Guest posting is a great way to establish your authority online, as well as boost your Google rankings. It is something that every website is recommended to do if they want to enjoy a lot of traffic and conversions.
But, do you know the best ways to guest post? Something that a lot of people are concerned about is the word count. In particular, whether guest posts should be short or long when it comes to length. A lot of businesses would prefer to create shorter content since this would take half the time. There is no doubt that there are shorter pieces of content available online. But, is it going to have the desired effect when it comes to guest posting, or is it going to be damaging for SEO? Let’s find out.
Are Short Guest Posts Bad for SEO?
We all know that guest posts are good for your SEO strategy. When you are referenced by a website with good domain authority, this can help to boost your rankings on Google. Link building is a must no matter what industry you are in. One of the best ways to do this is by creating guest posts. Click here to read more about why guest posting should be part of your SEO strategy if it is not already. There are challenges with this project, but if you are committed to creating content on a regular basis and making sure it is high-quality, you can see good results.
A consideration you definitely have to make when it comes to creating guest posts is what the word count will be. Ideally, you want your guest posts to be around 700 to 800 words. This is going to work best for Google, allowing the search engine to figure out what you are writing about. It is also going to be a digestible amount of information for a reader. It is not too short that they do not learn anything and it is not too long that it bores them. So, to answer the question; are short guest posts bad for SEO? Well, they might just not have the desired effect and you could be wasting your time.
Other Factors to Consider with Guest Posting
It is important to remember that it is more than just the word count that matters when it comes to guest posts. Namely, there are other factors you have to think about to ensure that your guest posting efforts are rewarded. Let’s take a look.
Quality Content Is Key
Yes, you want to write longer guest posts. But, you have to prioritize quality. Also, make sure that you are not waffling or repeating yourself. Remember that you have to present it in a way that is easy to read, as well as interesting for a reader. You do not want to bore your audience or make them click off the page. You are better off spending your time writing a few quality guest posts rather than trying to focus on quantity.
Links Should Be Natural
Another consideration you have to make with guest posts is that the link is inserted naturally and organically within the content. This is the safest method when it comes to SEO, as well as making the reading experience better for your audience. They are less likely to click on a link if they simply think it is a sales pitch. Your readers should want to gain more information and this can be achieved by clicking on your link.
Unique Is Best
Google does not like plagiarism and you should always ensure that your guest posts are unique. You will be penalized by Google for any information that is copied and this can even be true if the content is from your own website.