I remember when I first started blogging for business over 8 years ago or so. Finding topics that I felt would be of interest to my readers was one thing. Writing more than two paragraphs was difficult too. I had a lot to learn about how to convey a message that was in-depth, interesting, and long enough to develop the message. Thankfully, I have learned a lot in these past 8 years.
When blogging for business, many new bloggers make the mistake of posting short, quick posts that are not completely fleshed out or that change topic within the post. Staying on topic and writing a thoughtful post is important for your blog for the readers experience. I am asked often if the length of a post is important for the amount of traffic that comes to the site.
The answer to that question is multi-fold – yes and no.
There are many things that the search engines look at when determining your position in the search engine result pages (SERPs). In fact, no one know all of the factors that go into it, except probably the Google, Yahoo and Bing folks. But there are some things that we do know.
1) SEO – The optimization of your keywords and how you use them in your post/page is a factor for certain. Much more on that topic throughout this blog.
2) Sharing your Post – Getting your post out to the world to see is something that you need to do. It doesn’t just happen because you write and published a post. Share it on multiple social media channels and encourage comments.
3) The Amount of Posts You Produce – A blog that is frequently updated is also one that will be favored in rankings. Post often for better results.
4) Strong Topics that are Searchable – Topics that are searched by your readers is also going to help increase the amount of traffic coming into your site. Research what your target reader is interested in and write those type of posts.
These four items we know can have a direct result on the direction of traffic to your site. As far as post length, it is good to look at what our readers expect.
It is safe to say that many people that read blogs have a short attention span. They scan a post looking for the answer and if it is there, they will read the post in its entirety. Some will share it and even comment. So what is important as far as post length. If the answer is not there or the post is not what they expected, boom, they are gone in a flash.
To engage and keep your readers coming back, there are some things that are important.
When writing your post or page, make sure that your topic is clear and you have it well thought out. Stay on topic and write as much as you need to to thoroughly explain your position and offer the information you want to get across. Depending on the topic, this could take just a few paragraphs or many.
In terms of SEO, most experts believe that a post should be at least 250 words or more to effectively use the keywords and develop the topic. Anything over 1000 words is considered very long and you may lose your readers interest. So it is a good idea to stay within those parameters. Also, Google does not really recognize any post that is under 100 words, so refrain from writing short posts like that.
The beauty about writing shorter posts is that you can then write more often, which is good for your traffic. It offers a value to your site and gives you authority on your topic. Your reader looks for this.
Also mixing up the post size is helpful too. They do not always have to be 300 words or 750 words either. A nice mix is best.
So while there is no exact length size to a post that will bring traffic to your site, thoughtful posts that are in-depth, shareable, and frequently posted will help your blog in the long run. The most important advice is to enjoy your topic and be consistent.
image courtesy of freedigitalphotos and cooldesign
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