Articles of 600, 1,200, 2,000 or 3,000 words? Videos of 30 seconds, 1 minute, 3 minutes or more? All marketers are already thinking about the ideal size of their content. And if there is no unanimous answer, the length of web content remains an important question. This affects both the user experience and the ranking of the site in search engines.
Here are a few steps you need to know about web content length:
What is short content?
To determine the length of your content, you must first explicitly define what constitutes a short material,
Some experts set the limit at 1,000 words, others at 1,200 words. It’s up to you, your beliefs, your audience, and your activity. Generally, content of less than 1,000 words is easy to read and digest, especially if it is airy and illustrated. In relation to video, a format is said to be “short” when it is less than 1 minute.
So short content covers a specific topic, without going too deep or elaborate. In this category, we specifically find:
- advice list;
- Hot issue;
- article information;
- posting on social networks;
- E-mail.
Benefits of short content
- Short content is an effective way to convey an idea quickly and effectively.
- It helps to communicate with users who have short attention span.
- It is the ideal format for communicating on social networks.
- Its production is faster and less resource-intensive.
- Short content is perfectly suited for mobile viewing.
minor material damage
- With short content, it is more difficult to go into detail about a topic.
- It’s not for mid-funnel or end-of-funnel buyers who need details to make up their mind.
- Short content is often less visual and less rich in examples. Readers find it more difficult to appropriate.
- Short content is not “evergreen”: it loses interest and performance over time.
What is long content?
Long-format written content is over 1,200 words, while a long-format video is often over 1.5 minutes long. To dig deeply into a topic, it is necessary to:
Especially useful for managing your image or converting prospects as an expert at the end of the funnel, long-form content engages and retains an audience.
Its purpose is to educate and inform users who are looking for detailed answers, concrete examples or a method to solve a problem.
Benefits of long content
- This type of content is usually ranked highly by search engines.
- The lengthy content allows you to establish yourself on many questions.
- According to a study by SEMrush, texts longer than 3,000 words earn 3.5 times more backlinks than those between 901 and 1200 words.
- The conversion rate of a landing page increases by 30% when its length is multiplied by 20.
- Long-lasting content helps establish you as a leader in your industry and rarely goes stale over time.
Disadvantages of long format content
- This requires time, resources and expertise.
- Longer content sometimes generates less engagement, as the attention span of Internet users is constantly being withdrawn.
- It is more difficult to share on social networks or by email.
- Long content aims for a more restricted, but better qualified target (so it’s an advantage and a disadvantage at the same time!).
Read also: 11 Tips to Write SEO Friendly Content
As you can see, each format has its advantages and disadvantages. To choose the right length for your next material, you need to consider several things.
purpose of your content
What are you trying to do with your content?
If you want content to liven up your social networks or your email strategy, short content is enough. Similarly if you want to generate an action with average added value: subscribe to newsletters, share content on social networks, etc.
On the other hand, if your goal is to rank for a highly competitive search term, drive traffic, or drive high-value conversions (downloading a white paper, signing up for trial offers, making a purchase, etc.), write it down. is advised. long content.
search intent
You need to understand the intent that your content is going to serve.
To do this, study the successful material of your competitors on the same topic. If the intention of your audience is to learn or educate themselves, then you need to create long-form content. But, if they want to entertain themselves or catch up on your latest news, short content is a better option.
target
With Google Analytics, analyze your audience’s preferences in terms of content. You’ll quickly know whether your prospects are more receptive to longer or shorter content.
View your past performance by channel and format, then analyze metrics like:
- traffic ;
- conversion;
- commitment.
Also remember to check “Top Pages” in Google Analytics. Which format is leading?
Conversion Tunnel Size
How many touchpoints does your customer reach before converting? The length of the purchase cycle is an essential element in defining the length of the material.
For example, an e-commerce in the fashion sector may encourage the sale of a new collection or an item of clothing for short content on social networks. This type of business often manifests itself on impulse and impulsive purchases. Therefore the conversion window is smaller, which leaves room for concise and concise web content.
Conversely, a B2B buyer will have a much more complicated conversion path, where the audience needs to be nurtured with educational and informative content. Methodology, white papers and case studies are essential for its decision making. Therefore it will be necessary to prepare longer content as a priority!
conclusion
What is the ideal length of web content? The answer is simple: the one that meets your goals and the preferences of your audience!
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