3 Content Formats That Attract More Organic Traffic and Engagement
It’s content-planning time, and you’re feeling the pressure of what topics to cover in the coming months. Not knowing which type of content is the most effective for your SEO program can result in subpar ROI.
You’re going to invest the time and resources into your content, so make it count. In this article, I’ll outline three content formats that are proven to get results so that when you’re ready to plan your SEO content calendar for the month, you can build them into your workflow:
- Final Thoughts
- FAQ: How can I evaluate different content formats to identify the ones that drive the most SEO success?
1. Long-Form Blog Posts
Here’s one format that’s been proven to drive results — but I’ll preface this by saying that there is no “one” uniform word count requirement to rank in the search results.
Rather, you need to see what the competition is doing and match them or do better, and make sure the word count is appropriate for the topic.
So, for some keywords and topics, it may only require 500 words to be sufficient, while others will do better at thousands of words.
The bottom line is to always let the research drive the word count. And remember that Google has said there is no minimum word count for ranking. (For more, check out Google Looking for a Minimum Word Count on Webpages?.)
That said, there has been some research that suggests longer form articles perform better and drive more traffic.
For example:
- HubSpot research found that articles between 2,250 and 2,500 words attracted the highest organic traffic. Posts of more than 2,500 words garnered the most social media shares and inbound links. This is supported by earlier research from the company that found the optimal blog post length for SEO is between 2,100 and 2,400 words.
- A Semrush study found that articles that are more than 3,000 words attract nearly three times more traffic compared to those with 900 to 1,200 words. That same study found that longer-form content got four times as many social shares and 3.5 times more backlinks.
- Backlinko conducted research that showed long-form content receives 77.2% more backlinks than shorter articles.
How to succeed at long-form posts:
- Pick a good topic driven by keyword and competitor research. Make sure the topic supports your overall website themes, and analyze competitor content to see what’s out there first. Think about angles such as “ultimate” guides, industry studies or trend analysis.
- Create a thorough outline. You can use AI for help here, like our tool, Prewriter.ai, to exceed what the competition is doing with their content.
- Give detailed insights with practical tips, examples and data. There’s a lot that goes into creating quality content. I suggest reading Crafting High-Quality SEO Content: A Comprehensive Guide for more on this.
- Make it readable. Long-form posts require effort to read. Make it easier for readers by using heading tags (like H2, H3), bullet points and visuals to break up the text.
- Optimize the content for search with relevant keywords. Be sure to review the use of important keywords in the content, such as in the meta tags, headings, introduction of the article and throughout the text. You can check out this article on how a WordPress SEO plugin can help you optimize your content with keywords for more information on how to make this piece easier.
Of course, you can also read the research in the three studies linked above for more tips on how to formulate your long-form articles.
2. Listicles
Listicles — who doesn’t love them? They work because they are easy to consume. And they’re effective.
According to BuzzSumo research, listicle-type headlines get more engagement on social media. More research from BuzzSumo and Moz supported this, also showing lists tend to get more links.
Here are some key features of a successful listicle:
A catchy headline. Listicle-focused headlines with a number in them usually get more engagement — if you’re already doing this, you’re ahead of the game. But you can always put a little extra effort into making it stand out. Check out my article on crafting headlines, and lean on AI tools to give more variations of what you’ve got.
Skimmable structure. By nature, listicles are easy to read because they are numbered. But make sure you are also using heading tags, keeping paragraphs on the shorter side and using bullet points where you can.
Numbered list format. Oddly enough (pun intended), odd numbers are sometimes more effective. So, when you’re thinking about how many “things” to include in your listicle, consider using an odd number.
Practical and actionable advice. The meat of the content will be the guidance you provide. Be sure to include something actionable for the reader to use. Keep each section concise and focused. Strike a good balance between providing enough detail to be useful without overwhelming readers. You can link out to additional resources for deeper dives.
Social media-optimized. Because listicles are so attractive on social media, make sure you incorporate ways for your readers to share the content easily, and have great preview images.
3. Video Content
Video content is important to a holistic SEO program. Consider that 90% of videos in Google’s search results come from YouTube and that the video-sharing platform is also ranked No. 2 in most popular social media networks.
According to Wyzowl, 86% of video marketers say video has helped them increase web traffic, and 87% say video has directly increased sales.
Here are some things to consider as you create and optimize video content:
Choose the right platform. As mentioned, YouTube videos show up in the results a majority of the time. It’s smart to consider YouTube a part of your overall digital marketing strategy.
Define the topic. Before you even create the content, you’ll want to target the queries that most often show video results in search, and then make videos for them. Google’s Gary Illyes agrees: “When you see a video universal on the web search results, then you probably want to start thinking about creating a video for that.”
Understand the technical formatting. Videos that are up to two minutes long have the most engagement, according to Wistia. Also, consider the resolution. Most videos will only need a resolution of 1080p. Take note of your sound quality, too.
Optimize the videos. YouTube SEO includes tactics such as using your targeted keyword(s) in your video file name, optimizing the video’s title with targeted keywords, creating a detailed video description and optimizing it with targeted keywords. You can learn more by reading A CMO’s Guide to YouTube SEO in Less Than 5 Minutes and A Quick Beginner’s Guide to Video Marketing and Optimization.
Final Thoughts
Content that generates the results you need doesn’t take one form. When you’re planning out your content strategy, try including long-form blog posts, listicles and videos — they are proven to increase links, traffic and engagement.
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FAQ: How can I evaluate different content formats to identify the ones that drive the most SEO success?
Evaluating content formats for SEO success is much like solving a puzzle; all it requires is finding all of its pieces. Begin by understanding both what search engines want and what your audience actually desires; consider each format like an assortment of chocolates: video, infographics, blogs, or podcasts all have different flavors that attract different kinds of visitors. Use tools like Google Analytics and SEMrush to evaluate which formats bring in traffic most efficiently.
As part of your SEO climb, testing and tweaking activities based on what the data reveals are crucially important. Pay special attention to details like page loading times, mobile device performance, and content freshness. A/B test different formats to find the one that best resonates with your audience.
Mixing formats can significantly enhance your SEO efforts. Pairing blog posts with infographics can keep visitors on your site longer while demonstrating to search engines that your content is of superior quality. Use social media as an amplifier to reach a broader audience, earning backlinks that boost SEO rankings.
Attributing which content formats work best for SEO involves a blend of strategy, data analysis, and fine-tuning. By understanding your audience and leveraging their strengths across formats, you can enhance engagement and improve search engine rankings to meet SEO targets more quickly. It’s about creating a comprehensive plan with strategic direction to achieve business goals efficiently.
Step-by-Step Procedure:
- Know Your Audience: Understand who your audience is. What types of content will they find engaging?
- Establish Goals: Choose key performance metrics as indicators of SEO success such as organic traffic, bounce rate and conversion rate as metrics of measurement.
- Conduct a Content Audit: Assess existing content on your site, its performance and identify areas of potential improvement. Brainstorm new ideas.
- Keyword Analysis: Utilizing tools such as SEOToolSet, PreWriter.ai, SEMrush or Ahrefs, conduct keyword analyses to gain a better understanding of which keyword formats are outperforming others.
- Track Engagement: Assess how users react with your content.
- Different Formats: Experiment with blogs, videos, infographics, podcasts and other various forms.
- A/B Testing: A/B test these formats to figure out which ones your audience engages with the most. best.
- Recognizing Trends: Review content performance closely in order to detect trends and evaluate outcomes.
- Optimize for Mobile: Make sure your content can be viewed easily from mobile devices.
- Quality Over Quantity: Emphasize high-quality content that resonates.
- Social Media Boost: Expand content exposure by using social media platforms.
- Backlink Building: Create backlinks from other domains to increase authority and impact.
- Stay Current: Keep informed of best practices and SEO algorithm updates.
- Refine and Adapt: Adjust strategies based on data and trends for maximum effectiveness.
- Collaborate: Partner with influencers or experts to expand reach and acquire customers.
- Regular Monitoring: Track SEO performance to identify improvement areas and seize opportunities.
- Retargeting: Reach back out to those who have expressed an interest in your content by reconnecting.
- Schema Markup: Implement schema markup on your site so search engines can understand its content more accurately.
- Research Competitors: Thoroughly research your competitors and seek ways to distinguish yourself from them.
- Automation Tools: Simplify content distribution and tracking with automation tools.
- Engage Your Audience: Build relationships through comments and feedback.
- Iterate: Modify strategies as user needs evolve.
- Business Goals: Ensure content formats align with overall business objectives.
- Document Everything: Keep a record of successful strategies for future reference.
One Reply to “3 Content Formats That Attract More Organic Traffic and Engagement”
Great read! I agree—long-form content, listicles, and videos really do grab attention and drive organic traffic. Thanks for sharing!