A year ago, we had questions about the business of blogging, so we asked 1000 bloggers to provide some answers. The outcome was the original survey of 1000 bloggers. A lot has changed in the last year, so we had some new questions… Are people spending more time blogging than before? Are people writing longer or shorter posts lately? Has publishing frequency changed for the typical blogger? We asked 1074 bloggers the same 11 questions. We learned that the business of blogging is changing. Some things are consistent, but a trend has emerged. What follows is the data and analysis for the updated 2015 blogger survey, as well as insights from some true blogging experts. And at the bottom of this post, you’ll find our conclusions about the biggest trend in blogging.

1. Research RevealsTop BloggingTrends

2. In both 2014 and 2015, Orbit Media
conducted a survey of more than
1000 BUSINESS
BLOGGERS.
Find out how you stack up with
blogging professionals worldwide.

3. TOP TAKEAWAYSfrom the research
Presenting the

4. 0.0%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
Less than
500 words
500 - 1000
words
1000 - 1500
words
1500 - 2000
words
More than
2000 words
2014
2015
Taking time?
How long is your typical blog post?
Bloggers are investing more time creating posts.

5. Serious business bloggers put more effort into their craft and are logging longer hours.
16% spend 4+ hours per post. 6% spend 6+ hours.
2.5 hours is the average
time invested in writing.

6. The top 6% invest 2x as much
time as the bottom 70%.
54% knock-out blog posts in an hour or two.Will they achieve their goals?

7. 0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
Less than
1 hour
1- 2
hours
2- 3
hours
3- 4
hours
More than
6+ hours
2014
2015
4- 6
hours
Going long?
How long does it take to write a typical post?
Far more bloggers now pen lengthier posts.

8. Blog posts of 1,500+ words
have increased by 72%.
Average word counts are up approximately 100 words compared to last year.

9. Shorties
Less than 20% produce posts of less than 500 words (which is lower than last year).
The sweet spot
The 500 -1000 range remains the most popular length (though it’s declined).
Long
Posts of 1000 - 1500 words have increased
Longer
The trend holds steady in the 1500 - 2000 word range.
Longest
About 2x as many bloggers now write posts upwards of 2000 words.

10. 0.0%
7.5%
15.0%
22.5%
30.0%
more than
dailyr
daily 2 - 6
Posts/Week
weekly monthly less than
monthly
irregular
intervals
several
per month
2014
2015
Publish much?
How frequently are bloggers publishing?
85% publish at regular intervals.

11. The majority of bloggers publish weekly or more.
The number of bloggers publishing daily (or more) has risen.
53% publish at least weekly.
Only 15% publish at irregular intervals.
Daily bloggers report spending less time writing their posts.

12. Moonlighting?
25.0%
35.0%
45.0%
55.0%
65.0%
early
morning
during business
hours
after business
hours
at night on the
weekends
2014
2015
When do bloggers blog?
More blogging is being done during normal work hours.

13. Blogging is less a hobby
and more an occupation.

14. 0.0%
25.0%
50.0%
75.0%
100.0%
Social
Media
SEO Email
Marketing
Influencer
Outreach
Other
2014
2015
Paid
Services
Driving traffic?
How are bloggers driving traffic to their posts?
93% of bloggers share their content on social networks.

15. There is a general increase
in the use of most
promotion channels.
Search, email, paid and influencer marketing are all up.
Buying traffic has increased dramatically.
$

16. 0.0%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
an
image
more than
one image
video audio Other
2014
2015
a list
Got media?
What media are bloggers including in their content?
Images and lists are the most popular formats for blog content.

17. Nearly half of all bloggers use
multiple images in their posts.
The use of audio has gone up.The use of video has gone down.

18. 0.0%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
I edit my
own work
“show it to a person
or two”(informal)
I use an editor
(formal)
More than
one editor
2014
2015
Editor needed?
Do bloggers use editors?
The majority of bloggers do not have editors.

19. Only 16% have a formal
editing process.
There is a 16% increase in using editors.

20. 0.0%
12.5%
25.0%
37.5%
50.0%
none less than 5% 5 - 25% 25 - 50% 75 - 100%
2014
2015
50 - 75%
Guest posting?
What percentage of your posts are guest posts?
64% write for more than one blog.

21. 0.0%
15.0%
30.0%
45.0%
60.0%
none less than 5% 5 - 25 % 25 - 50 % 50 - 75 %
2014
2015
75 - 100 %
For hire?
(posts written to promote businesses other than their own)
What percentage of posts are written for clients?
57% write content on behalf of clients (at least some of the time).

22. 0.0%
7.5%
15.0%
22.5%
30.0%
I don’t have
acces to analytics
Never/Rarely Occasionally Usually Always
2014
2015
Who’s counting?
How often do bloggers check their analytics?
95% have access to analytics, but only 55% regularly check them.

23. WHAT’S NEW IN BUSINESS BLOGGING?
Bloggers are stepping it up.
Survey result comparisons from the past two years reflect an increase across the board in:
Time spent
per post
Length of the
average post
Posts created
for clients
Working on blogging
during office hours

24. Original survey data
http://www.orbitmedia.com/blog/blogger-analysis/
http://www.orbitmedia.com/blog/blogger-research/
Presentation design
Research and writing

25. Want to talk about
content marketing?
I invite you to share this research and welcome
opportunities to present data-based insights
regardingbusiness blogging,
content marketing and web design
and development.
http://www.orbitmedia.com/contact
Andy Crestodina, strategic director