Comments on: How Long Should a Posts Be?

By: Anne Wayman

Anne Wayman — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 16:25:58 +0000

It seems like I always or almost always write short… which are the types of blogs I like to read best… bite sized.

Anne Wayman
http://www.thegoldenpencil.com

By: Jeremy Hobbs

Jeremy Hobbs — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 23:37:52 +0000

I write the way I read…. I run a review blog, and unless it’s a music review, things start getting a little long winded around 300-350 words. I suppose it all depends on what your content is; a new style of potato chips really only needs 200 or so words; an essay on European economics may require a few more….

By: Nahush

Nahush — Sat, 16 Jun 2007 16:07:20 +0000

I think both types of posts should work. We have before us two live examples. First is this very blog (for shorter posts) by Darren, and second is that of Steve Pavlina(for longer posts). I am a fan of both.

Besides, it also depends upon the purpose of the blog. For example my purpose in starting this blog http://www.caselaws.blogspot.com is to provide to the reader succintly and in just one paragraph the point which the particular court case decides. On the other hand I have this blog http://www.successmantras.blogspot.com containing little longer posts

By: Leo

Leo — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 20:04:28 +0000

I wish I had a little bit of his problem, almost all of my posts are very short, and I have to really work at lengthening them.

By: Jim Walton

Jim Walton — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 19:16:13 +0000

I tend to be long winded as well and have to work hard to narrow down my post sometimes. I think we, in general, have a short attention span and I know I often don’t finish long posts, I just move on, so I think I shouldn’t expect my readers to stick it out on any of my extra-long posts.

I’m trying to learn to focus my writing because I tend to chase different tangents in a single post that I never intended to address. I’ve heard it said that as a writer, you should create an outline on your topic. I’m not there yet but I try to identify the point I’m trying to make and stick to that point.

Enough said, I could go on but won’t. :)

By: Austin Realtor's Wife

Austin Realtor's Wife — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 17:19:30 +0000

When long posts are broken up (like this original article above), it is easier for the eye to follow and you can get away with being wordy. When I began blogging, I used MSWord (btw, bad idea- formatting doesn’t convey) and wouldn’t let it go over one page long. That’s just how I roll! :)

By: Talal

Talal — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 16:35:42 +0000

It depends for the topic. Some topics might be long and have lots of details; on the other hand, there are some topics could be short such as sports posts :)

By: S. Weasel

S. Weasel — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 10:57:57 +0000

Ha! Nice catch, glenn-a. I’ve read that most typos published happen in headlines. When you’re proofing, you tend to skip the headlines and go right to the copy.

So your mistakes come out in big, bold type…

By: TheLocoMono

TheLocoMono — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 01:11:45 +0000

My question in regards to short and long posts is how does posts directly affect the amount of server space and bandwith?

I am curious as to when to upgrade to more space for my blogs in the future. Does posts even take up bytes? Because it sounds like when adding up over the long run, a zillion long posts may take up more space than it is worth in expenses.

By: glenn-a

glenn-a — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 00:09:48 +0000

Mixing long, medium and short items always seems to work in any publishing situation. Great item, but I’d take another look at that headline! Proofreading also a priority item!

By: Erin Fogarty

Erin Fogarty — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 17:36:56 +0000

My theory is that long posts don’t get read. They may have fabulous content, but people get bored too easily and they don’t want to dedicate more than 10 minutes to read a single post. I’ve found that splitting a long post into a series is a good way to keep people coming back. They read the first part, and then realize there’s more to come. That gets them excited to come back and hear the rest of it.

By: ShiatsuBlogger

ShiatsuBlogger — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 14:21:12 +0000

Keeping posts to the point works for me. If they start getting too long then I happily accept I have another post for another day!

By: 16 Laws of Women in Photographs

16 Laws of Women in Photographs — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 06:28:32 +0000

“The greatest writer is one who can help the reader the most in the least amount of time.” -someone probably smarter and richer than me.

Personally, though, I like making long posts with useless content. “Bore ‘em till they hurt.” That’s my motto.

By: JerryWFranklin

JerryWFranklin — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 05:12:48 +0000

How long?

Long enough to make your point; short enough to make your point.

http://www.JerryWFranklin.com
http://www.MarketingSoftwareTools.com

By: Ayush T

Ayush T — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 05:07:57 +0000

I run a blog where the authors offer their unadulterated opinions on a variety of relevant issues. I, personally, find that sometimes I have so much to say that a long post is necessary. Then again for topics that I have covered previously, a shorter post suffices, otherwise I would be repeating myself unnecessarily.

A shorter post doesn’t mean the quality is any worse. Just that a lot of what needs to be said has been said before, in my case anyway.

By: Jermayn Parker

Jermayn Parker — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 04:55:44 +0000

For me I am definitely a short post reader. Ive heard in some places that on average, people will hold attention for 30 mins for a speech, movie etc. I reckon it will be much much shorter for blogs posts, I would try 2 minutes..

By: Dave Starr --- ROI Guy

Dave Starr --- ROI Guy — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 03:23:40 +0000

Mistergin:

At last a question I can contribute to, and succinctly as well. A blog post should be long enough and not longer..

To think you can make a “full” post on any subject is disingenuous at the least. No one knows all about _anything_ so “full” is never more than you were able to make it “full”. Choose the points you want to make … not everything you know … make them and depart.

By: Natasha

Natasha — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 03:18:28 +0000

The method I find works best is to make certain posts expandable. There are various codes on the net you can find to do this and I’ll link to one that works for me at the bottom of this comment.

What it means is that you write a summary of what your post will be about in one paragraph and then place a link to the full post beneath it. When users click on the link, the post will expand to include the full content. It’s a neat way to keep the main page of your blog tidy while still offering full content.

Link to flexible read more for long posts: http://toniradex.blogspot.com/2005/08/flexible-read-more-for-long-post.html

By: DIY PR Builder

DIY PR Builder — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 02:00:07 +0000

Another great post Darren.

For SEO I’ve found that 300 words or more is ideal but to make sure that the post talks about the same topic. If you veer off into a new direction you lose your rankings because the page is too scattered – the keyword density drops too low.

If I’m writing a long post I like to divide it into parts. I might do one part today and follow up with a second part tomorrow. It keeps it easy on the eyes as well as gives the readers an incentive to come back the next day and check in on the new post.

Also, I’ve found that if you break up the text with bolded points (just like you have done with this list) it makes it easier to read and your eyes don’t tire as much.

By: Sterling

Sterling — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 01:34:08 +0000

I’m all for weeding out people by following my own style and personality, so I don’t worry to much about how long or short it is.

I’m less about having the most readers and more about having people that click with me and want what I have to give to them.

That being said, I find that the longer it is the more comments and links I get. Lucky for Jay and I, we are both pretty long winded.