metrics
Content decay
The gradual loss of traffic + citations as content ages without updates.
Definition
Content decay is the predictable decline in organic traffic + AI citations that content experiences as it ages, competitors publish newer angles, and search/AI engines weight freshness signals. Decay rates vary: news content decays in weeks; how-to content in years. Refreshing decayed content (updating dates, adding new data, fixing stale claims) reverses decay.
Example
A 2020 post 'How to use Notion' was ranking #1 for 3 years. By 2024 it's at #8 because Notion's UI changed. A 2024 refresh + screenshot update returns it to #1.How to optimize
Audit decay quarterly: identify posts with declining traffic. Refresh: update dates, replace stale data, add new sections. Re-promote on social. The republish often outperforms a new post on the same topic.