How shareable is your content?
You’re an expert in your field, and many people would find value in your knowledge and insights. But they can’t benefit from your online content unless they see it.
So I was very intrigued by a new data analysis that puts some hard numbers to questions like “How long should my post be to get organic search traffic?” and “What kind of headline is best to get people to share my article?”
The folks at online marketers Hubspot analyzed 6,192 posts on their blog along with a number of metrics such as word count, headline, number of words in the headline, overall views, search visits, external links to the posts, social shares and more. You can read the details here.
The results were striking.
- The best length for an article to do well on organic search was 2,250 to 2,500 words. Posts of more than 2,500 words got the most social media shares and the highest number of external websites linking to them.
- Headlines of 8 to 12 words were shared most on Twitter and 12 or 14 words got the most likes on Facebook.
- Adding a number to a title (Like “5 secrets to a great content”) generates more than 18% more tweets. Headlines with “infographic” got 100% more and “template” hit 115% more.
These insights can help you promote your content. But it’s important not to be slavish about it. Genuinely meaningful information, expressed well, has to be the starting point. If you have questions about getting traction for your content, drop me a line here. I can review what you are doing and offer suggestions. Or if you don’t have a source for great content yet, I can help.
