Is Your Content Too Short?
It may be why you’re not growing.
Yesterday I received an email from a Gentleman Reader who has also been writing on Medium.
He was feeling a little discouraged because he’s getting 40 to 50 views per day and his atomic newsletter only has 5 subscribers.
They are all friends and family.
I sent him a reply with some advice, but figured I’d expand on that advice in case you are also in a similar situation.
Let’s get started.
Go big or go home
The first major problem I noticed was the length of his Medium articles.
Each story was only a 1–2 minute read.
Some were less than 100 words.
The problem isn’t necessarily the length of his content, but rather the packaging of his content.
Take Seth Godin, for example.
With 20 bestselling books under his belt, Seth can afford to post short punchy blogs because he is already an established authority in his field.
If Seth’s long-form content (his books) is a six-course meal, his short-form blog posts are the after-dinner mint.
While they might be nice to suck on, they won’t leave you feeling very satiated.
I aim for 4 to 6-minute reads.
That seems to be my sweet spot.
100-word articles lack marketing power.
You can still post short content if you’re not an established expert, but from a marketing perspective, it won’t make much of an impact.
It’ll make even less of an impact if your readers aren’t already a little educated on the subject you’re discussing.
That isn’t to say you can’t leverage short-form content on Medium, you can.
Jamie Northrup – Minimalist Hustler is a great example of someone who does this exceptionally well.
Jamie’s atomic newsletter serves up a well-balanced meal to his readers every day.
- Something from him.
- Something from someone else.
- Something from a sponsor.
Jamie’s newsletter is like an appetizer, entree, and dessert delivered all at once in a cool little container.
Short-form content works well for him because it fits his brand.
To make short-form content work, you need to cram so much value into your story that it gives the reader something to chew on when they’re finished.
It needs to be so tasty, that your reader can’t help but sign up for your newsletter on the spot.
Don’t go sub-atomic.
Atomic newsletters work because you’re using short-form content to promote long-form content.
Just like a TicTok or IG reel promotes a widget you definitely don’t need.
By using short-form content to promote even more short-form content, you’re making your reader jump through a completely unnecessary hoop.
The value exchange is lopsided.
The payoff is too small.
You’ve gone sub-atomic.
There is no value in sending your reader to another destination if your content is so short it could be read in a few seconds.
Instead of using Medium to post short daily insights, this particular creator would likely benefit more from producing a single long-form piece of content and sending 1 atomic newsletter per week.
He could still write a single insight every day, but instead of sending them individually, he could publish them all together and send a “7 reasons why…” or “7 insights that…” article at the end of the week.
This approach would offer enough upfront value that subscribing to his newsletter is a logical next step.
Medium as a marketing channel.
When a reader finishes my content I want them to feel smarter, motivated, or inspired. At the very least, I want to give them something to think about.
If they don’t feel at least ONE of these things, I’ve failed.
Miserably.
My approach to marketing follows what Jay Abraham calls “The Strategy of Preeminence.”
I want to deliver actionable information my reader can immediately implement and find success with.
A 100-word post is unlikely to achieve this result unless it’s high-level like:
- Do this.
- Then do this.
- Do this other thing.
- And this should happen.
- Join my newsletter for more.
If I wanted to write that way, I’d be publishing over on Twitter 𝕏. Medium is a different beast.
Readers are more sophisticated here.
My Gentleman Reader is in a fantastic niche. It’s a niche that I have a deep interest in. I’m his ideal reader.
I’m confident he could build a profitable newsletter on the topic with a tiny change in strategy.
Unfortunately, after reading his articles I’m left feeling hungry for more.
It’s like I’m eating at a restaurant where the chicken wings are too small and don’t have enough meat on the bone.
I’ll finish what I’m eating.
It may even taste pretty good.
But unless the portions get bigger, I’m unlikely to return for more. I’m even less likely to recommend it to a friend.
And in a world of marketing, that’s not good.
About the Author
My name is Evan. I’m a happily married father of three boys who likes to drink black coffee and read Jack Reacher novels. I also love everything about newsletters!
