Think About Your Web Content on a Sentence Level
There are two ways that most people think about web content: the overall message and the specific keywords. In some cases, the message takes priority. The content is designed to answer questions and engage readers. Getting the right message out, and keeping it on-brand, is the critical part of the process. In other cases, when thinking strictly about SEO, the focus becomes identifying which keywords people are using and what type of results they want. In most instances, the two are related. You want content that works with Google on a keyword level and that provides something valuable to your reader so they’ll stay on the landing page once they arrive.
That said, you need to take things one step further. If you really want effective content, consider the sentence structure. This can have a drastic impact on how people read and engage with your content.
Sentence Length
The impact of sentence length has to with pacing. Longer sentences often create a relaxing sense and can help build that atmosphere. They can also help when writing high-level or academic content. You slow things down and make the reader really dig into each sentence. This can make you look like more of an authority on a subject and it encourages deep reading.
The downside is that longer sentences (and paragraphs) can make things feel more dense. Readers may get bogged down in it or feel like the content really drags on. In some cases, just looking at a block of text is enough to turn them off from a page without reading a word. Remember that an internet audience often has a short attention span. You may need to cater to that.
To do it, use shorter sentences. Choose active words. Keep things choppy. Jump from one piece of information to the next. Try to convey as much as you can in as few words as possible.
Doing this helps people read quickly. The text doesn’t look intimidating. It keeps their attention. If they only have a second or two, they may not make it through even a single lengthy sentence, but they’ll read more information from numerous short sentences. This is also why bulleted lists work so well. When the audience is looking for specific information, putting it into a list breaks up the text and gives them what they want instantly.
You have to consider what you’re competing against. Text messages. TV commercials. Social media posts. Pictures. The internet gets a lot of consumption, but there’s almost a sense of ADD to the process. People jump from page to page, they skim content and they want to move quickly. Writing content that allows them to do that makes your page more attractive.
Crafting Excellent Content
As you can see, you need to look at your web content in numerous ways. Consider the message. Think about the structure. Break down every sentence. Decide how you want keywords to factor in. We do all of that and more here at Content Customs, so we would love to help you craft excellent content for your site.