I have been reading a lot lately on how long blog posts should be. Some bloggers say that more words are better, whereas others are of the thinking that fewer words help to get to the point sooner. Personally, I am a bit divided on this subject. For this reason, I tend to mix in both long and short posts, and really never think about this when I am writing.
When I am composing content for this blog, I do not constantly think about the word count Instead, I concentrate on the overall quality. But even then, having an idea on the average length of each blog post is very important.
As you may have noticed, I began to post more than one time per day as of late. In fact, some days I have posted as many as five times. And if everything stays on track, I plan on continuing at a rate of two or more posts per day for the foreseeable future. Obviously, with posting so many times per day, the length of each one is something that I want to get right.
The majority of my blog posts as of late range from 350 to 700 words. Of course, sometimes I only hit a couple hundred words, but other times I close in on 1,000. I have come up with several pros and cons for both long and short posts.
First off, let’s take a close look at shorter blog posts. The main advantage is that your readers will not have to sift through information that they do not want to read. In other words, you can get right to the point without rambling on. But at the same time, can you really say what you need to in only 200 words or so? In some cases, the answer may be yes. Just make sure that you do not end your post without telling readers what they want to hear. Leaving them unfulfilled is never a good idea. This is something that I am working on with each post that I make.
On the other side of things, longer blog posts have pros and cons as well. To combat what was said above, a longer post allows you to include more information. But again, this information is only useful if it is fact filled as opposed to fluff or filler. A big downside of long blog posts is that they take longer to write. In turn, you may not be able to produce as much content as you would like. This is why you will see that some blogs only post twice a week, but they are in excess of 1,000 words each time.
All in all, I do not think that quality and length are directly tied together at all times. Many bloggers will tell you that shorter posts are not of high quality, but I do not feel this way. As long as you are offering useful information that is interesting to your readers, you should feel as if you are achieving a high level of quality.Â
By the way, this post came in at right around 500 words.
I have always believed that setting career related goals is the key to success. After all, if you do not know what you want to accomplish, how will you know what direction to head? Just like any other career, if you are interested in freelance writing and/or blogging you need to set goals.
The main reason that many freelance writers and bloggers do not set goals is because they have no idea what to strive for. While it can be difficult to set solid, realistic goals, you need to do so in order to achieve success.
As a freelance writer, there are several goals that you can make for yourself. First off, set a goal for how much money you want to earn each month. While doing this, make sure that you are realistic. You may earn $7,500/month sooner or later, but in your first month as a freelance writer this is probably not going to happen.
Additionally, you can set freelance writing goals based on the number of queries you send out or contacts you make. For instance, tell yourself that you will send query letters/emails to at least three publications a week. Many of these may turn into rejection, but over time you are sure to breakthrough. The nice thing about a goal like this is that anybody can do it. As long as you have the motivation to send out letters, you will reach this goal. It has nothing to do with quantity of work or income.
On the blogging side of things, you can set similar goals. Many bloggers set goals based around traffic numbers, backlinks, and of course, income.
As you move forward, you will want to make sure that you adjust your goals to suit your needs. For instance, if you have a goal of earning $1,000/month via freelance writing, you will want to work hard until you succeed. But guess what? At that time, you should set a new goal; one that will push you even higher. Over time, as you reach each goal you will be able to look back at your starting point and see just how far you have come.
Through my experience, setting small goals with your freelance writing and/or blogging careers is the best way to go. This will help you to reach your large goals sooner, and in turn keep you motivated as you move forward. Â
Generally speaking, I see myself as a freelance writer. This is what I do, and it is safe to say that I wouldn’t trade this job for any other. But with that being said, I have become addicted to blogging, internet marketing, and internet business as a whole over the past six months. Even though I have several projects in the pipeline right now, this blog is definitely one of the most promising.
There are several reasons that I am confident that ChrisBlogging will continue to move forward with success. First off, the blog is moving in the right direction, month in and month out. I may not be making huge amounts of money, but that is not my main concern at this time. Simply put, I want to continue to build quality content and traffic. In time, both of those will begin to help when it comes to monetization.
If ChrisBlogging is to succeed in the future, several changes need to be made. First and foremost, a unique design is necessary for a number of different reasons. Mainly, a unique design will set ChrisBlogging apart from the crowd, while also helping as far as branding is concerned. Additionally, more monetization methods will be opened up with a new design. I have been working with a designer for the past week, and am excited about making my new theme live sometime in the very near future. In fact, I am going to give a preview very soon so that advertisers and potential contributors can get on board.Â
Another important aspect of future success is the continuation of quality posts. While I have only gone without a post one day since starting this blog, I want to ramp up production very soon. With so much to say about freelance writing and blogging, two posts per day would be much more suitable. Of course, this will hopefully lead to more traffic.
All in all, as long as I continue to post quality articles and help readers, I will feel like this blog is a huge success. And I don’t plan on changing either of those things in the near future.
