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Picture this: You just downloaded an eBook that promises to provide educational content relevant to your B2B organization. This is going to be game-changing, you think. So, you grab your cup of coffee, put on your reading glasses, and open up the PDF with excitement.
But instead of seeing polished, professional content, you’re greeted with a colossal wall of text. No clear headlines. Endless paragraphs. Not a single graphic in sight.
Your eyes glaze over just looking at it, so you quickly close out the document and move it to the digital trash bin. What started as a promising resource turned into an unreadable mess.
Long-form content, like eBooks, white papers, and case studies, requires structure. You may have the most insightful content ever, but if your audience can’t understand it easily, your chances of high performance drop dramatically. The same is true for search engines like Google; without clear headlines, links, and visual cues, it’s tough to determine the value of your content.
So, how can you keep readers engaged throughout your entire piece while making search engines like Google happy? Let’s break it down.
How to Structure Long-Form Content for Optimal Readability and SEO Impact
7 Strategies to Structure Long-Form Content
Since long-form content is usually 1,500 words or longer, you need to structure each piece to keep readers interested and make it easy for Google to understand what it’s all about. Use these seven strategies to organize your long-form content in a way that’s clear, compelling, and optimized for humans and search engines.
Start with a Clear Outline & Purpose
Before you begin writing long-form content, ask yourself these two questions:
- What is the main takeaway for the reader? Think about what new insight or idea your audience should walk away with.
- What is the strategic goal for your brand? This can be anything from lead generation or thought leadership to a product launch or improved search rankings.
Now that you know the why behind your content, it’s time to develop a working outline that maps out the structure for your content. This blueprint will help keep your writing on track while ensuring the final piece flows logically from section to section.
For example, if you are writing a case study, you can follow this structure:
- Set the Stage with an Introduction: Tell the reader about the client, their industry, and the core challenge they faced.
- Define the Problem: Dive deeper into the specific pain points or obstacles. What wasn’t working? Why did it matter to the client’s operations or business goals?
- Explain the Solution: Detail how your product, service, or approach addressed the problem. Remember to highlight any technologies used or unique value-adds.
- Reveal the Results: Share measurable outcomes and real-world impact. If possible, include concrete stats that demonstrate success.
- Provide a Conclusion and Call to Action: Summarize the key takeaway and guide the reader to the next step, such as booking a demo or contacting your team.
Add a Table of Contents to Guide the Journey
Long-form content should be easy to navigate, especially for busy B2B readers who are scanning for specific insights. A table of contents helps by providing a clear, clickable roadmap of what to expect in your piece. By making it simple to find what they’re looking for, your audience is more likely to stay engaged and explore multiple sections.
Another benefit of a table of contents is that Google often uses it to generate sitelinks in search results. By clicking on the sitelink, the user is taken directly to that section within your content. It’s a win-win for your audience and your brand, as readers get faster answers and you increase your chances of higher click-through rates.
Format for Skimming
The truth is, most readers won’t read your content word-for-word. Instead, they are skimming and scanning your piece for information that answers their question or solves their problem.
Therefore, you should make your valuable information easy to find and digest. Here’s how to make that happen:
- Keep paragraphs short and punchy. Large blocks of text feel overwhelming, especially on mobile devices.
- Use bold text to emphasize key takeaways, stats, or phrases. This helps important points stand out to readers who are quickly scanning the page.
- Leverage bullet points and numbered lists to break down information into clear, digestible chunks. Lists are easier to process and help organize ideas in a logical order.
- Create a strong visual hierarchy. Use larger font sizes for headers, consistent formatting for subheads, and enough white space to prevent clutter. The eye should naturally know where to go next.
- Use whitespace strategically. Don’t be afraid of “empty” space because well-placed spacing can make content feel more breathable and less overwhelming.
- Include visual signposts. Icons, dividers, section labels, and callout boxes help orient the reader and add visual cues for different types of information.
Break Up Walls of Text with Descriptive Subheads
Subheads make scanning your content easier by breaking up your writing into digestible sections. As a result, your content becomes more approachable and keeps readers engaged longer.
Another advantage of subheads is that you can improve your SEO. Search engines use subheads to understand the hierarchy of your content and the relevance of your content. With descriptive subheads, you increase your chances of ranking for featured snippets and related search queries.
Here are tips for writing subheads that appeal to your audience and search engines:
- Be clear and descriptive. Tell the reader exactly what to expect in each section. Avoid vague phrases or clever wordplay that obscures the message.
- Incorporate keywords naturally. Subheads are great places to include your primary and secondary keywords. Just don’t stuff them in unnaturally.
- Use questions and action verbs. Curiosity-driven subheads like “What does this mean for your team?” or “How to build a scalable strategy” can pull readers deeper into the piece.
- Keep them consistent. Use a logical and visually consistent heading hierarchy so readers can easily understand the content’s organization.
Use Internal Linking to Build Authority & Retention
Internal links help to connect your content in meaningful ways. They keep readers engaged by directing them to other relevant resources while helping Google’s crawlers understand how you structured your site.
Use these tactics for including internal links in your long-form content:
- Link to related blog posts or deep dives to provide more context or expand on specific subtopics.
- Point to core service pages or gated content (like eBooks, checklists, or webinars) that align with the reader’s intent.
- Connect to pillar pages or resource hubs to support topic clusters and build topical authority across your site.
Including internal links in your long-form content helps keep visitors on your site longer, guides users through your content funnel, and allows search engines to understand the relationships within your content.
However, you should always be intentional with your anchor text so the user understands what they will find when they click. For example, instead of writing “Click here,” you can say, “Explore our complete guide to SaaS pricing strategies.” That text is more compelling and better for SEO.
Create Visual Interest with Interactive Element
Superior long-form content creates an experience that keeps the reader engaged and informed. To accomplish this, consider using interactive elements to break up large blocks of text and guide the reader’s eye. You’re transforming passive reading into active engagement, allowing users to interact with your brand on a deeper level.
Need ideas for generating visual interest in your long-form content? Here you go:
- Custom graphics help illustrate complex ideas and reinforce branding.
- Charts and infographics distill dense data into digestible visuals.
- Videos can provide additional context, explain difficult concepts, or bring storytelling to life.
- Interactive elements like calculators, assessments, quizzes, tabs, or accordion menus allow readers to explore content on their own terms.
- Callout boxes, pull quotes, and tip sections break the rhythm of plain text while drawing attention to key insights or takeaways.
Remember: Visuals should support the content, not compete with it. Avoid using filler images that don’t add value or overly flashy elements that distract from the message.
Close Strong with a Clear Call to Action
The ending of your long-form content piece is just as important as the beginning because it’s where you turn passive readers into active leads. A strong, clear call to action (CTA) tells your audience what to do next and why it’s worth their time.
Your CTA should be relevant to your piece, aligned with your business goals, and easy to act on. Here are some example CTAs that can work well:
Schedule a brief meeting with one of our expats to discuss your needs.
Book a demo to learn how our solution solves your problem.
Use our ROI calculator to see how much you can save with our platform.
Make sure your CTA is a seamless continuation of the story. If your content is about streamlining supply chain operations, don’t end with a generic “Contact us.” Instead, try something like, “Ready to simplify your supply chain? Schedule a 15-minute consultation with our team today.”
Use your CTA to close the loop and drive action, not just awareness.
Conclusion
Long-form content can be your B2B company’s secret weapon, but only if you know how to wield it. By organizing your content with a table of contents, subheads, internal links, and visual cues, you create an experience that drives results.
The next time you create a lengthy piece of B2B content, think about how you want your audience to experience it. After all, the structure is just as important as the story.
