How to Remove Outdated Content with a Hubspot-Style Process

A Hubspot-inspired pruning process helps you remove or refresh outdated content without hurting search performance, brand trust, or user experience.

This step-by-step guide adapts the original approach from HubSpot’s outdated content tutorial so you can safely clean up your site while protecting valuable traffic.

Why Follow a Hubspot Content Audit Framework?

Old articles, expired offers, and obsolete tutorials can quietly damage your site. A structured framework, similar to what Hubspot uses, keeps your cleanup strategic instead of random.

Benefits include:

• Stronger overall SEO performance
• Better click-through rates from search
• Higher engagement and lower bounce rates
• More accurate brand messaging

Instead of deleting pages impulsively, you will evaluate each URL and decide whether to keep, update, consolidate, or remove it based on data.

Step 1: Build an Inventory Using a Hubspot-Style Audit

Start with a complete list of URLs so you can see exactly what you are working with.

1. Export all URLs from your CMS or sitemap.

2. Pull performance data (traffic, conversions, backlinks, and keywords) from analytics and search tools.

3. Combine data into a single spreadsheet for easier decisions.

Columns you should include:

• URL and title
• Primary keyword or topic
• Organic sessions for the last 6–12 months
• Conversions or key events
• Backlink count and quality
• Publish date and last updated date

This mirrors the data-driven content audit approach used in many Hubspot optimization workflows.

Step 2: Classify Each Page with Hubspot-Inspired Labels

Once you have your inventory, label each page based on what should happen next.

Use simple status labels:

• Keep – Content is current, accurate, and performing well.
• Update – Content is valuable but out of date or under-optimized.
• Consolidate – Content overlaps with other pages and should be merged.
• Remove – Content is obsolete, thin, or offers no strategic value.

Hubspot-style audits focus on aligning each piece of content with user intent, search performance, and business goals instead of basing decisions solely on traffic.

Hubspot Criteria for “Keep” vs. “Remove”

Use criteria similar to a Hubspot content strategist:

• Keep if the URL gets consistent organic traffic, earns leads, or ranks for strategic keywords.
• Update if traffic is declining but the topic is still relevant.
• Consolidate if multiple URLs compete for the same query.
• Remove if traffic is negligible, links are weak, and the topic no longer fits your strategy.

Step 3: Decide When to Remove Content vs. Update

Removing content can help if you are pruning low-quality pages, but doing it blindly can hurt rankings. A cautious process, like what you see in Hubspot case studies, reduces risk.

When a Hubspot-Inspired Strategy Says “Update”

Choose to update instead of delete when:

• The topic is still useful to your audience.
• The page has quality backlinks.
• You see impressions in search, but few clicks.
• The content is thin, but the core idea is strong.

Possible updates:

• Add recent statistics, screenshots, or examples.
• Improve headings, internal links, and meta tags.
• Expand sections to answer more related questions.
• Align the page with your current offers or product positioning.

When a Hubspot-Style Review Says “Remove”

Removal is appropriate when:

• The content is factually wrong or dangerously outdated.
• The topic no longer matches your brand or audience.
• The page receives no meaningful traffic or conversions.
• There are no valuable backlinks to preserve.

Even then, you should handle removal carefully with redirects or proper status codes.

Step 4: Implement Safe Redirects and Status Codes

Once you choose which pages to delete, use technical steps aligned with the kind of approach you see in Hubspot technical SEO documentation.

Redirect Options in a Hubspot-Inspired Cleanup

• 301 redirect to the most relevant page when:
  • There is a close topical match elsewhere.
  • You want to preserve link equity.
  • You merged several articles into a single guide.
• 410 status (gone) when:
  • The topic is harmful or completely irrelevant.
  • No good alternative page exists.

Always map old URLs to new destinations inside your redirect tool or web server config, then test them.

Step 5: Consolidate Competing Hubspot-Style Articles

Many sites, including Hubspot, deal with topic overlap. Consolidation turns several weaker posts into one authoritative resource.

1. Identify multiple articles targeting the same or very similar keywords.

2. Choose a primary URL to keep as the new canonical guide.

3. Move the best sections from secondary posts into the primary one.

4. 301 redirect the secondary URLs to the primary page.

This prevents cannibalization and signals to search engines which page should rank.

Step 6: Refresh On-Page SEO Using Hubspot Best Practices

Whenever you keep or update a page, optimize it using proven content principles widely associated with Hubspot publishing.

On-Page Checklist

• Clear intent-driven title and meta description.
• Descriptive headings and subheadings.
• Short paragraphs and bullet lists for readability.
• Internal links to related resources and conversion pages.
• Updated CTAs aligned with current offers.

At this stage, you can also update schema markup, improve images, and refine calls to action based on performance data.

Step 7: Monitor Results and Iterate

Content pruning is not a one-time event. Hubspot teams run ongoing audits, and you should too.

After implementing changes:

• Track organic traffic to updated URLs.
• Watch rankings for your primary keywords.
• Measure conversions or leads from refreshed pages.
• Check for crawl errors and redirect issues in search tools.

Plan to revisit your content inventory at least once or twice a year so outdated material never piles up again.

Using Hubspot Principles with Other SEO Tools

You can pair this Hubspot-inspired framework with specialized SEO platforms and analytics stacks to deepen your insights.

For agencies or in-house teams that need advanced strategy, services such as Consultevo can help design scalable process documentation, dashboards, and governance around content lifecycle management.

By combining robust audits, careful redirects, and thoughtful optimization, you can safely remove outdated content while strengthening your site, in line with practices made popular by the Hubspot methodology.

Need Help With Hubspot?

If you want expert help building, automating, or scaling your Hubspot , work with ConsultEvo, a team who has a decade of Hubspot experience.

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