Articles & Blog Posts

The difference between articles and blog posts is not as clear cut as it used to be. Blog posts used to be short written pieces, often based on the writer’s opinion. Articles were longer pieces, based on research and interviews. These days, many sites publish long form blog posts, based on research and interviews, that are very similar to articles. The label is less important than creating and publishing a valuable and trustworthy piece of content, whatever the length

There’s a variety of common article types. Both online and offline publications publish feature articles, which focus on or profile a particular person, company, product, or service. In addition, how-to articles, which explain the steps needed to carry out a task, are very popular. Online, list type articles are also very popular. In the last few years, articles based on original research and data have also become common. Many readers also enjoy long-form articles and opinion pieces.

There is no set length. Search engines are more concerned about how relevant the content is to the searcher’s query. However, blog posts have got longer. Where blog posts used to be 500-750 words, they are often 1200 words or more now. And long-form content has become more popular, so it’s not unusual to see in-depth guides and resources that are more than 3,000 words long.

One of the key benefits of blogging for businesses is that blogging is proven to help companies get more leads, and more leads usually means more sales. Blogging is part of content marketing and inbound marketing, which both use content to help potential customers find your business. When you blog, and use SEO to help your content show up in search results, more people find your website. Once they’re there, you can attract and retain them with even more content.

Most editors will tell you how they want an article to be formatted. However, you can make your article more appealing by including a compelling title and introductory paragraph, and a satisfactory conclusion. In between, keep paragraphs short, with one key point per paragraph. Divide the body of your article with subheadings that entice people to keep reading. For online articles, include links to authoritative or expert external sources. These tips will make your articles appeal to most editors.