Articles are written works published in print, online or through another medium. These include blogs, news articles, editorials, academic works, marketing/promotions. An article is used to express an idea, spread news, advertise or promote a product or service, spark controversy, sway public opinion. In the case of news articles and scientific pieces, an article will explain a topic in an unbiased, factual way.
All articles include a title, byline, body, conclusion, and cite all sources referenced. In traditional journalism, articles answer the five “W” questions of who, what, when, where and why.
In contemporary articles, advertising, blogs or promotional works, an article’s construction can be more casual, and can be used to emphasize a central idea; exciting or enticing the reader or presenting a call to action.
Article lengths vary across all categories; from 200 words (which is typically considered thin, poorly written content and is often just the stringing together of keywords for SEO purposes) to several thousand words as commonly seen in magazines, whether printed or online.
To promote a business, there is considered to be a “sweet spot” of word length; long enough to hold a reader’s attention while scrolling through content, yet not so long that the reader while losing interest without reading the article in its entirety. SEO experts who analyze the consumption of online content estimate that the so-called sweet spot is 400-500 words.