The Power of Long Form Content in SEO

We’ve previously discussed the importance of a content-rich as more content means more places and areas to put a greater number of keywords, effectively increasing searchability and SEO power.  But not all content is created equal and long-form content or pieces typically around 2,000 words, are beginning to have a more substantial impact. More and more websites are increasing the length of their content pieces beyond the standard, industry gold, 500-1,000 word posts. The benefits reported by a number of different studies and authoritative websites may prove to be a new industry standard.

Why is Long Form Content Better?

The great thing about long-form content is the myriad of benefits it provides with very few downsides: websites will be able to put and receive more links, organic traffic will climb, your brand authority goes up, you improve your sustainable content, and achieve better credibility.

More Links and Organic Traffic

With more content, you’re more likely to receive outbound links from other companies and websites. If you’re consistently writing content-rich pieces, others will take notice and start linking to your site’s content because of your high authoritative position. Backlinks are one of the best ways to increase your brand’s internet authority, increasing organic traffic and raising your search engine ranking. If a search engine is trying to decide between two sites for a particular keyword, will it choose the shorter piece or longer one? Of course the longer, content-rich piece. A study by Hubspot showed that articles with a word count between 2,250 and 2,500 earn the most organic traffic. Users spending one minute reading one piece isn’t nearly as revealing to search engines as content that keeps users glued to a site for more than three minutes.

Better Brand Authority

When you make the switch to more long-form content, you’re putting in the effort to research and write pieces with more information for your readers. But it’s not just more information they’re receiving. Readers are rewarded with content tailored to your company’s point of view. With enough people reading this point of view, shifts in trends and ways of thinking occur, effectively making your site a leader in your particular field. As a leader, other sites and people look to you as an internet authority. Your customers get long lasting, valued content and in return, you ensure customer loyalty for the future.

Sustainable Content

With shorter content pieces, websites hope to capture the attention of search engines by adding lots of content to stay relevant. The hope here is that search engines see this relative stream of updated content and reward them with higher rankings. Long-form pieces can overrule shorter, more recent pieces since they’re assumed to have a higher authority on the subject.

Credibility

Long-form content tends to earn a consumer’s trust. If a website takes the time and effort to craft thorough pieces that show relevant information, trends, data, or perspectives, it makes sense that people would come to trust that company and their brand.

The internet is full of content. But the key is to step ahead of the pack and go for the powerful and marketing tool. For more information on the power of content or other digital marketing needs, contact Performance First Marketing.