How Long Should Your Blog Posts Be?

~ Cristian Mihai

Ever since blogging became mainstream people have been debating about a blog post’s perfect length. A lot of bloggers may read one or two articles about this, and try to follow the rules – never revisiting the issue for as long as they blog. This can be a mistake.

For a definitive answer, the following are three things to consider when you’re trying to decide how long your blog posts should be.

1. TONE:

Bloggers usually blog for a while before they think about setting a tone for their blog. However, if you’re serious about blogging, then you are going to have to eventually turn your attention to this.

Tone is important to how long your blog posts will be because they determine how you talk to your audience, not just what you talk about.

Long Blog Posts

For example, if you blog about self-help, psychology, and motivation, and you draw a lot upon your own experiences, then your posts can run to a few thousand words, which is a lot more than the “standard” of 250-600 words.

Long posts are suited to the kind of content that needs that much space to get a number of ideas across.

List posts are usually longer. The same applies to a how-to guide.

Short Blog Posts 

In contrast, if you have a blog about stocks, your posts might just discuss what happened with a particular stock of the day. These can be short, informative posts with links out to more in-depth sources.

Your readers will come to see what the stock of the day is, grab your insight, then move on.

2. POSTING FREQUENCY:

The rule seems to be that the more frequently you post, the shorter your posts should be – and vice versa.

Many people don’t have time to read mini books everyday, so shorter posts if you post every day kind of makes sense.

Also, you tend to please the search engine gods as well, because you are constantly adding new content.

However, don’t be afraid to turn this industry-accepted wisdom on its head. Ultimately, readers come to appreciate a blog because it provides value to them. The value that it provides to Reader A can be completely different from the value it provides to Reader B. And, you will probably never know what that value is. This is part of the reason building a popular blog is tricky.

You will never know what need you’re fulfilling for every one of your readers. But, by keeping some things consistent (like posting frequency and tone), you can – over time – start to make some educated guesses.

3. POSTING SCHEDULE:

Readers like consistency. Predictability is the single best thing you can do to develop a following. If you’re going to post only three times a week, let your readers know that.

What does a posting schedule have to do with post length? Simply put, you can better self edit.

Once you have a posting schedule, you can settle into writing “routine posts” — of a certain length. Referencing the first point listed here, the flow of your “tone/cadence” won’t be interrupted when you consistently write posts of a certain length.

Many bloggers are afraid of breaking the “rules” because they want to succeed so bad. But sometimes success comes when you break all the rules.

So, the next time you’re wondering how long your blog post should be, take these three factors into consideration – and do what works best for you.

37 thoughts on “How Long Should Your Blog Posts Be?”

  3. I break the rules all the time. Today I am publishing a very long post that chronicles my years in college. I know people will not ready all of it, but they will definitely be able to feel the emotion behind it, and that’s what is important to me.

    Liked by 11 people

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  6. Gosh – I never thought about the length of my blogs before. I just write because I love writing. They are rarely short, but not what I would consider that long (except today’s). I guess I’ll give this some consideration!

    Liked by 5 people

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  9. I’ve given absolutely no consideration to these factors when writing my posts. My only thought is, “What am I concerned with right now that’s relevant to my topic?” For the moment, it works for me.

    However… is it going to work during the next year or three, where I’m wishing I could grow my readership?

    Definitely worth exploring.

    Liked by 4 people

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  10. Interesting, I’ve never really considered this either. My blog is a labour of love and has been for 5 years. I tend to post infrequently and posts are long, it’s never really occurred to me to break it down to little and often! It makes writing less time consuming as well so theoretically would make you more likely to post more often 😃

    Liked by 5 people

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  13. Loved this! I am a new blogger looking to gain some friends and followers in the same category as mine and I must say, I loved your posts! I followed you so I can continue being inspired! Follow back please 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

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  22. This was really interesting and even though it’s very late and I’m about to go to sleep, it’s got me thinking. One of the most important recommendations I’d have is ask yourself why you’re blogging and revisit that and make sure your blogging activities are in line with that. When you’re first getting started and needing to get some runs on the board, joining some blog shares or communities is a great idea so that you’re not just talking to yourself. I belong to the Weekend Coffee Share, Friday Fictioneers and Thursday Doors at the moment. Reading other people’s blogs and leaving comments also attracts return traffic, which can create momentum. Using good photos or illustrations is very important to me, but I’m a photographer.Ideally, I’d recommend keeping posts until 500 words and if you’re serious about blogging, at least post three times a week. In terms of tone, I think being personal is important in blogging. You don’t need to use your real name but I try to address all my comments to the person by name. Also, keep the international aspect of blogging in mind and don’t assume people understand local references. I’m Australian but more than 80% of my traffic comes from America so I explain myself. I hope that helps.
    Best wishes,
    Rowena

    Liked by 7 people

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