Creating engaging, high-quality content is essential for any successful WordPress blog. But with so many options and formats out there, it can be tricky to know where to start. This comprehensive guide explores over 40 content types you can leverage, with tailored advice for WordPress site owners and internet marketers.
Why Content Variety Matters
Having a diverse content mix is crucial for keeping your readers interested and driving traffic over the long-term. Relying too heavily on one format often leads to creative ruts. Plus, different types of content serve different goals:
- List posts are easy to scan and ideal for social sharing. According to Buzzsumo, list posts generate over 2x more social shares than other post types.
- Video tutorials simplify complex topics using visuals and audio. Viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in video compared to 10% when reading it in text.
- Infographics transform data into compelling graphics. Content with relevant images gets 94% more views than those without according to Hashoff.
- Product reviews help readers evaluate purchases. 92% of people read online reviews for local businesses according to Brightlocal.
Delivering value also means understanding your readers’ preferences. Include some lighter formats like memes along with in-depth how-tos. Test what resonates and double down on what works.
5 Big Content Marketing Trends for 2024
Before diving into formats, let’s look at a few overarching content trends predicted for 2024:
1. Short-form Video Domination
Short videos under 60 seconds are exploding on TikTok and Instagram. These snackable clips pack value into a small package and tend to get more engagement. Look for ways to adapt your written content into quick explainers and tips.
Key Stats:
- TikTok has over 1 billion monthly active users, up 45% YoY (Wallaroo)
- 90% of Instagram feed videos are under 2 minutes
- Short videos have a 35% higher completion rate (Biteable)
2. Interactive and Personalized Content
Static content has a hard time competing with customized experiences. Tools like chatbots, online calculators and personalized product recommendations tailor content to each visitor.
According to Segment, 72% of customers only engage with personalized content.
3. AI-generated Drafts
AI copywriting tools like Jasper and Copy.ai can churn out entire blog post drafts on a topic with just a few clicks. This can help kickstart ideas or assist non-writers. But human review is still essential.
One survey found 52% of marketers are already leveraging AI for content creation.
4. Audio Content Resurgence
Podcasting continues to grow, and audio formats like podcast interviews, Clubhouse discussions and Twitter Spaces are on the rise. Consider an audio version of popular posts.
Global podcast listenership is set to hit over 2 billion by 2025, writes Backlinko.
5. Microcontent
Breaking topics down into ultra-small units of content caters to shortened attention spans. Think snippets like key stats, individual tips and engaging captions.
Social media algorithm changes in 2024 will favor snackable microcontent that entertains quickly.
Now let’s explore specific content formats WordPress bloggers should have in their toolkits:
The 10 Essential Foundational Formats
These evergreen staples should form the backbone of your editorial calendar:
1. Beginner’s Guides
Goal: Explain basics clearly assuming no prior topic knowledge.
Essential for newcomers looking to navigate your niche, beginner‘s guides should use simple language and plenty of examples. Limit assumed knowledge and break things down step-by-step.
Structure with enumerated lists detailing:
- Key vocabulary
- Overview of processes
- Factors to consider
- Tips and best practices
- What to watch out for
Tools like Canva and Venngage help create visual aids like process flows and hierarchy diagrams to simplify complex ideas.
2. How-tos and Tutorials
Goal: Breakdown complex processes into reproducible, actionable steps.
The ideal tutorial balances text, images and videos based on topic complexity. For physical skills, nothing beats videos. But for logic flows, annotated screenshots worked wonders.
Optimization elements like chapter markers, searchability and mobile-readiness are now essentials.
3. Ultimate Guides
Goal: Compile ALL key information about a topic in one place as the ‘source of truth’. Demonstrate expertise.
Extremely comprehensive and lengthy, the best ultimate guides integrate advice from authorities alongside the author’s tested recommendations.
Make sure to:
- Have a tight structure with contents hierarchy
- Summarize key points in introductions
- Link to reputable sources
- Segment into chapters for easier reading
- Update regularly to maintain freshness
Ultimate guides can serve as lead magnets in exchange for email subscriptions.
4. List Posts
Goal: Entertain readers through commentary while highlighting useful resources. Trigger social sharing.
Lists’ signature scannability makes them infinitely shareable. The key lies in having a cohesive central theme vs just a loosely related mishmash.
Pro Tip: Include a mix of familiar and surprising items and keep things visual with relevant imagery to maximize editorial punch.
| Content Type | Avg. Social Shares |
|---|---|
| List Post | 5,486 |
| Non-list Post | 2,973 |
Data Source: Buzzsumo
As the stats show, you can bank on 2X more shares with lists versus regular posts. Provide enough commentary so each item tells a quick story.
5. Comparison Posts
Goal: Help readers weigh options by contrasting products/topics based on key attributes. Call out clear winners.
The most compelling comparisons feature products/services readers are commonly trying to choose between. Select factors carefully to reflect what consumers actually care about.
Structure with simple tables highlighting:
| Option A | Option B | Verdict | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Factor 1 |
Visual callouts of final recommendations based on use case also help:
Best for X: Option A for Y reasons
To gather salient decision points, analyze customer reviews and forums. Let common pains and delights guide your criteria selection.
6. FAQs
Goal: Proactively answer common reader questions even before they ask to reduce repetitive inquiries and demonstrate you have readers covered.
Turning previously asked questions into value-packed posts tailors content directly to audience needs.
Compile by:
- Surveying your audience
- Monitoring comments
- Evaluating customer service/support tickets for trends
Format creatively with mix of long-form responses, charts, video explainers etc.
7. Best/Worst Of Lists
Goal: Trigger readers’ primal need to rank things while showcasing your expertise around niche superlatives.
These ratings-focused listicles build loyalty by saving readers research time. Plus they tend to get widely shared for second opinions and debate-fodder.
Ideas:
- 5 Best SaaS Affiliate Programs
- 10 Worst Homepage Design Mistakes
- 7 Best Video Hosting Platforms
Back up opinions with supporting evidence and don’t shy away from controversy!
8. Product Reviews
Goal: Offer in-depth, unbiased reviews to build reader trust and help guide purchasing decisions. Attract search traffic.
The best reviews evaluate across 5 key areas, and focus primarily on reader pain points:
1. Features: What does the tool/product offer? Provide an overview plus highlight any unique capabilities.
2. Benefits: Which use cases and scenarios does this solve for? Who is the target customer?
3. Quality Testing: Assess critical aspects like reliability, accuracy, ease-of-use through first-hand testing.
4. Customer Sentiment: What are real users saying? Summarize key themes from reviews and community forums.
5. Pricing: Breakdown available price and plan options. Benchmark against alternatives.
Wrap up with clearly defined pros/cons and final verdict tailored to common reader personas.
9. Guest Posts
Goal: Feature articles from niche experts and influencers to diversify content while forging partnerships.
Recruit figures your own audience looks up to not just for traffic but to provide value.
Ideal guest posts exhibit:
- Strong expertise
- Unique perspectives
- Tactical, actionable advice
- Thought leadership
Make sure guest content aligns stylistically and topically with your blog brand. Collaborating on an editorial calendar proactively versus sporadic invites works best.
10. Statistics & Fact Roundups
Goal: Monitor latest niche data to share key developments. Demonstrate market awareness and commentate on impacts.
Roundup posts compile data points from:
- Industry reports e.g. Statista, Forrester
- Academic journals
- Primary surveys
Categorize statistics into segments like key market facts, consumer trends, regional differences, global outlooks etc. Identify patterns in the data and provide forward-looking analysis on opportunities & industry blindspots illuminated.
Continue updating roundups regularly as your central hub for niche stats and facts. Backlink potential is high.
The Rising Stars: New Content Formats You Shouldn’t Ignore
Experiment with these emerging formats to give readers what they crave while staying ahead of competitors:
Interactive Modules
Static text struggles holding attention. Interactive content delivers information progressively through assessments, calculators, configurators and even games.
They feel more like user experiences than passive posts.
While seemingly complex, no-code site builders like Webflow and Bubble now offer drag-and-drop interactions using simple logic blocks.
Augmented & Virtual Reality
Immersive augmented and virtual reality bridges offline experiences with digital enhancements across devices.
AR allows blending contextual cues like overlays, 3D objects and annotations onto real-world environments through smartphone cameras. Shopping and assistance use cases are growing quickly.
VR transports users into computer-generated worlds through dedicated headsets. Interactive training simulators, virtual tours and even empathy-building narratives now engage audiences at a deeper sensorial level.
As options expand, evaluate adding AR or VR layers where they help readers grasp concepts inherently tied to environments.
Shoppable Posts
Have products scattered through your content? Make them purchasable right inline without leaving your site through shoppable posts.
Instagram and TikTok popularized this concept with tap-to-buy tags. Directly linking products reduces friction for motivated readers.
Conversational commerce is predicted to hit $290 billion by 2025. Get ahead with built-in ecommerce.
Microcontent
Microcopy refers to short-form, highly-focused content under ~400 words concentrating on a single idea, stat, update, or piece of media.
This snackable content houses easily in feeds and Stories.
Examples include:
- Key takeaways
- Individual tips
- Stats cards
- Brief video explainers
- Helpful illustrations
- Behind-the-scenes imagery
- Quotes and book excerpts
Dense long-form posts intimidate people. Microcontent goes down smooth.
Repackaging research into bite-sized morsels also multiplies content exponentially. Reach more users through target re-sharing.
Specialty and Supplemental Content
Weave specialty formats into your calendar strategically along with evergreen headliners:
| Content Type | Goal | Creation Tips |
|---|---|---|
| Controversy/Critique Posts | Attract debate & links with respectful counter-arguments | – Make title opinionated yet open-ended – Acknowledge complexity – Discuss tradeoffs |
| AMAs | Connect personally with audience through unscripted live video Q&As | – Promote questions ahead of time via social media – Involve special guests – Post transcript after |
| Podcast Episodes | Expand reach & provide audio-oriented value | – Repurpose popular posts into audio adaptations – Keep formats consistent e.g. interviews, narrative |
| Behind-the-Scenes | Foster reader loyalty through vulnerability | – Show work environment – Detail creative process – Share mistakes & lessons learned |
| Employee Spotlights | Humanize your brand | – Chat about personal stories – Share proudest achievements – Show hobbies & interests |
Aiming for 70-80% evergreen essence mixed with 20-30% timeliness is an effective combination.
Repurposing deserves special mention for extending content mileage:
Repurposing: How to Reuse Content Across Formats
Creating original long-form posts from scratch every time is extremely labor-intensive.
Repurposing lets you adapt existing pieces into new formats to match rising preferences. This multiplier effect accelerates your content engine significantly.
Here’s how to put it into practice:
Turn long posts into video scripts then record for Youtube. Transcribe recordings into podcast episodes next.
Compile evergreen posts into lead magnet ebooks to gate in exchange for emails.
Extract key statistic slides from posts for standalone atomic infographics.
Re-publish decks from your last conference talk to Slideshare.
Export blog post sections into Q&A‘s or checklist-style derivative posts for all search engines.
The same originating piece thereby enjoys extended life across medium types and platforms.
Curious where to apply repurposing for quick wins? Look for outdated yet high-potential content not realizing full impact due to format limitations. Then imagine recreating from the ground-up through today‘s top mediums liked video explainers or audiocasts.
Chances are any post with promising evergreen merit but plain text design deserves mass adoption through repurposing.
Arm these dormant gems with a timeless chain that plays into evolving consumption habits.
Key Content Metrics Based On Type
Digging into content performance data minimizes guessing around what works. These benchmarks guide data-driven format prioritization for 2024:
| Content Type | Views | Social Shares |
Links Earned |
Cost | Effort | Ideal Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beginner‘s Guide | 2.4K | 205 | 23 | Low | High | 5K – 10K words |
| How-to | 1.8K | 156 | 19 | Low | Med | 2K – 4K words |
| List Post | 3.1K | 712 | 12 | Low | Low | 25 – 30 items |
| FAQ | 2K | 98 | 22 | Low | Low | 20 – 40 Q&As |
| Headline Analyzer | 1.7K | 87 | 0 | High | High | N/A |
More traffic tends to come from search over social for tutorial-style evergreens. Sharing peaks for entertainment-focused posts like lists.
Interactives perform extremely well for engagement but require specialized skills. Repurposed content balances cost, performance and effort.
Parting Tips for Sustained Content Success
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Map formats to buyer’s journey stages. Target awareness-builders, consideration-drivers and decision-sealers.
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Obsess over analytics. Let data guide format favoritism and iteration.
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Adopt continuous testing mentality. There is always room for optimizing headlines, designs and platforms.
Varying your content mix with repurposing is critical for keeping blog visitors engaged today. Align types to goals, amplify reach through adaptations and constantly optimize.
Now discover which types resonate by experimenting across formats!
What emerging content formats are you most excited about? Share your thoughts in the comments.
