying to achieve something using the wrong content.<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><strong>Search engine optimization<\/strong> \u2013 all of the standard SEO techniques are on the table, from metadata to making your website crawler-friendly.<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><strong>Aligning content with intent<\/strong> \u2013 don\u2019t create informational content for when you\u2019re trying to target transactional intent, for example.<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><strong>Optimizing it for appropriate keywords<\/strong> \u2013 if you didn\u2019t have the correct keywords when creating the content, <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/keyword-research-and-how-to-do-it-right\/\">proper keyword research<\/a> will help.<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><strong>Make your content better<\/strong> \u2013 everything from improving spelling and grammar to updating content with fresh statistics and additional points of view might help.<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]On top of these adjustments, <strong>you might also consider looking for what led to issues with your content and addressing the problem at that point.<\/strong> Are you having trouble coming up with interesting topics for content? Can you efficiently proofread and spellcheck your content? Do you have a proper strategy guiding your content production? How are you at setting goals for your content? Do you monitor content performance regularly? <strong>These are all possible root causes of serial content underperformance.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\">Let\u2019s Wrap It Up!<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]The content you create for your WordPress website can be one of the biggest assets when it comes to reaching your professional, business, or even personal goals \u2013 there are few things you can\u2019t achieve with good content. So when content fails to perform well, you need to act, the sooner the better.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]To talk about performance at all, your content needs a purpose. Next, you need to be aware of the possible reasons why content often underperforms \u2013 this will show you what to look out for. As for the action part, identifying the underperforming content can be as easy as seeing an unusually high bounce rate and finding its cause in bad keyword targeting. Or it can be a part of a process such as a content audit. Either way, you\u2019ll know what pieces of content need your attention, and you\u2019ll know what you can do to help it shine \u2013 or scrap it if it has to happen. [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are you having trouble with underperforming content? Don&#8217;t worry &#8211; if you can pinpoint the piece that&#8217;s not doing well, you&#8217;ll be able to improve it, too!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9295,"featured_media":25036,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[27,4,13],"class_list":["post-25006","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-marketing","tag-content","tag-tips","tag-wordpress"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25006","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9295"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25006"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25006\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25036"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25006"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25006"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25006"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}