In this post, we discuss whether or not it makes sense to invest in long form content as a marketing tactic. Does the extra work amount to better business results and more effective productivity?
Join us as we cover some of the pros and cons of long form content so that you can decide if it’s right for you.
RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
Content Strategy from Scratch workbook
What is Long Form Content?
[Meghan] There’s been a lot of buzz about long form content in the past few years. Things like, how it outperforms shorter content and delivers better results. With that in mind, should you incorporate longer forms of content into your marketing?
[Theresa] There’s a lot to unpack, but first off, what is long form content?
Generally speaking, content is considered “long form” when it is more than 1,200 words and covers a topic in-depth. And in some industries, such as digital marketing, it’s more like 2,500 words or more.
More often than not, long form content addresses topics that are irresistible to your target market. And, these topics are typically evergreen—meaning that they will be relevant for a long while.
[Meghan] I’ll add that although the definition emphasizes length, it’s really less about word count and more about quality. The content is longer because it’s very detailed, highly researched, and super comprehensive.
[Theresa] You may immediately think of detailed blog posts as long form content. And they can be. However, there are other types of long form content besides blogging.
So, if you’re already worrying about trying to keep up with a weekly blog post of 1,200 words or more, don’t stress. There are other types of long form content that you can try. For instance:
- pillar or foundational web pages
- guides or tutorials
- white papers
- eBooks, or
- webinars
(Source: Semrush)
And these formats don’t require daily, weekly, or even monthly commitments. Phew, right?
[Meghan] No kidding! I mean, I love writing, but even I look at long form content and find that it can be overwhelming, especially when you’re a solopreneur. As a team of one, there’s more to analyze than just the effectiveness of a marketing tactic. You’ve got to consider the impact on productivity.
So, let’s talk about whether the investment in long form content is really worth the time and effort.
The Advantages: Reasons to Create Long Form Content
And I’ll tell you straight away, there are some really compelling reasons to create longer, higher quality content, especially blog posts, articles, or web pages.
[Theresa] Very true! Let’s dig into some of the findings.
Better Search Engine Optimization
First off, longer content is commonly better for search engine optimization. In other words, it helps boost your ranking and visibility in search engines.
[Meghan] That’s right. When it comes to longer content on your website, you will have more keyword phrases and better ranking opportunities.
Plus, people tend to spend more time on your site to consume this longer content. So, that improves dwell time and reduces bounce rate.
[Theresa] That’s not all. According to a Backlinko study, long-form content gets an average of 77% more backlinks than short articles. That’s major!
Experts believe that backlinks improve the SEO of your site. But, they’re tough to get these days. In fact, 94% of the world’s content gets zero external links. So, more backlinks is a nice benefit of long form content.
[Meghan] And like we mentioned before, the SEO value of high quality content compounds over time. Like a fine wine, good content ages well. It’s not unusual to get more traffic from older content versus brand new content. (There are ways to rank new content faster, but that’s a topic for another episode!)
Anyway, overall, you’ll get some seriously great SEO perks from long form content that will help your online visibility.
More Social Shares
Not only that but long form content also gets shared more.
In that same Backlinko study, they found that content between 1k-2k words gets about 56% more social shares than content that’s less than 1000 words.
[Theresa] You know, we keep hearing that people don’t read and they have short attention spans. But, ironically, it seems like people gravitate toward longer content.
They like it, and they share it more often! This can be good for you because social shares mean more visibility. Social shares amplify and promote your content for free.
Increased Credibility and Influence
[Meghan] One thing I love about longer content is that it highlights your expertise. It’s robust, detailed, and thorough, which enhances your credibility, value, and authority.
Think about it: you’re going to look like an absolute superstar with a 2,000 word ultimate guide as compared to the competition who has a 500 word post that barely covers the same topic.
Don’t underestimate how influential high quality, long form content can be! It can boost your reputation, build your brand, and increase trust. And these things help support more sales.
Easier Repurposing
[Theresa] And last but not least, your long form content is a valuable asset that you can leverage in multiple ways.
It can be turned into other content formats and re-used. Also, it can be broken into shorter form content, like social media posts or emails.
Again, it’s that model of “create once and use multiple times,” which is a massive productivity win!
The Cons of Long Form Content
[Meghan] Now, what’s the down side? I’m certain that you can already see the writing on the wall:
Long form content is a lot of work. It’s content marketing that will demand more of your time and money, especially if content creation isn’t your jam.
There’s certainly a higher level of effort with longer content. More research, writing, editing, image creation, website stuff, and administrative work. It’s just a lot more investment than other forms of content.
And that equates to potentially impacting your productivity, weekly workload, and maybe even deadlines.
[Theresa] That’s a concern for sure.
And, as we’ve discussed many times, content marketing takes a long time to see results.
Even though there are many pros of long form content, it’s not a quick win. In fact, there’s a chance it may not work like you hope—even over the long term. Point being: like all marketing, there’s risk involved.
[Meghan] Speaking of risk, think about your target audience.
Long form content may not appeal to them. Maybe they aren’t interested in the topics you’ve chosen. Or, perhaps your prospects don’t want to invest the time it takes to consume long content.
For example, if your target market is new moms, they probably prefer shorter content, you know?
And if you mistakenly choose the wrong topics or you aren’t dialed in to the customer journey, then you could waste a lot of time on content that attracts the wrong people.
Does long form content amount to better business results and more effective productivity? Here are the pros and cons. #contentmarketing #solopreneurClick To TweetHow to Decide if Long Form Content is Right for You
[Theresa] Which brings us to the question, how do you know if long form content is right for you and your business?
[Meghan] First, go back to those basic principles of choosing marketing tactics that are scalable, profitable, and sustainable as a solopreneur. You’ve already got a lot going on, so spend some time assessing this tactic. Step back to plan out how you’d support your content ideas and plans.
Also, perform some competitor analysis and market research. You can gather a lot of intel from the competition and how people are responding to their marketing. Then use that information to guide your decisions.
[Theresa] And, don’t forget to set business and content goals. If long form content aligns with those goals, then consider it.
You’d be wise to also assess your available resources and be mindful of your time. If producing and maintaining long form content doesn’t fit in your workload or skill set, outsource it. If outsourcing isn’t an option, maybe you need to put this tactic on the back burner.
There are plenty of benefits of long form content, but if you have to make too many sacrifices to support it, then it’s probably better to focus your efforts on more manageable tactics.
[Meghan] Good advice.
Let me say this too. It’s tough to convince yourself to put that much effort into something that doesn’t directly generate revenue. This is an aspect that I rarely hear experts discuss.
For people whose livelihood is content creation, it’s different. Bloggers and digital product creators are in the business of creating content as their job. There’s a very clear cut connection between the content they produce and income or revenue.
For you, on the other hand, content creation isn’t your primary job but a way to generate leads. So, when you set out to create long form content, it can feel like a lot of work for little reward.
[Theresa] Yeah, it’s important to set your expectations related to the investment versus the benefits. When it comes down to it, long form content is something that is easier for people with teams to tackle.
[Meghan] Exactly. I just watched marketing expert Neil Patel talk about SEO strategy for beginners. He uses long form content to rank at the top of searches for super competitive keywords like “digital marketing” and “online marketing.”
So, long form content works. But, he has a big team and a digital agency to help compete at that level. You can’t compare his marketing to yours.
Does that mean you can’t use long form content? No, it doesn’t!
[Theresa] Look at us for an example and for inspiration.
Our blog posts for Messy Desk Podcast usually fall into the long form content category, and that’s intentional.
This podcast addresses topics that are very popular, so it’s a competitive space. And that’s why we consciously chose long form content as a tactic. We want to produce quality content that appeals to our target market AND ranks in search for years to come.
For us, long form content works! It aligns with our goals and our skill sets. It also works from a marketing productivity aspect.
To support this tactic, we developed a process to make long form content doable and manageable for us. And that’s really the key: processes and systems that you customize to fit your business and work style.
RELATED: Read more about our process and how we maximize our productivity when it comes to content production and publishing.
[Meghan] That said, there are plenty of other things you can do to reach your target market. If long form content isn’t for you, no problem! It’s only one of many effective ways to approach your content marketing.
It’s always smart to start with a content strategy to determine the goals that drive your marketing decisions. If you don’t have a strategy, be sure to download the Content Strategy from Scratch workbook.
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