Are One-Sentence Paragraphs better?

[Messaround]

Hi!

I have decided to change the style of the articles on my personal website, and I would like to know your opinion and experiences with that!

It's the type of article that is using and recommending Brian Dean.

He's not using the paragraphs, but about one or two sentences per line.

Is there anybody who's doing it or at least ever tried it? If yes, does it really increase the bounce rate and session duration?

Thanks a lot!

 

[terezek]

I am interested too.
I believe it's easier for reading.

 

[MisterF]

Run your text through a good readability tool, look for the Flesch-Kincaid readability score such as this one https://www.webpagefx.com/tools/read-able/ or Hemingway App; http://www.hemingwayapp.com/ to give you an idea of how readable your content is.

 

[Messaround]

I am interested too.
I believe it's easier for reading.

Yes, I think the same! The paragraph is too long and boring in the article.

Run your text through a good readability tool, look for the Flesch-Kincaid readability score such as this one https://www.webpagefx.com/tools/read-able/ or Hemingway App; http://www.hemingwayapp.com/ to give you an idea of how readable your content is.

Thanks a lot for the tips, I will definitely try them! But I am not sure if the tool can measure this. I am curious if a one or two sentences per line can really increase the session time and bounce rate.

 

[MisterF]

Yes, I think the same! The paragraph is too long and boring in the article.



Thanks a lot for the tips, I will definitely try them! But I am not sure if the tool can measure this. I am curious if a one or two sentences per line can really increase the session time and bounce rate.

Test for yourself, do 2 articles and do each differently and see what the bounce rate report shows, maybe?

 

[Kuz32]

I have long been told, but not experienced, the Google prefers paragraphs at least 3-5 sentences long and doesn't appreciate articles that are too broken up with single line paragraphs. However, I have seen no evidence that the algorithms pay attention to article structure, in particular, paragraph length.

Having said that, in journalism, we were always encouraged to keep paragraphs to 1-2 sentence longs except for quoted speech. The only paragraphs that were longer were quoted speach. This is because these types of articles are easier to read and they also force you to move from one piece of information to the next, without wasting extra sentences emphasising the same fact/opinion (thereby boring the reader).

Most of my online article I keep short sentence like this, for readibility sakes. But for things like fiction, I prefer longer paragraphs.

 

[Eduard Berg]

Sounds interesting. I think it will work, because in our days people don't like to read a lot.

 

[terrycody]

I personally found it very annoying to read such text, though seems its better than chunks of paragraphs lol

 

[Vaibhav Adlakha]

Content must be posted in an organized manner. A paragraph should be of 3-4 lines.

I personally found it very annoying to read such text, though seems its better than chunks of paragraphs lol

Obviously, one liner paragraph is always better than chunks of paragraphs

Yes, I think the same! The paragraph is too long and boring in the article.



Thanks a lot for the tips, I will definitely try them! But I am not sure if the tool can measure this. I am curious if a one or two sentences per line can really increase the session time and bounce rate.

The paragraph can sometimes be boring so make sure it won't be too long.

 

[Zwielicht]

You know, we've got a section for these types of questions.

Thread Moved​

 

[Troshi]

It depends on the width of your page and the size of your font. I'd suggest between 2-4. I would use 1-line paragraphs only for huge emphasis.

 

[pennya08]

I have limited space in some of my writing and find the 1 - 3 sentences works well. Anything longer than that seems to be harder to read or fit well on the page.

 

[contentcreators]

I'm all for breaking up text and making it easier to read, but a page full of short lonely sentences just isn't right. 3 or 4 looks right and shouldn't put readers off.

 

[Kablooey]

The size of the font on screen also plays into readabilty, regardless of the paragraph length. 110% to 125% makes for a more comfortable reading experience, as does putting in an extra space between paragraphs.

 

[contentcreators]

The size of the font on screen also plays into readabilty, regardless of the paragraph length. 110% to 125% makes for a more comfortable reading experience, as does putting in an extra space between paragraphs.

Excellent point, didn't think of that.

 

[mrboozer]

have you thought about using google analytics to see comparisons on what blog posts are read the most etc...? you can even see the time it takes for someone to stay on a page.

 

[Avery gee]

i am interested in this topic also

 

[StealthJet99]

It just depends on the article I would believe. Personally I prefer paragraphs that are at most 3 sentences as after that I get bored with the content. But it just depends on what you're writing about. For example on sports, the articles are broken up a lot if reviewing a game. But then something that's discussing the latest cancer treatments are more blocked together. I'd research the articles and see what the most popular ones consist of.