What are you hoping for when you write or read your next article? What criteria do you follow deciding what movie or YouTube video to watch? Have you ever thought about how to create an information product that will be interesting to other people? I will answer these and other questions below.
After day-to-day analysis of content that becomes popular and makes trends, I realized what makes people engaged and come back for more. Firstly, I detected that it’s not the quality of the picture or the original style of writing, it’s always all about the feelings. It’s basically the only thing that a person is followed by, finding particular information. By the way, according to film creators, feelings and emotions – that’s what distinguish us from aliens, judging by the numbers of science fiction movies on this topic. Based on their sensations people get to know themselves, their surroundings, and the world in general. Therefore, if you want to create popular content that will work in your benefit, think what feelings your company provokes.
The second point that I indicated was problems. You do not like problems when you face them, but you have to love problems when you plan and do your business in any kind of industry. Just remember the following – if you solve someone else’s problem, you will be in demand by other people, which means your blog or business will bring the desired income and requests. Accordingly, when you create content always pay attention to what problem it solves.
Considering all aspects above, let’s see what 5 possible content formats are peculiar to any information production, whether it’s a movie, a book, an article, or a commercial.
Humor
If your goal is to create a popular comedy show, film or to sell goods for having a good time, focus on humor. When a person comes across your information, they subconsciously mark it as something that makes them laugh and connects to your brand with the pleasure center in their brain. The latter prompts a person to come back to you every time they feel the need to laugh and boost endorphins.
«This is me»
As long as there are people who wonder what a “human being” is, there will be those who are ready to answer this question. If your content helps a person match your offer with what is peculiar to an individual, you will definitely receive confirmation in reposts or purchase of your goods. Such a format is often used by authors of popular memes, commercials, or comics.
«This is us»
In this particular case the content solves the problem of communication and helps people associate with each other. If your video or article motivates people to be united for staging a dance, making a cake, or any other collective activity, people will gain new experience and energy thanks to this cooperation. In the future, they will come back to you every time to go through these emotions and this kind of involvement again, since you are a trigger for actions.
Learning
Wikipedia and other educational resources are better than others at explaining the meaning of this item. This kind of content serves people to learn something new about themselves, about other people, and to build a certain understanding of the world.
Stories
I assume many of you are familiar with this format. The stories are what make us feel different types of emotions: sadness, inspiration, or curiosity are the most demanded states of mind in the modern world. Movies and TV series, books and comics, blogs and ads have their own story to tell. A good narrative will sell easily the product or idea, making people empathize or admire, find answers, and solve problems.
Next time you create a content plan for your website, ask yourself what problem it solves and what emotions your product will be associated with. If you have nothing to answer, there is a big chance you will not be heard, and that’s a deciding factor nowadays.