The Long and Short of It

Delivering content that meets your target audience’s needs is not as simple as it sounds. Apart from deciding where to publish your content, there’s one fundamental question that faces every content creator: does my audience prefer long or short content? Differences Between Long-Form and Short-Form Content Long-form content is usually defined as 2,000 words or more and can include white papers, ebooks, how-to guides, case studies and video transcripts. Short-form content tends to be under 1,000 words and can include blogs, social media posts, infographics and listicles. A short, two-minute video would also fit the bill. However, these content types can all vary in length and can fall into either the short-form or long-form category. But like everything related to content, you need to first consider what you want to achieve. Short-form content can be great for quickly engaging your audience, whereas long-form content can strengthen your credibility. The key is to know your audience and have a clear set of goals tied to the point in your sales funnel the content is going to appear at. For example, if you’re selling a high-end product to customers who aren’t familiar with your company, they would likely find a long-form, highly informative product description useful. This could be very effective in converting shoppers who are considering your product. However, if your goal is to drive traffic, your best bet is likely a short, entertaining social media post that reaches a wider audience. Both short and long content have benefits and what will work best depends on your business, your products, your marketing goals and user intent. When Long-Form Content Works If your goal is higher search engine rankings for particular topics, most marketing experts agree that long-form content is the way to go since Google’s algorithm favors more in-depth articles. A SerpIQ study found that the average word count for content in the top ten of a Google search result page is over 2,000 words. Longer pieces are also more suited to evergreen content, which can be a great for driving long-term web traffic. In the inbound marketing world, HubSpot, Moz and Kissmetrics are authorities in this niche and they all produce high-quality, long-form evergreen content. So, if you want to position your brand as an authority in your niche, use long-form content that covers each topic in depth. When Short-Form Content is Best If your goal is to build awareness or your primary audience mainly views your content on mobile devices, short-form content is probably a better fit. Today, many people scan online content rather than read it fully, so short-form content can have more impact on your readers in the short term. If your brand voice is more fun than serious, short-form content is also likely to be more appropriate. While some topics require longer explanations, a fun infographic or video can help you quickly build a connection with your target audience. Start-ups stand to benefit from this kind of content because it helps to establish their brand’s identity. It’s also quicker to produce and is particularly useful when covering news or trending topics in your industry. Where to Publish Different Forms of Content Facebook Notes and LinkedIn Pulse give marketers a platform to publish long-form content to social media. Google Plus is also ideal because there are no character limits, unlike other social media platforms. It’s also worth remembering that every piece of long-form content can be split into multiple content assets. For example, you can share a statistic on Twitter, post an image on Pinterest or submit an infographic to the Infographics Showcase website. This way, you can attract different kinds of buyers through different channels. Quality Over Quantity Your decision to go long or short depends on your brand’s voice, your target audience and your marketing goals. Crucially, you should focus on delivering quality content. Don’t think you have to write 2,000 words if you can get your message across in 200. Focus on being authentic and giving people useful information. If you’re unsure, experiment with both long and short content and see which resonate most with your target audience. The truth is, people like to consume information in different ways and you’ll probably need both to reach as many customers as possible.