blog content 2016 performance trends - … · on social media depends on the network and your...
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Blog Content
2016 Performance Trends
April, 2016
All Industries
1
Millionarticles
8kContent Feeds
3000Topics
Atomic Reach
Marketing success powered by machine learning
Atomic Reach is a machine learning platform that analyzes the
influence of text structure and use of language on digital
audience readership.
About Us
Using machine learning and correlative data models, we set out to
explore and highlight the structural and linguistic trends that are
defining how digital content performs. The following report shows
you how to adapt your content to maximize engagement with your
audience. Enjoy!
About this report
Content Audiences Engagement patterns
High Quality Contenthere are the facts
Writing an active blog is an essential communications
method for all businesses to build authority, drive sales
and maximize audience engagement. To achieve
success, high quality content is mandatory.
• Google: High-quality content is the only
way to get a good site ranking on Google
(CMI)
• SEO: High quality content is the
foundation of all other SEO activities (SEL)
• Leads: Blogging is the most effective lead
generation tool for marketers (Hubspot)
What makes your content
perform
From the timing of the delivery of a post to social media, to the
structure of your sentences and the words you choose, each
element is a pre-determining component impacting how well your
content will perform.
HeadlinesThe headline of your content is the most crucial element for increasing visibility and shares. Headline optimization is a precise science and must be applied correctly.
Timing
The best time to distribute your content on social media depends on the network and your audiences’ readability level. Optimizing distribution is essential to maximizing results.
Language
Audience readability is key. Who they are and what they know informs the right language, tone and vocabulary
needed to engage them.
Structure
There are common structural elements within content that are
prerequisites of high quality content. They all need to be used.
Performance benchmarks
Posts with the three key elements of high-quality content (headlines,
language, structure) generate material increases in performance.
Above all, high-quality content is built on a clear understanding of
the readability of your audience.
Source
What is the impact of high-quality blog content?
12x
7x
3x
more leads per month
more traffic
more leads per dollar
6%
20%
12%
31%
31%
ReadabilityMatching language to the needs of your audience is the most
important thing you can do. Ideal readability levels vary by
industry and brand identity. For example, financial services
content unexpectedly performs better at a lower readability level,
while parenting articles perform better when written for a more
advanced audience. Understanding your audience is crucial.
Readability Levels
Segmentation of
content and audience
by readability
- Genius
- General
- Academic
Knowledgeable
Specialist
Paragraph Densitystructure impacts perception
As the number of paragraphs matching the
correct paragraph density increases, the higher
the average pageviews
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000
<50%
50%-84%
>85%
% o
f M
atc
hin
g P
ara
gra
phs
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
Consider paragraph density as a visual signal to
your audience that your content is written with
thought and care, and is of a high quality.
Paragraph density is most affected by the
number of sentences in a paragraph, but can
also be influenced by the complexity of the
words you select, and the length of your
sentences. Paragraphs either too long or too
short create an incorrect perception and result
in a loss of engagement.
Sentence Countstructure impacts perception
A clear trend towards longer posts is emerging
and engagement data confirms that audiences
prefer to spend their time reading long-form
content.
Additionally, # of words per sentence impacts
readability and engagement yielding an ideal
range of approximately 8 to 10 words.
The ideal length of a blog post is increasing into
the 70+ sentence range
0 2000 4000 6000 8000
21-30
31-40
41-70
71+
Sente
nce
Co
unt
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
Word Countstructure impacts perception
Word choice impacts the sentences’ fluency and
contains implicit expectations of the audience’s
required expertise on a topic.
In addition to overall word count it is of
particular importance to pay attention to word
complexity. The combination of the two signal
to the audience whom you post is targeting and
how well versed they need to be in order to
comprehend and benefit from your point of
view.
Articles between 500 to 700 words outperform
shorter and longer content
0 2000 4000 6000 8000
301-500
501-700
701-1000
1001-1400
1401+
Wo
rd C
ount
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
The most valuable of all
talents is that of never
using two words when
one will do
Thomas Jefferson
What makes a compelling title
Title Findings
Titles
Title Character Counttitle structure impacts performance
While often cited as the most challenging part
of the writing process, title construction is one
of the most important influencers on audience
engagement.
When used effectively, a title communicates the
topic and captures the readers’ imagination,
and is the first point of contact between the
audience and a post.
A point of note: Google displays approximately
60 characters of a title in a search results page,
correlating directly with reader engagement
data.Titles containing 31 to 60 characters receive the
most pageviews
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000
1-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81+
# o
f C
hara
cters
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
Emotionemotion creates connectivity
Words are assigned an emotional value based
on one of three states: positive, negative or
neutral. Data illustrates that words with either a
positive or negative connotation contribute to
reader engagement, especially when
represented within a title.
Titles containing at least one word with an
emotional value drive more engagement
0 2000 4000 6000 8000
NEUTRAL
EMOTIONAL
Pre
sence
of A
n E
mo
tio
n In A
Title
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
Keywordskeywords drive engagement
Keywords in a title provide the reader with a
contextual signal and are a key driver of
engagement. When constructing a title, the
placement of a keyword is as equally important
as the presence of a keyword. Data illustrates
that keywords are more effectual when placed
in the back of a title, as readers are more likely
to interact with the last 3 words.
Note that keyword balance is also important.
Stuffing titles with keywords has a negative
impact on post performance.
Presence and placement of a keyword are
material to the performance of a title
0 2000 4000 6000 8000
1
2
3
4
5
6+
Title
Keyw
ord
Co
unt
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
Pronounspersonalize the experience
Using pronouns personalizes the title and the
experience for the reader. Note that the type of
article you are writing influences the type of
pronoun you select. When constructing a title,
use of a 2nd person pronoun over the exclusion
of a pronoun can impact initial pageview
performance by as much as 200%.
Use of a 2nd person pronoun can increase
pageviews by as much as 200%
0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000
NO PRONOUNS
1ST PERSON
2ND PERSON
3RD PERSON
Use
of P
rono
uns
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
Superlativeconnect with the audience
Audiences recognize that writers are skilled at
using titles to maximize interest, but are equally
adept at recognizing an over-indulgence of the
craft. When used correctly superlatives are a
valuable technique authors can apply to amplify
a feeling and increase title engagement. That
said, overstuffing of superlatives or incorrect use
can have an adverse affect on engagement.
When used appropriately, superlatives can
increase title engagement by over 300%
0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000 12000
NO
YES
Sup
erlative
In T
itle
s
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
In The Form of A Questionpique curiosity
Phrasing a title in the form of a question is a
constructive method often used by authors to
pique the interest of the audience. It can also
establish an immediate point of view before the
article is even viewed, which can be a valuable
method to increase engagement.
Titles in the form of a question are a valuable
engagement method
0 2000 4000 6000 8000
NO
YES
Title
As
A Q
uest
ion
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
Who, What, When, Where, Why Or Howestablish purpose
Regarded as the 5 fundamental questions of
journalism, the 5Ws are equally important for
business writers. Using the 5Ws provides a clear
purpose for the article and explains to the
reader what they should expect to learn.
The 5Ws provide clear purpose and set an
expectation with the audience
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000
None
At least one
An Inst
ruct
ional T
itle
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
Presence of a Numberset context with the audience
Use of a number in a title is a common method
exercised by writers to set an expectation with
the reader as to the style of article.
Presence of a number in the title communicates
a form of structure such as, a listicle, a series of
facts, or a schedule of prioritized thoughts.
When used to establish the form of content,
numbers in articles are effective and result in
increases in engagement.
When used in context numbers are an effective
method of driving readership
0 2000 4000 6000 8000
NO
YES
Pre
sence
of A
Num
ber
In T
itle
s
Average Unique Pageviews Average Pageviews
The two most
engaging powers of an
author are to make
new things familiar
and familiar things
new. Samuel Johnson
Social Network EngagementHow social network audiences engage with content
Social Audiences Are Unique By Network
Increasing the frequency of sharing is one of the lesser used but
most effective techniques available to businesses to maximize
engagement. As illustrated in the data above, increasing the
number of shares per post, increases the average number of re-
shares per share – i.e. 6+ shares per post results in an average of
300+ re-shares per share. Conversely, 2 shares per post results in
an average of under 200 re-shares per share.
Sharing Frequency
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700
1
2
3 to 5
6+
# o
f R
e-s
hare
s Per
Share
Average Like Rate per Post Average Reshare Rate per Post
While the user annotation associated with the post (the post
comment) and the title of the article function as the primary
engagement drivers, post word count does impact overall
performance. As is the case with article length correlations, 500 to
700 words is the ideal length on Facebook.
Engagement
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
301-500 501-700 701-1000 1001-1400 1401+
Ave
rag
e F
B R
e-s
hare
s
Word Count
Facebooksentence count
Longer form content performs better on social
networks. Performance data shows that the
ideal length for a Facebook post is in the 31 to
40 sentence range, which is slightly shorter than
posts hosted on a blog.
Ideal post length for Facebook is in the 31 to 40
sentence range
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
1-20 21-30 31-40 41-70 71+
Eng
ag
em
ent
# of Sentences
Avg FB Reshares Avg FB Likes
Consistent with ideal length findings for posts in general, long form
content performs better on Twitter. Of interest, data correlations
illustrate that the minimum ideal length on Twitter is approximately
500 words, and articles on the higher end of the spectrum (1400+
words) drive the most average engagement.
Engagement
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
501-700 701-1000 1001-1400 1401+
Word Count
Avg TW Retweets Avg TW Favourites
Twittersentence count
Consistent with word count findings, on Twitter
articles with longer sentences perform better.
This suggests that Tweets are shared actively
and rapidly to draw attention, but when clicking
through to the corresponding article, Twitter
audiences will invest significant time consuming
information.
Twitter audiences engage more with longer
form content
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
21-30 31-40 41-70 71+
Perf
orm
ance
Sentence Count
Avg TW Retweets Avg TW Favourites
When something can
be read without effort,
great effort has gone
into its writing. Enrique Jardiel Poncela
Our teammeet the experts
Paul BlamireVP, Client Experience
Paul oversees all facets of user-experience initiatives. He continually looks at platform data correlations to help marketers build highly effective content programs.
Jessica QiData Analyst
A mathematics wiz, Jessica spends her time applying advanced analytics models to draw out important data correlations impacting content behavior.
Summer LuuDirector of Marketing
Summer manages Atomic Reach’s marketing programs and is available to respond to all media inquiries or questions about this report.
Contacthow to reach us
647 Dupont Street, Suite 404
Toronto, ON
Our office
www.atomicreach.com
facebook.com/atomicreach
“We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever
becomes a master.”
Ernest Hemingway