LONG READS.

The so-called long reads are one of the leading web design trends of 2015, and also, as expected, of 2020. With the help of long reads, sites today do not just share information with their visitors, but tell whole stories, enhancing the effect of engagement. About what Longridge is and how it differs from the usual information or advertising content on the site, we will discuss it in more detail below.

The term “Longridge” can literally be translated as “ long reading ” – from the English. “Long read”. Accordingly, this term today most often refers to large-sized text materials, which take a lot of time to read. However, it would not be entirely true to say that long reads differ from ordinary texts on websites only in their length: this type of text also has other features.

For example, any long read, in addition to the text itself, also contains multimedia content, such as illustrations and photographs, videos or infographics. And such content does not just complement the content of the material but is also a direct part of it. As a result, text, graphics, and video are equally active in LongRead, embodying a completely new format for presenting information on the Internet.

Today, long reads are considered one of the most promising varieties of thematic content on sites. Usually, they are opposed to informational texts, but also long reads can become an alternative for advertising materials. For example, recently landing page, advertising a particular product or service, can be considered one of the varieties of a long read.

As with other types of content, long reads are important to apply correctly. Indeed, far from all sites are longed suitable, and not all long articles with a large number of images can be called long-read. So it’s useful to get started with at least some basic stages of creating long reads for sites.

Idea.

Of course, the creation of a long read always begins with the search and development of his idea. It is necessary to decide what Longridge will tell readers about, why such a format will be convenient or advantageous in each particular case. It is important not to forget that the main goal of any long read is to tell a story, and without it, the material can remain just a long text with pictures.

Plan.

Drawing up a detailed plan for future LongRid is one of the keys to success. In the plan, it is necessary to display the sequence of information, the emphasis, the choice of accompanying multimedia content. Together with the plan, it is usually convenient to immediately sketch or mock-up demonstrating how the elements of the long read will interact directly on the site page.

Material preparation.

In accordance with the plan, you can prepare the necessary materials for the LongRead – text, images, infographics, video or audio clips. As a rule, the preparation of materials in the creation of long reads is divided into several parallel processes, which allows this stage to be completed as soon as possible.

Design.

In order for Longridge to “work,” it, of course, must look attractive on the page of the site. And both when displayed on a PC, and when displayed on mobile devices. To do this, it is important to pay great attention to the development of longread design, paying attention, in particular, to such nuances as the location of multimedia content, the choice of fonts, and formatting of text.

Publication.

The prepared Longridge at the final stage can only be published. Ways to publish are different. For example, in some cases, the manual layout is used or the CMS (content management system) used by built-in tools is added, and in others, publication through online services for creating long reads is used. The selection of a suitable method is usually determined by the individual characteristics of the long read itself.

High-quality long read stands out as truly “deep” and “solid” material and attracts the attention of both the target audience of the site and search engines. At the same time, it “works” for the long term and allows for a very long period after publication to receive referrals to the site from search, social networks, etc. As a result, site traffic improves, and this leads to more efficient operation of the site as a whole.