Long-form content is becoming ever more important to include in your online marketing strategy. While short-form is still better than no content, marketers across industries are seeing more success with SEO and organic search over the long run with longer pieces of content.
What do the experts say?
According to Copypress, long-form content outperforms short form by over 40%, and 69% of professional bloggers are writing posts that are longer than 1,000 words. Furthermore, according to an article in
Forbes, long-form content may be best effective to generate search traffic that converts to sign-ups, long-term customer relationships, and larger amounts of organic traffic over the long run.
Long-form content can be described as anything ranging from 1,200 to 2,000 words when it comes to a standard company blog post, but of course, it can be much longer. Many organizations are seeing an increase in traffic to their website when pieces are sectioned out more like book chapters that tell a story over a series of longer articles.
Though longer-form content may be more beneficial to your marketing strategy, it can still be a bit more intimidating to tackle from a creation standpoint.
Here are a few tips for putting together better long-form content for your business.
1. Always Proofread with an Extra Set of Eyes
It’s a good idea to always have someone else proofread your content before you publish it. This should be the case with anything you write, but the more you write, the more there is room for error. If you are part of a team, make sure someone else views your work before you publish it in order to maintain a credible image as a content producer.
2. Use Bold and Italics to Emphasize Points
When you write longer-form content, you want to make sure that your main points are still getting through to your readers. Therefore, don’t be shy about using bold and italics when you want to bring attention to a certain idea or phrase. This will help the reader easily identify the points that are most important for them to take away from your article.
3. Visuals Should Break Up Text
Incorporate eye-catching visuals to break up your long-form text. Too much text on the screen can be intimidating for some readers, but if you include photos or even video clips that relate to your topic, the reader may be more inclined to continue reading the content.
4. Tell a Story
Use long-form content to tell the reader a story. Personal stories can help cultivate your brand, and they give your company a more human personality. Use personal success stories or even stories that tie your product to an emotion to grab the reader’s attention. With a longer format, it’s easier to complete an interesting story related to your brand in a single article.
5. Don’t Oversell
The one thing readers don’t want out of your long-form content is to feel like they are being sold something over 2,000 words. Make sure your content is valuable and provides knowledge or expertise on a topic or your industry, but don’t make it too salesy. No one likes a long sales pitch, so reserve your stories and educational content for your longer pieces. (
spinabifida.net)
6. Well Written, Well-Designed
The main point in creating any content, but especially long-form content is to make sure that your article is well-written and well-designed. If it is visually appealing and also has valuable information, you will have a better chance of reaching the audience you’d like to reach with the information that you would like for them to receive. Remember that you are writing for your readers and not for yourself, so consider their point of view as you are crafting your content.
When writing content for your business, a solid marketing strategy will make the difference. At Miss Ink, we help our clients by strategizing and creating the best content for online marketing, both on social media and other digital channels.
Contact us to learn more about how you can improve online marketing content for your business and brand!
References:
Bergstrom, B. (2018, January 02). How Long Should a Blog Post Be to Get the Most Traffic and Shares? Retrieved March 22, 2018, from https://coschedule.com/blog/how-long-should-a-blog-post-be/
Sweeney, D. (2018, March 13). 6 Rules of Writing Seriously Compelling Long Form Blog Content. Retrieved March 22, 2018, from
https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/6-rules-of-writing-seriously-compelling-long-form-blog-content/518961/
Steimle, J. (2014, July 25). Why Long Form Content Marketing Works, And Why It Doesnt. Retrieved March 22, 2018, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/joshsteimle/2014/07/15/why-long-form-content-marketing-works-and-why-it-doesnt/#7ab72c066e46
