Evergreen Content Lifecycle Management System

Source framework: Macarthy, A. (2022) 500 Social Media Marketing Tips. 6th edn.

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Use when

• Produces an evergreen content lifecycle management system — identifying which existing content has durable value, scoring it against a 3-dimension framework, designing a refresh and republication rotation, and building a 90-day schedule that maximises content lifespan without requiring constant new production. Invoke when a client has existing content underperforming due to poor timing or lack of promotion, when production capacity is limited and the client needs to get more from less, or when building a sustainable content plan for a client who cannot produce new content every day.
• Use this skill when it is the closest match to the requested deliverable or workflow.

Do not use when

• Do not use this skill for graphic design, video production, software development, or legal advice beyond the repository's stated scope.
• Do not use it when another skill in this repository is clearly more specific to the requested deliverable.

Workflow

1. Collect the required inputs or source material before drafting, unless this skill explicitly generates the intake itself.
2. Follow the section order and decision rules in this SKILL.md; do not skip mandatory steps or required fields.
3. Review the draft against the quality criteria, then deliver the final output in markdown unless the skill specifies another format.

Anti-Patterns

• Do not invent client facts, performance data, budgets, or approvals that were not provided or clearly inferred from evidence.
• Do not skip required inputs, mandatory sections, or quality checks just to make the output shorter.
• Do not drift into out-of-scope work such as code implementation, design production, or unsupported legal conclusions.

Outputs

• A structured audit, report, model, or analytical framework in markdown, with decisions and recommendations tied to evidence.

References

• Use the inline instructions in this skill now. If a references/ directory is added later, treat its files as the deeper source material and keep this SKILL.md execution-focused.

Required Input

Before generating the evergreen content system, ask for the following:

• Client business name and trading name (if different)
• Industry and sub-sector
• Country / city (default: Uganda / Kampala)
• Platforms in scope (select all that apply: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, WhatsApp, X/Twitter)
• Existing content archive — can the consultant share the last 12 months of posts, or are they auditing from scratch? If from scratch, state this clearly; the audit steps will guide data collection.
• Current posting frequency per platform (e.g., Facebook: 5×/week, Instagram: 3×/week)
• Number of evergreen candidates identified in the initial review (or "unknown — running the full audit now")
• Primary content goal — select one: awareness / education / trust-building / conversion

Do not generate the rotation plan or calendar until these inputs are confirmed.

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What Is Evergreen Content?

Evergreen content remains relevant and valuable regardless of when it is consumed. It answers questions that do not change: how-to guides, explanations of industry fundamentals, step-by-step processes, lists of resources, and FAQs.

It contrasts with time-sensitive content — news announcements, promotions, event posts, and seasonal campaigns — which has a short shelf life and should not enter the evergreen rotation.

Why evergreen content matters for EA SMEs:

• Limited production capacity makes constant-new-content models unsustainable for most small businesses
• Trust-building content (how-to, why, what to expect) is consumed repeatedly in East African markets, where buyers conduct extensive research before purchasing
• WhatsApp shares extend the reach of evergreen posts beyond the algorithm window, circulating content in groups and broadcast lists long after the original post date
• A well-maintained evergreen library reduces the monthly content production burden by 30–40%

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Step 1: Identify Evergreen Candidates

Run this audit on the client's existing content (last 12 months minimum). Apply the same data collection approach as meta-content-audit if a full audit has not yet been completed.

For each post, ask four screening questions:

1. Would this post be just as useful to a reader in 6 months as it is today? Yes = evergreen candidate. No = time-sensitive; exclude.
2. Does it reference a specific date, promotion, event, or news story? Yes = time-sensitive; exclude.
3. Has it generated saves, shares, or link clicks — not just likes? Yes = high-value candidate. Saves and shares are stronger signals of durable value than likes.
4. Is it a how-to, FAQ, process guide, list, or explanation? Yes = likely evergreen by format.

A post must pass questions 1 and 4 to advance to the scoring stage. Questions 2 and 3 are filters: question 2 removes time-sensitive content; question 3 ranks candidates.

Evergreen content types for EA SMEs:

• "How to [do something your customer needs to do]"
• "What to look for when choosing [your product/service category]"
• "5 things most people don't know about [your industry]"
• "[Industry] mistakes and how to avoid them"
• "Step-by-step guide to [relevant process]"
• "Why [common belief in your market] is wrong"
• Explainer posts about the client's core product or service
• FAQs drawn from WhatsApp or in-person customer enquiries

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Step 2: Score Evergreen Value

Score each candidate on 3 dimensions (1–5 each, maximum 15). Apply this scoring table to every post that passed the Step 1 filters.

Dimension	Score 1	Score 3	Score 5
Relevance durability	Likely outdated in 3 months	Relevant for 12 months	Relevant for 2+ years
Audience value	Low engagement; few saves or shares	Average engagement; some saves	High saves/shares; multiple meaningful comments
Production investment	Quick text post or single image	Moderate effort — original copy with visual	Long-form, high-effort content (carousel, video script, detailed guide)

Score interpretation:

Total score	Classification	Action
12–15	Tier 1 — Priority evergreen	Include in rotation immediately; refresh before first republication
8–11	Tier 2 — Conditional evergreen	Refresh before republishing; review annually
Below 8	Time-sensitive or low-value	Do not include in rotation

Record each post's tier in a simple spreadsheet with columns: Post title / Platform / Original date / Score / Tier / Last republished / Refresh needed.

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Step 3: Refresh Protocol

A refreshed evergreen post is not a copy-paste republication. It is an updated version that serves the same durable purpose with current context. Repeat audiences need a new entry point; new audiences need accuracy.

Apply this checklist before republishing any evergreen post:

• Update any statistics, prices, or data points that may have changed since the original publication date
• Remove or replace any references to specific dates, past promotions, or expired events
• Check that all linked URLs still work — website pages, WhatsApp numbers, booking links
• Update the opening hook — write a new first sentence or headline that creates a fresh entry point for repeat viewers
• Add one current local reference (a recent EA news item, a current Ugandan cultural moment, or a relevant seasonal hook) to signal that the content is fresh
• If the original post used stock imagery or a dated visual, consider replacing with original photography or an updated graphic
• If the original was AI-assisted, run it through the ai-content-humaniser skill before republishing

A refresh should take 20–30 minutes per post for Tier 1 content and 30–45 minutes for Tier 2 content (which requires more substantial updating).

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Step 4: Build the Evergreen Rotation

Recommended content ratio

Apply the following default ratio across the full content schedule:

40% evergreen (refreshed) / 40% new original / 20% timely or promotional

This ratio serves clients with limited production capacity while maintaining audience trust through new content and commercial viability through promotional posts. It aligns with the 10-4-1 rule (Bodnar and Cohen, 2012): evergreen posts fill the recurring value-content slots; new original content fills original posts; promotional content fills the 1-in-15 promotional slot.

Adjust the ratio if the client's primary goal is conversion (shift to 30/30/40) or awareness (shift to 50/40/10).

Example — 5-posts/week Instagram account:

Weekly slot	Type	Count
Evergreen rotation (refreshed)	40%	2 posts/week
New original content	40%	2 posts/week
Timely / promotional	20%	1 post/week

Republication cadence

• Tier 1 evergreen (score 12–15): Republish every 60–90 days
• Tier 2 evergreen (score 8–11): Republish every 90–120 days, after completing the refresh protocol
• Do not republish the same post more than once per 60 days on any single platform, regardless of tier

Platform-specific evergreen guidance

Facebook: Evergreen performs well — the algorithm continues to show posts to new audiences over time. Republish with updated copy; do not simply reshare the original. Pin the top-performing evergreen post to the top of the Page to maximise new-visitor exposure.

Instagram: Feed posts lose algorithmic reach after 48–72 hours, but Stories can be saved to Highlights permanently. Save top evergreen posts to Highlights organised by category (e.g., "How To", "About Us", "FAQs"). Reels with evergreen topics continue to surface through discovery for weeks after posting — prioritise evergreen topics for Reels production.

WhatsApp Broadcast: Evergreen content is ideal for broadcast lists because it provides information that helps recipients rather than merely promoting. Rotate evergreen how-to and FAQ content monthly to subscriber lists. Keep broadcasts concise: 2–4 sentences with a link or a clear CTA to reply or call.

LinkedIn: Evergreen performs exceptionally well — posts circulate via shares for weeks and appear in search results. Republish evergreen posts every 60 days with a new opening sentence. Archive the original rather than deleting it; LinkedIn's algorithm does not penalise for similar topics posted months apart.

YouTube: Evergreen is the dominant content type on YouTube — a tutorial video posted in 2022 may still drive views and subscribers in 2026. Prioritise evergreen topics for all YouTube production. Update video descriptions and pinned comments when information changes rather than deleting and re-uploading.

TikTok: Lower inherent evergreen value due to the trend-driven algorithm. However, how-to and "did you know" content has a longer shelf life than trend-based content. Test 1–2 evergreen TikToks per month — if a how-to video sustains views after 2 weeks, it qualifies for the evergreen library.

X/Twitter: Content decays quickly, but threads on durable topics (industry explanations, frameworks, lists of tools) attract ongoing engagement via search and retweets. Republish high-performing evergreen threads every 90 days with a new opening tweet.

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Step 5: Evergreen Content Calendar

Produce a 90-day rotation plan using the table format below. Work from the scored and tiered inventory established in Steps 1 and 2. Integrate the evergreen rotation into the master content calendar produced by 11-content-calendar — evergreen slots replace, not add to, the existing posting schedule.

Instructions:

• Assign Tier 1 posts to the earliest available slots in the rotation
• Space republications so the same post does not appear within 60 days on the same platform
• Mark "Refresh needed" as Yes for any post being republished for the first time, or for any post last refreshed more than 90 days ago
• Coordinate with meta-content-repurposing to ensure evergreen posts are also entered into the repurposing chain — a refreshed evergreen blog post, for example, can seed a carousel and a WhatsApp broadcast in the same week

90-Day Evergreen Rotation Table:

Week	Platform	Post Type	Evergreen Topic	Tier	Last Published	Refresh Needed?
1	Instagram	Carousel	[Client-specific topic]	1	[DD/MM/YYYY]	Yes
1	Facebook	Post	[Client-specific topic]	1	[DD/MM/YYYY]	Yes
1	WhatsApp	Broadcast	[Client-specific topic]	1	[DD/MM/YYYY]	Yes
2	LinkedIn	Post	[Client-specific topic]	1	[DD/MM/YYYY]	Yes
2	Instagram	Reel	[Client-specific topic]	2	[DD/MM/YYYY]	Yes
3	Facebook	Post	[Client-specific topic]	1	[DD/MM/YYYY]	No
3	YouTube	Video	[Client-specific topic]	1	[DD/MM/YYYY]	No
...

Populate all 13 weeks. Each week should contain at least 2 evergreen slots (matching the 40% ratio). Generate the full table with the client's actual evergreen topics drawn from the inventory.

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Quality Criteria

Output meets the standard if it:

• Evergreen identification uses the 3-dimension scoring system with explicit numerical scores — not a subjective or qualitative judgement
• Refresh protocol includes at least 6 specific checks before any post is republished, with an estimated time per post
• Rotation ratio is stated explicitly as a percentage split (default 40/40/20, or adapted to the client's frequency with a stated reason for the adjustment)
• Platform-specific notes cover at least 5 platforms with meaningfully different evergreen strategies — not minor paraphrasing of the same advice
• 90-day rotation calendar is produced in table format with all required columns populated using the client's actual content topics
• Tier 1 and Tier 2 republication cadences are stated numerically in days (60–90 days and 90–120 days respectively) — not vaguely as "regularly" or "periodically"
• WhatsApp Broadcast is included as a named evergreen distribution channel with specific guidance on message length and content type
• Output integrates with 11-content-calendar (rotation slots align with the master schedule), meta-content-repurposing (evergreen posts enter the repurposing chain), and meta-content-audit (audit data informs the scoring)

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Framework Reference

Apply the 10-4-1 rule (Bodnar and Cohen, 2012) when calibrating the evergreen ratio within the full content mix. Apply the Hero/Hub/Hygiene model (YouTube/Google) to classify evergreen content: Hygiene content (FAQ, how-to, explainer) maps directly to the evergreen library; Hub content (regular series) may have partial evergreen value; Hero content (campaigns, announcements) is time-sensitive and should not enter the evergreen rotation.

Use the RACE framework (Chaffey, 2024) to ensure the evergreen library covers all customer journey stages: Reach (awareness posts), Act (educational and how-to posts), Convert (process guides, what to expect posts), and Engage (community and trust-building posts).

Bodnar, K. and Cohen, J. (2012) The B2B Social Media Book. Hoboken: Wiley. Chaffey, D. (2024) Digital Marketing: Strategy, Implementation and Practice. 8th edn. Harlow: Pearson. Macarthy, A. (2022) 500 Social Media Marketing Tips. 6th edn.