We’re here to help you choose the most appropriate content types to fulfill your content strategy. In this series, we’re breaking down the most popular content types to their most basic fundamentals — simple definitions, clarity on formats, and plenty of examples — so you can start with a solid foundation.
What is an article?
An article is a piece of writing that educates, informs and/or colorfully illustrates a topic using purpose-driven writing, provocative insights and a unique perspective designed to engage an audience.
Articles also can be…
Blog posts
Branded/native content
Content ladders
Essays
Guides
FAQs
Features
How-to’s
Interviews
Listicles
News items
Pillars
Press releases
Thought-leadership pieces
Skyscrapers
The long and short of it
Depending on the outlet and channel you’re publishing in, article lengths will vary. However, as with any writing, you should never write one word more than is necessary to tell your story.
A general guide to article length:
Short Form (500 words or less)
Standard (500-1,500 words)
Long Form (1,500-2,500 words)
Extra Long Form (2,500+ words)
What can articles do for a business?
Different from advertising, articles allow you to expand on a topic and/or show expertise in your industry or niche, whether an editorial piece or a how-to template. They also afford you an opportunity to enlighten your audience on a deeper level.
Popular use-case examples for articles
Ads only get you so far. If you want to have a conversation with your audience, an article can inspire interactions with a reader, drive traffic to a page, and ultimately convert customers.
Content for social media channels with viral potential (FB, Twitter, and LinkedIn)
Content for a company blog and to establish a content cadence
Thought-leadership pieces that establish instant credibility in a given area
Reasons to write articles amongst others?
To inspire inbound marketing and allow you to hit your KPIs
To expand brand awareness, build loyalty and advocacy
To boost SEO and “page ranking” through the use of keywords and backlinks
Business types:
Whether you’re a pest control company or hotel chain, there’s always a story to tell. Literally any business, regardless of sector, can use articles to build a greater customer base.
Article examples – short form
Article examples – standard form
Article examples – long form
Article examples – extra long form
Article examples – listicles
Article examples – how-to’s
Article examples – interviews
Understanding content quality in examples
Our team has rated content type examples in three degrees of quality (Good, Better, Best) to help you better gauge resources needed for your content plan. In general, the degrees of content quality correspond to our three content levels (General, Qualified, Expert) based on the criteria below. Please consider there are multiple variables that could determine the cost, completion time, or content level for any content piece with a perceived degree of quality.
More content types with examples:
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