Long-form content is obviously lengthier than short-form content, but if you’re googling “what’s the difference between long-form and short-form content,” you’re probably looking for a less surface-level answer. You’re probably wondering when you should employ each type of content, which will get you the most readers, and/or if there are any other notable differences between writing long- and short-form content.
Let’s take a look at these questions and explain the answers.
Definitions
Before we begin, let’s take a more in-depth look at what constitutes “long-form” and “short-form.” As you may have noticed, those terms are a little vague. There’s not really one, solid definition of these terms. For example, HubSpot defines long-form content as “a piece of writing between 1,000 – 7,500 words.” Meanwhile, the Search Engine Journal says long-form content is 2,000 words or more, while short-form content is “any written copy that is around 1,000 words.” Using these definitions, a 1,000-word article is considered short form to HubSpot and long-form to the SEJ.
This presents an interesting conundrum, but I’m going to suggest two alternative definitions. First, the difference between short- and long-form content is about what looks short or long. There are lots of factors that can affect this perception—paragraph length, vocabulary, even the device the reader’s using when they look at the article—and taking these factors into consideration is an important component of making articles more digestible.
Another way you could describe the difference is how long it takes to read the piece. If someone can read your writing in ten minutes or less, it’s probably safe to call it short-form. If they’re going to spend their whole lunch break reading it, then it’s likely closer to long-form. Similarly, you might call a piece “long-form” if it comes in multiple parts released across multiple days (such as an extended social media campaign.)
Either way, it’s important to remember that each has its time and place. Some messages come across better when you cut to the point, while others need an in-depth analysis.
The Different Uses
When deciding if you need to use long- or short-form content, ask yourself the following: what do you want to convey? If you’re looking to share a lot of information, or persuade an audience about a specific point or product, you’ll likely utilize long-form content. Alternatively, if you have a tight budget, you’re targeting inbound leads, or are working with limited/condensed formats, short-form content is probably the better option.
Though these broad strokes generally hold true, you may need to apply some nuance depending on how you’re using the information you’re writing about, or how you intend others to use that information. For example, if you need to persuade your audience but you already have an extremely trustworthy reputation, then you might not need to spend 2,000 words convincing them.
Creating Long-Form Content
In-depth analysis often comes at the price of readability. For example, look at the following two sentences:
- In part due to the long-standing existence of canis familiaris (the domesticated dog) and interference from humans’ selective breeding, the species has developed a wide array of diverse phenotypes despite having fairly normal genetic diversity compared to other mammalian species.
- Though dogs’ DNA doesn’t differ that much from one breed to the next, their long history with humans and selective breeding caused their wildly different appearances.
Those two sentences say pretty much the same thing, but you probably found the information in the second much easier to absorb. Too often, explanatory writers fall into the trap of thinking their writing needs to “sound smart.” In reality, going out of your way to use complex language and niche jargon will deter many readers.
Your readers aren’t looking to sift through complexity or re-read each sentence five times to get the point. They’re not necessarily even looking for something “dumbed down,” they’re just looking for something clear and convenient. So how do you write clear and convenient long-form content?
Tip 1: Be Concise
Writing long-form content doesn’t mean you get to add unnecessary clauses to every sentence. Looking at the above example sentences, you might notice the second is much shorter than the first. Yet, the shorter sentence conveys the same information as the longer sentence.
Don’t write long-form content just to write long-form content. Every single sentence in your piece should be informative. If you repeat yourself too much, bog down your piece with unnecessary examples, or let your sentences sprawl, your audience will lose the forest for the trees.
Tip 2: Be Organized
Though I’m not going to advocate you outline every single detail of a blog post before writing it (I find many writers find outlines unhelpful), it’s a good idea to make sure your ideas flow together. For you, that might mean creating a traditional outline with bullet points and tiered lists. Or it could mean you write your headings first, then go through and write out each section. Some even prefer to just get all their ideas down in their first draft, then heavily edit and reorganize the piece. Either way, there should be a natural progression to your ideas with a beginning, middle, and end.
Moreover, you should know how to physically organize the information. Bulleted and numbered lists are extremely helpful when ordering and condensing information. You’ll also want to make use of headings and subheadings, not just because they’ll help with organization, but they’re also useful for SEO.
Tip 3: Be Consistent
Most sources recommend you use a conversational tone when writing your blog posts, and I mostly agree. There may be some exceptions (like more scientific pieces, news articles, et cetera), but either way, it’s important to keep your tone consistent throughout the piece. You shouldn’t suddenly switch to a formal tone in a conversational piece or vice versa. That would confuse your audience and dampen your credibility.
Creating Short-Form Content
In marketing and copywriting, most of your content will likely be short-form. Most social media posts, ad copy, and website copy are short-form content. This may come as a relief to you—after all, most would much rather post a Tweet than write a 2,000-word essay—but brevity doesn’t make the task easier. In fact, you may find it more difficult to condense information into 280 characters.
To help you better write your short-form content, try utilizing these tips.
Tip 1: Cut the Fluff
Lots of writers don’t realize how many words they can cut from their work. Look at the following sentence:
- Dogs have been valued by humans for an unknown period of time consisting of at least 20,000 years.
At first, this may seem like a pretty straightforward sentence. If you’re an experienced editor, however, you likely noticed the instance of passive voice and the unnecessary clause. You could truncate “for an unknown period of time consisting of at least 20,000 years” to “for at least 20,000 years. Likewise, “Dogs have been valued by humans” could be condensed to “Humans have valued dogs.” With this editing, the new sentence would be:
- Humans have valued dogs for at least 20,000 years.
With these edits, the sentence’s word count has almost halved.
Tip 2: Get to the Point
Short-form content does not leave room for tangents or lengthy preludes. Write what you need to say, then stop. Do not waste time on unnecessary rhetorical flourishes. Do not waste time on frivolous examples or anecdotes. If a sentence doesn’t impart information, delete it.
Tip 3: Edit Your Content
Despite what you may believe, people very rarely write perfect content in their first draft. Even if you take great pains to follow the first two tips, you still need to reread and rewrite your content. The shorter your writing, the more your mistakes will stand out.
A minor typo might be forgiven if it’s one word in a long blog post, but not if it’s in a caption or on a billboard.
In Conclusion
To answer your initial question: the biggest practical differences between long- and short-form content is when they’re used and how they’re written. If you have hours or days to spend crafting an in-depth analysis of your product or mission statement, then you’re going to write long-form content. If you need something to the point, then you need short-form pieces.
Either way, remember the two forms meet very different requirements, and neither is inherently better. You just need to know when to use which.