7 good steps and examples

If you happen to’re intimidated by writing any piece of content material longer than 1,000 phrases, don’t be.

Lengthy-form content material could be simply as simple as dashing off a 500-word piece.

It is going to take you barely longer to do it, however there are big advantages to reap from spending time creating long-form items.

For one factor, longer content material tends to carry out higher than quick content material. It earns extra backlinks and is most probably to seem on Google’s first web page. 

Plus, bloggers regularly report that longer content material codecs comparable to guides and ebooks are simplest. Those who write extremely long-form posts (3,000+ phrases) are 2.5x extra doubtless to say their outcomes are sturdy vs. bloggers who write shorter posts of 1,500 phrases or much less.

Finally, writing long-form content material that will get outcomes is a talent, and when you study, you’ll be able to leverage it to fulfill your content material advertising objectives.

What’s long-form content material? Why does it matter?

Lengthy-form content material is any piece of written content material that’s over 1,000 phrases in size. 

Some folks will quibble concerning the precise phrase rely, however virtually everybody agrees that short-form content material is at all times beneath 1,000 phrases. Which means a very good long-form content material benchmark is 1,000 phrases or over.

That’s not the one defining issue of long-form content material, nevertheless. To be actually long-form, the content material should have depth. It must dive deep into a subject and supply worth. It needs to be helpful and useful to readers, giving them the knowledge they want.

For search engine marketing functions, long-form content material helps you hit three linked objectives:

• Rank larger in serps: Complete content material outranks skinny content material. Often (however not at all times), complete content material is long-form. 
• Interact leads and preserve them in your website: Lengthy-form content material needs to be chock-full of attention-grabbing, beneficial info focused to a selected reader. This engages them, retains them in your web page longer, and improves your bounce price.
• Construct your fame: Prolonged guides and weblog posts display your experience in your subject and trade, establishing belief. Publish many high-quality, long-form posts, and your authority will construct on itself.

Lastly, as we transfer additional into the age of multimedia content material, don’t low cost different content material sorts when discussing the long-form format.

Movies, webinars, and podcasts can have simply as a lot depth as a chunk of written content material and might help you meet your objectives, too – and so they would possibly invite even higher engagement.

The right way to write long-form content material in 7 steps and examples

Writing long-form content material would not should be an onerous chore. If you happen to have a look at it as an enormous puzzle that must be put collectively, it turns into a enjoyable problem.

The important thing to writing long-form content material is to interrupt it into manageable chunks – the person puzzle items. Here is how.

1. Select the proper subject

One of many first issues to grasp about creating long-form content material is: Not all subjects are appropriate for this format.

If you happen to select a subject that is mistaken for a long-form piece proper off the bat, you are setting your self as much as battle. You most likely will not have sufficient to put in writing about and should end up writing simply to pad out the size – a recipe for fluff and ineffective filler nobody needs to learn.

To keep away from these errors, have a look at your potential subject critically earlier than writing. The proper subject for a long-form piece can be:

• Advanced. There can be plenty of totally different elements to clarify or stroll the reader by way of.
• Particular. A normal clarification of the subject will not give your reader the sort of understanding they should grasp it absolutely.
• Unusual or distinctive data. Your viewers should not have a deep understanding of your subject getting into, as a result of the data is exclusive or unusual to them. This may differ relying on who you are concentrating on, so be sure you perceive your viewers earlier than attempting to find long-form subjects.

“The Execs’ Information to Renovating Your Lavatory” by Home Lovely is a good instance of a long-form weblog sharing unusual data about issues to contemplate when renovating a rest room.

2. Examine the search intent of your subject

Upon getting a subject that may simply bear the load of many phrases, it is time to determine precisely what number of of them you need to use.

Ought to your long-form information on planning a European trip be 1,500 phrases? 2,000? 3,000 or extra?

To seek out out what searchers wanting up your subject wish to see (their search intent), have a look at the highest ends in Google and attempt to reply these questions:

• What sort of info is your viewers in search of after they seek for this subject? 
• How a lot info do they should perceive it?
• How a lot details about the subject is satisfying to a searcher in search of solutions?

For instance, googling “the way to plan a European household trip” will present you a bunch of guides on the prime with a mixture of phrase counts.

Looking by way of these outcomes (and taking notes) reveals a couple of key particulars:

At a base stage, the entire guides embody ideas for touring in Europe with households. Two guides (within the prime two spots) present extra info on reserving airfare and lodging. The highest information (“European Household Trip Itinerary + Ideas” by Considerably Easy), nevertheless, went above and past and included a full itinerary for touring from London to Paris to Italy.

So, what number of phrases does your long-form information want, primarily based on all of this?

• While you’re undecided what number of phrases you need to write, common the phrase rely of the highest 3 outcomes to your subject and shoot for that quantity. For the above subject, I’d strive for a 2,500-3,000-word information.
  • To seek out the phrase rely of any web page on the web, use a phrase counter device like Phrase Counter Plus.
• Take into consideration what you’ll be able to add to the subject that is helpful and hasn’t already been stated. How will you put your distinctive spin on it primarily based in your model experience to supply extra worth to readers?
• Remember to contemplate what the highest articles in Google are lacking. Are there any gaping holes you’ll be able to fill?
• All the time embody the bottom info that searchers are in search of. On this occasion, I would come with ideas for touring to Europe with households, plus methods and ideas for reserving airfare, resorts, and transportation.

3. Create a top level view and construction the content material

Out of your search intent analysis, you need to have already got a couple of notes about what your long-form publish ought to embody. Now it is time to combine that together with your experience concerning the subject, plus any extra crucial analysis, to create a top level view.

Why? It is tremendous essential for long-form content material to be structured and arranged nicely to maximise readability and engagement. Outlining helps you construct that construction.

To that finish, at all times create a unfastened define to your long-form content material items. Since outlining provides you the skeleton construction of your publish, it is helpful for taking part in with the order and circulation of your factors. Are they organized logically? Are all of them helpful and crucial?

Your skeleton define additionally provides you key locations to incorporate headings in your completed piece. Generally, every main level and sub-point ought to have a heading connected to it. Together with headings organizes the publish, breaks up the textual content, makes it extra scannable, eases readability, and even helps with search engine marketing.

Here is a rundown on headings you need to use in your long-form content material:

• H2 – Used for titles of sections and most important concepts.
• H3 – Used for factors that assist the primary thought in your H2.
• H4 – Used for extra sub-points that assist an H3.

You may hardly ever use H5s, and doubtless by no means use H6s, so no want to fret about these. H1s are strictly to your publish title and nothing else.

This information by MagnifyMoney on the way to steadiness a checkbook is well-structured and doubtless began with a top level view of the foremost factors, which additionally function the headings.

4. Take into consideration your viewers as you write

As you analysis, construction, and write your long-form publish, your viewers needs to be top-of-mind your complete time.

What do they want to know concerning the subject? What do they need to know?

Do you’ve gotten specific perception on this stuff out of your analysis or interactions with them? Embrace these particulars in your content material.

For instance, say I am writing a publish for starting photographers. My group has had a dialog with a member of our viewers who advised us they battle with understanding publicity and need assistance remembering the essential ideas. I may take that straight into my long-form publish and dedicate a complete part to demystifying publicity with professional ideas.

Your viewers analysis ought to information what you embody in your long-form content material simply as a lot as what you study from finding out Google and the competitors. In lots of instances, this can assist differentiate your content material, too.

5. Develop in your factors and reply, ‘Why ought to I care?’

As you fill in your define and increase on every of your factors, do not simply provide rote explanations. As a substitute, additionally reply the implied query your reader may have as they scroll by way of your content material:

“Why ought to I care?”

Inform them why the knowledge is essential – why it is essential to grasp within the scheme of issues, the way it advantages them, what it’ll in the end assist them do, and/or why it issues.

Nice instance – this Salesforce article, “3 Methods to Promote Environment friendly Development with Assets You Already Have,” has a proof for every level on why the recommendation issues and why enterprise homeowners ought to care. Even higher, Salesforce gives information on why it issues.

6. Add visuals, like photographs and movies, to interrupt up long-form content material

Greater than another kind of content material, long-form begs for visible parts to assist break up the textual content.

This consists of headings, however extra importantly, you want related photographs or movies in there, too. In any other case, your engagement can be a lot decrease than if you happen to did not embody these parts.

In any case, you don’t need your weblog to seem like this:

You need it to be readable, scannable, and visually participating. For that cause, together with good structuring and formatting, a very good rule of thumb is to incorporate one related picture or video each 200 phrases.

As an example, on this newbie’s images information by Professional Images, the textual content is punctuated with colourful customized diagrams and pictures that illustrate key ideas of images.

7. Think about making a desk of contents

Are you taking the plunge and writing a really epic long-form information? In case your publish is longer than 2,500-3,000 phrases, think about including a desk of contents to the highest of the publish.

This helps floor your reader within the face of an amazing quantity of content material. You may present them a transparent overview of what is inside your publish, giving them the lay of the land earlier than they head out on the path you’ve got laid for them by way of the subject.

It is immensely useful for any sort of reader, irrespective of the trade. Here is a very good instance from a weblog I discussed earlier by MagnifyMoney, which incorporates “key takeaways” on the prime adopted by a desk of contents:

Different kinds of long-form content material to contemplate

Lastly, do not forget concerning the different kinds of long-form content material on the market which are not written – movies, webinars, and podcasts.

These content material sorts will take simply as a lot planning and analysis as written long-form content material however could be simply as efficient for constructing authority and belief together with your viewers.

Webinars

Based on a survey by Demand Gen, B2B patrons desire webinars over another content material kind (tied with ebooks, one other long-form hero, at 57%).

Webinars are merely stay presentation occasions broadcast over the web to a choose group of individuals. Members can stream the presentation and take part nearly.

Manufacturers produce academic webinars for a similar causes that you simply publish long-form content material – to construct belief together with your viewers and to develop your model authority. Plus, webinars could be recorded and printed as standalone long-form movies (“replays”) that anybody who could not attend stay can watch later.

An amazing instance of a webinar is that this free occasion hosted by UX Testing, “24 Hours of UX.”

The webinar featured a number of audio system who talked about UX subjects for a complete of 24 hours. Over 7,000 folks worldwide signed as much as watch.

Lengthy-form movies

Typically, long-form movies are round quarter-hour to a full hour in size and dive into a subject in the identical vein as written long-form content material, besides with a visible or storytelling focus. 

One instance of a model with a sturdy library of video content material (each lengthy and short-form) is Lush, a cosmetics firm. Typically, their long-form movies concentrate on skincare and haircare guides, comparable to their guides to henna hair dye and refreshing your hair routine.

Podcasts

Within the final decade, podcasts have risen in reputation. 78% of Individuals are conversant in podcasting, and over 50% have listened to 1.

It is smart: They’re simple to take heed to within the automobile or on public transport whereas doing chores or cooking dinner. They’re simple to obtain or stream out of your cellular system. And there are limitless selections for subjects.

Podcasts are additionally an ideal selection for long-form content material creation. Your model can inform tales and share beneficial info with minimal funding, and you may reap the identical advantages as publishing long-form content material.

A great instance is the Pricey Headspace podcast, from the folks behind the Headspace app.

Within the podcast, meditation consultants reply listener questions and supply aware recommendation on every thing from loss to studying new expertise to coping with negativity within the information.

Decide to writing long-form content material and beef up your content material technique

There isn’t any query that writing long-form content material takes dedication. And, if you do not know what you are doing, it may appear to be a monumentally tough process.

It takes extra time, effort, and assets to create than its short-form sibling, however in the end, long-form will carry extra and higher outcomes.

That is as a result of long-form content material is extra complete. It goals to discover a subject absolutely, display the breadth of your model experience, provide beneficial insights, and train your viewers one thing they do not know.

Accomplished proper, complete content material ranks higher. It retains your readers in your web page longer. Final however not least, it builds belief higher than short-form content material.

The time you spend studying to put in writing long-form content material will not be wasted. It is a highly-valuable talent that can assist your content material advertising carry in additional ROI, and one you’ll use again and again to create worthwhile content material that wins with readers and serps.