How Long Should Your Content Be?

When it comes to getting a website noticed, everyone knows that search engine optimisation, or SEO is a critical tool in your communications armoury. 

Ideally, after building up authority and using popular keywords and other ranking-boosting elements like backlinks, good images, embedded video and relevance, your content should make a major impact. All this, of course, assumes you are supporting it with good technical SEO like fast page download speed and making your site mobile-friendly.

Amid all this, it can be easy to overlook some other important considerations about your written content. One of these is the question of just how long your pieces should be. 

There are many reasons for a blog to be beneficial if it is quite lengthy, even as much as 1,000 words. One of these is that if you want to build up authority with relevant content, a detailed piece that offers clear explanations - and is clearly written by someone with a strong knowledge of the subject - will exude authority. 

It also means you do not provide inadequate information by trying to squeeze shorter explanations into a self-imposed short word limit, or leave out important details that should be in the article. 

At the same time, it is worth considering a minimum length too. This really should never be under 300 words and usually over 500. There can often be circumstances in which a blog of shorter length (as this one is) are appropriate.

Examples of this include the fact that some topics will not be so detailed as to require a very long blog. To try to expand on something simple could lead to a lot of waffle and irrelevant content, inserted just to pad it out and hit a target word length. In these circumstances, it is better to be short and concise, so your reader remains engaged and will want to go on reading your content.

Alongside this, you should remember that if your content is too long, some may navigate away from your site in response, increasing bounce rate, which is itself an SEO factor. 

So, while blogs should normally be long, be aware that there are circumstances in which a shorter piece will be better.

If you need to speak to an SEO consultant in Yorkshire, contact us today