“Don’t focus on having a great blog. Focus on producing a blog that’s great for your readers.” – Brian Clark
There has been an ongoing debate as to how long a blog post should be.
As content marketing continues to grow and writing blog posts becomes more important to a business’ social media management strategy, so does the question, “How long should my blog post be?” It can be difficult to answer and depending who you ask, the answer can vary. There has been an ongoing debate as to how long a blog post should be. Some think the length should be no longer than 300 words, while others think it should be less than 200 words.
Here at Three Girls Media we recommend that each blog post fall between 350 and 500 words. That’s because this range is the ideal word length for Google SEO. Most business want to do content marketing for the express purpose of making the website searchable and improving traffic, and by setting your sights on a 350 to 500-word limit you’re more likely to do that. However, there are other guidelines to consider in order to have a successful blog. Here are three things you should think about when determining how long a blog post should be.
3 Recommendations for Blog Post Length
1. At a Glance – Now days everyone is looking to multi-task, be productive and get a lot of work done in the shortest amount of time possible. The same can be said about content marketing. When you write a blog post your purpose should be to get information to the reader in a short, yet informative way. Most online readers today have very short attention spans and won’t bother to read a 2,000-word post. Instead, they scan information, looking for the highlights in a post and find specific points of value. Short posts are easier to scan and you can increase the ability to scan a post by adding bullet points, numbered lists or subheadings. This makes it easier for the online reader to digest.
2. Edit, Edit, then Edit Again – You may have heard professional bloggers say, “ When you are finished writing your post, cut it in half.” That is a good rule of thumb to follow in content marketing. The reason to cut your blog post in half is not only to make it shorter, but to ensure that every sentence is high quality and makes a relevant point. Currently 95% of blog posts you see are short and sweet, but don’t forget, it’s important to have quality content in the post verses quantity.
3. Know Your Audience – Now we aren’t saying you can’t ever write a long blog post. Sometimes a longer post is needed to get out the necessary information or to explain something in detail. For example, if you are explaining how to use a program in depth, then a longer post would be appropriate. However, when you’re planning your content marketing strategy you need to keep your readers engaged. Are they the type of people who get a cup of coffee in the morning and sit down on the couch to read a longer post word for word? Or are your online readers crazy busy, movers-and-shakers who enjoying taking a two-minute break to read your blog? Make sure you’re not only keeping in mind the information you want to tell, but you’re also thinking about who your online readers are.
Finally, your goal in content marketing is to deliver well-written content that your online readers will value, share, comment on and come back to see more of. In the end, length isn’t as important as the quality of work and information you’re putting out into the world, so make the content really count.
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Three Girls Media, Inc. is a public relations and social media management agency with teams in Silicon Valley and the Seattle area. We love working with small and emerging companies across the nation to raise their brand awareness and name recognition. We offer a complimentary 30-minute phone consultation with our CEO and can answer your questions and discuss your specific marketing needs.
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