Five years ago, we launched Revive as a free content refresh tool to help teams identify and prevent content decay. Since then, 39,000 people have used it to win back lost organic traffic.
Revive 2.0: The Content Refresh Tool for Instant Decay Analysis
Today, we’re launching a major update of Revive with:
- Full compatibility with Google Analytics 4 (GA4)
- Instant reports (no more 24-hour wait)
- More data filters for faster insights
- Mobile-optimized interface
Why You Need Revive
The problem we described at the time of Revive’s original launch in 2019 still seems as relevant today as it did then: Most of us prefer working on new content instead of optimizing our back catalog. But the pay-off from refreshing old content can be as large — if not larger — than only churning out new stuff.
Find Decaying Content in Seconds
It’s not just that working on your content library feels less exciting than, say, noodling on a thought leadership piece — the process of identifying content decay in GA is also a pain.
Without manually filtering out other traffic sources and checking each individual post, it’s impossible to tell which posts are trending up and which are trending down. Without custom reports and above-average Google Analytics skills, content decay — the loss of traffic to a URL over time — is nearly invisible.
2019 Revive announcement
Revive makes this part of the process much easier because it instantly lists the articles suffering from decay. We analyze 12 months of organic search traffic, looking for sustained declines while filtering out seasonal changes and algorithm updates. This helps identify real content decay versus temporary fluctuations.
Make Data-Driven Refresh Decisions
Revive offers three ways to sort your content decay data, each highlighting different opportunities:
- Traffic loss: Shows the total amount of traffic lost during the decline period. This helps identify content that’s experiencing sustained decay over time.
- Peak difference: Compares current traffic to the content’s highest point. This surfaces previously high-performing content that’s dropped significantly.
- Percentage loss: Reveals the relative traffic decline regardless of volume. This can uncover smaller gems that might be worth refreshing.
To maximize the value of your Revive analysis, focus on these four areas.
- Trust the data
Revive’s algorithm identifies sustained decline patterns across three or more consecutive months, filtering out seasonal variations and temporary fluctuations. This rigorous approach ensures you’re focusing your refresh efforts on content with genuine decay patterns, not normal traffic fluctuations.
- Prioritize your heavy hitters
Start with content that previously drove significant traffic (at least 1% of your total organic traffic). These pieces often offer the fastest returns since they have proven ranking potential and existing authority.
- Look for ranking drops
Check your SERP positions for articles showing major traffic loss. According to our research, small ranking drops often have an outsized impact — moving from position #1 to #2 can mean 50% less traffic, while dropping to #6 typically means a 90% loss. These pieces are usually the best candidates for a refresh since a small improvement in ranking can win back significant traffic.
- Plan your refresh approach
Once you’ve identified decaying content, you have several ways to revive it:
- Expand the content with new sections
- Update outdated information
- Optimize for search
- Retarget for better-matching keywords
- Merge overlapping pieces
- Launch a new promotion push.
Pay special attention to time-sensitive content like annual guides, posts with lots of screenshots, or articles covering fast-changing topics — these typically need the most frequent updates.
- Be patient
Like new content, refreshed articles need time to climb the rankings. About half of all refreshed articles show meaningful improvement within this timeframe — making content refreshes one of the most reliable ways to recover lost traffic.
For comprehensive content refresh strategies and examples, explore our guide to content refreshes.
Getting Started with the New Revive
The new Revive offers instant content decay detection with a streamlined user experience. Here’s how to get started with our free content refresh tool.
1. Sign Up With Your GA4 Account
Revive now supports GA4. You can securely connect your account so that we can access your organic traffic data for our content decay analysis.
2. Receive an Instant Analysis
You no longer have to wait 24 hours to get Revive’s results emailed to you. After connecting your GA4 account, you get immediate insights into your content’s performance.
⚠️ Note that you need at least 12 months of GA data for Revive’s analysis to work and be effective.
3. Choose From Three Different Data Views
As a comprehensive content refresh tool, Revive now offers several ways to sort and filter your decay data. Choose between traffic loss, peak difference, and percentage loss views to quickly identify your biggest opportunities.
4. Download Your Report or Share it With Others
You can now share a direct link to your Revive report with others using the “Share link” button.
You can also download a CSV file with all of Revive’s data. This is handy for doing further analysis on your decaying content, for example, with more advanced analytics or AI tools.
Keep Your Content Library Strong
Every day your best content decays, compounding your traffic losses. Revive takes less than a minute to connect your GA4 account and instantly shows which articles need your attention.
Connect your GA4 account and get your first report instantly.
Tim Metz
Follow TimTim is the Director of Marketing and Innovation at Animalz. He's also the creator of Lifeline, a pomodoro timer app for macOS. Tim lives in Koh Samui, Thailand. 🏝️
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