There’s no winner in the debate over whether short-form or long-form content is better. The plain truth is that you will almost certainly need to use both, but for slightly different purposes. The type of content you publish is mostly determined by your target audience, marketing strategy, user intent, and buyer’s journey.
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A popular query is how long my content should be and what type of content to use. The question remains: when to use long and when to use short-form content? So, let’s see which types of content fall under each category and talk about determining how long your content should be.
What Is Short-Form Content?
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There is no precise length that separates long-form from short-form content. Short-form is defined as anything with a word count of less than 1000-1200 words. It includes:
- Short blog posts
- Infographics
- News articles
- Emails
- Social media content
When creating short-form content, you want to keep it concise – short and sweet, if you will. Just stick to the essentials and make sure your message is clear.
The Advantages of Using Short-Form Content
- It’s a good technique to get your point across quickly and effectively without requiring a long time commitment from the audience.
- It aids communication with those who have a short attention span, which is why it is so popular on social media.
- In comparison to long-form material, it is easier to create and requires fewer resources.
- Along with being easier to read and consume, it’s also easier to make mobile-friendly in many circumstances.
What Is Long-Form Content?
Anything longer than 1000-1200 words is considered long-form content. It includes:
- Detailed and lengthy blog posts
- Guides
- Tutorials
- Whitepapers
- ebooks
- Pillar pages
- Evergreen pages
- Webinars
It should be expert material that is well-written and has a wealth of knowledge for your reader. However, you’ll want to take care not to bore them. Your goal is to keep your readers’ interest from beginning to end.
Typically, long-form content will require plenty of research, fact-checking, and relying on relevant studies to prove your points. Considering all the research you might put into this type of content, it’s important to double-check it for plagiarism and make sure you’ve provided all the necessary sources.
The advantages of using long-form content
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- It usually has a higher search engine ranking if the content is high-quality.
- Because it covers a topic in more depth, this form of content often ranks for a greater number of keywords.
- Long-form material generates more backlinks than short-form content, boosting the page’s performance and rankings even more. According to research from Semrush, 3000+ word content gets 21% more traffic, 24% more shares, and 75% more backlinks than articles that are up to 1200 words long.
- The conversion rate of long-form material is usually higher than that of short-form content, owing to the reader’s attention and the purpose of their visit. A use case study by Conversion Rate Experts shows that when Crazy Egg raised the length of a landing page by 20 times, its conversion rate climbed by more than 30%.
- Long-form material helps you establish yourself as a thought leader and an important voice in your industry. If you consistently provide content that educates, informs, and assists your audience in making decisions, it’s only natural that they’ll regard you as a market leader. And this doesn’t have to be limited to posts you and your staff author – you can find influential bloggers from your industry and have them guest post quality long-form content. That way, you’ll lend your blog space as a hub for industry experts, thus building your authority further and borrowing their audience, too.
When to Use Short-Form
- Your target market is already aware of your brand and products or services. These people are looking for specific information to assist them in making a purchase.
- You’re selling products or services that are widely used. A brief explanation of such products or services is generally preferable to a lengthy one.
- You’re talking to your current customers or qualified leads. They are most likely seeking specific information about a product or service.
- You’re writing material for various forms, including PPC campaigns, Facebook ads, and email.
When to Use Long-Form
- Your target audience is in the early phases of the buying process and is unfamiliar with your products or services.
- You’re selling high-end, high-priced goods or services. To make an informed decision, your potential clients will require a lot of information about the items or services you offer.
- Your company is new, or you’re introducing a new product or service. Long-form content allows you to go into great detail about your product or service and how it can benefit your audience.
- You’re selling a technical product and want to go over the specifications in great detail. This is typically the case in the B2B industry, where the sales cycle is longer and more people are involved in the buying process. In one survey on content preferences, 68% of respondents said they want to see B2B vendors organize content by issue/pain point.
In Closing
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We hope you found this article to be informative and that it has given you a better understanding of long-form vs. short-form writing. But keep in mind that quality is the one thing that all content must have, regardless of the type or length.