Evergreen content refers to informational or reference material that never goes out of date, therefore desirable to websites looking to build a lasting readership. Good evergreen material is needed over and over by the general public, creating a built-in guarantee of continuing hits. The quality of the evergreen content in terms of its presentation, clarity and usefulness, will go a long way towards dictating the popularity of the website.

It is often said that we are not only in a technological age, but in the age of information. People need information and they want it now. Whether it's guidance for financial investments, general information, career oriented, or hobby-specific, people want quick, complete answers. Evergreen content provides these answers and almost guarantees a stream of regular traffic to the site.

One example of a website with evergreen content is the one you are currently reading, wiseGEEK.com. Encyclopedic websites are other examples. Evergreen content can also be more subject-specific. For example, the International Movie Database (imdb.com), contains information about virtually every movie and TV production made. It also serves as a “who's who” of the entertainment industry by providing profiles and mini-biographies of actors, directors, writers, and so on.

While these examples are far-reaching in their scope, humbler websites can also contain evergreen content. A website dedicated to information on origami, aquaria, landscaping, knitting, scuba diving, hang-gliding or refinishing furniture would all be examples of evergreen content. Any hobby or interest can serve as the centerpiece for evergreen content. The longer a website hosts good evergreen content, the more likely it is the readership will grow. People tend to link to good reference material, and readers also grow through word-of-mouth on newsgroups and Web exchange boards.

By contrast, content that is not evergreen is content that quickly becomes outdated or irrelevant. News items and current events might draw substantial hits to an established website when a story breaks, but without constantly updating the content to refresh the timeliness, readership will plummet. Therefore, if the desire is to attract a lasting readership with the least amount of content turnover, evergreen content is a better choice.

By building websites with evergreen content, entrepreneurs worldwide have been able to generate passive incomes online. Programs like Google's Ad Sense can be added to a website for “click-through” income without annoying pop-up ads or other distracting marketing schemes. With website domains and hosting so affordable, just about anyone with drive and initiative can start a website with solid evergreen content, and in time, reap the benefits.