My first SEO project is going to be a content site with articles and advice on Reptiles. Is it important to update the site constantly? Or can I just add a lot of unique content and then not update it again? It's hard to update in this niche, because once the information is written there isn't much else to add. The only ways I can think of doing it is: Setting up a News section where it grabs links from news sites that are reptile related. Adding a forum (I'd need traffic first though) Adding a section where people can ask questions about reptiles and get them answered by me (I'd need traffic first though) Any other ideas?
I would go for regular, and maintained content updates. The more you update, the more often your site is crawled. Constant can be daily, weekly, monthly - so long as it happens regularly. I def would not go with the "not update it again." News section is a good idea, though that content would not be your own - it would be a regular change to your site. If you could commit to it, you could add a blog to your site, and write a regular piece on a selected reptile (like interesting facts, a reosurce page for each reptile, or a piece common ownership problems) they could be ~300 words, and that would keep your site up to date, and add value to your customers. I would also make a twitter account, and have a feed on your site to which you could publish your site updates. This would keep your site updated pretty regularly. -Elie
Frequent content updates is good for your site if you are really serious about improving your ranking in search engines. If you think the niche you are dealing does not have enough to keep writing about, than there should be some close variations of your niche. Search for other niches (relevant and similar to your niche) and write about them. You already know what you have to do before adding a forum -- traffic... Good luck,
Google likes change, and fresh content so update as much as you can (but not at the expense of quality content). Be wary of a forum just yet until you already have a body of significant traffic, because nothing screams site not worth spending time on than a dead forum. Focus on your content for now, and definitely update regularly if you want to stand any chance of appearing in the SERPs. Good luck!
If you grab links from other places, it's going to be duplicate content, so that's not going to help you. As for the forum and Q&A section, you're right - you need traffic first. You could start by posting good content on your own site, then doing some article marketing (however, you will need to change the articles before posting them other places). You could try some guest blogging to increase your traffic and get your link out there. A quick google search should be able to tell you where to find guest blogging opportunities. Plus, you could post on reptile-related forums (with your signature at the bottom, of course). You don't need to update your site "constantly". Yes, google likes sites that are fresh, but it doesn't have to be at a pace that makes you stressed or uncomfortable. As far as finding new topics, that shouldn't be too hard with some good research. After all, if you want people to think of you as an expert, you're going to have to give them new information.