New media operations: What kind of valuable content do users prefer to read and forward?

This is the best of times, it is the worst of times. This sentence always seems to be so appropriate to describe the environment in which the new media industry operates.

To be honest, the entire Internet new media environment has changed a lot now.

The new media user population has changed, user consumption habits have changed, readers are becoming more and more picky about content, various new platforms have emerged, content presentation forms are flourishing and overwhelming, the application of various technologies is becoming more and more professional, and the new media industry is increasingly in need of refined operations.

And content is always the key to success.

I believe that friends who have operated new media platforms for a period of time will agree with the importance of content. But at the same time, there is also a very troubling problem:

It is difficult to create articles that are valuable to users, and the number of readers is often low.

The articles are of relatively poor quality and simply organized. Sometimes I don’t even read them myself, but they have a high readership.

Compared with content such as humor, information, emotion, and entertainment, many types of content that are practical generally do not require high-frequency reading. Because generally speaking, useful articles have a higher information density, are more logical, and are more tiring to read, and everyone likes to take it easy.

what to do?

Should you focus on doing the latter? Pursuing superficial reading volume and lowering your own requirements for content just to cater to users?

I don't think it's right.

In 2019, no matter it is a cold winter or a new spring for new media practitioners, content creation is still the core competitiveness. The rapid pursuit of reading volume may have short-term effects, but after the test of time, what ultimately depends on is the refined operation of content. Content is the foundation, and the form (pictures, audio, comics, short videos, etc.) is just an amplifier.

For content creators, the first thing they need is to be persistent and demanding about the content, have clear values, and stick to the bottom line. Secondly, maintain one principle: no matter what the content is, it must be meaningful and helpful to users.

You must not give up on producing useful articles that are of great value to users. Instead, you should spend the most time thinking about it.

However, operating new media does not mean closing the door and creating content for ourselves. We just need people to read, to have fans, and to have growth.

So how do we balance the relationship between the two? How to produce useful articles while making users like to read and forward them?

Here I would like to share some of my own views, just to stimulate discussion.

01What kind of valuable content do users prefer to read?

After working hard to create useful content, you spend a lot of time looking for information, doing investigations, seeking evidence, and revising it over and over again, and in the end it may take a week to produce a useful article.

Then, with excitement, I carefully checked over and over again, clicked the push button, and refreshed the page with great anticipation, waiting for the outbreak.

As a result, the dismal reading volume once again pulls you back from your dream to reality.

Why is this happening? Your content is indeed very informative, the topic is novel, the analysis is well-reasoned, and the expression is logically rigorous... It is obviously an article that creates value for users, so why don’t they want to read it?

It is possible that you may be amazed at the amount of information in your article and feel extremely excited, but other people may just say one sentence when reading your article: Brother, I really can’t stand reading this.

This involves a question - the information density of the article.

First of all, of course, a useful article must be informative, but the reader's reading experience must also be considered. "Too much firepower" (too high information density) is often the reason why many vertical useful articles are not popular.

The information density of an article is directly related to the readable information. It seems to be a positive linear relationship, but in fact there is a threshold. Why some articles are difficult to read may not be because of poor quality, but may also be because their information density is too high.

When your article has too many knowledge points, the content is too difficult to understand, the viewpoints are too difficult to comprehend, and the wording is too tricky, and the information density exceeds a threshold, its readability becomes inversely proportional to the information density.

In general, even when creating useful content, you should not provide users with too many information points, the language and sentences should not be too complex and obscure, and you should not complicate the already complex information further. The information density is too high, making it very difficult for readers to read and understand. It makes their heads hurt, and I'm afraid not many people can continue reading.

For articles with useful information, while pursuing professionalism, content, and value to users, the following methods can also make users more willing to read.

1) Reduce cognitive traps

Many content creators assume that users have the same professional background knowledge as themselves and directly skip the process of user understanding. They become more and more excited as they talk and more and more in-depth as they write. As a result, users cannot understand it at all and become more and more confused the more they read. This artificially creates a cognitive trap for users.

Therefore, don’t hesitate to explain things that users may not understand to reduce cognitive traps.

2) Speak human language, don’t act like a fool

Try not to make your article difficult to understand. Don’t use so-called professional terms unless necessary. Just be straightforward and keep the language simple. Don’t always think about using superlative adjectives, it’s really meaningless. It’s not popular to use adjectives in today’s awesome copywriting.

Don't pursue that literary style unless you are destined to develop in that direction. Elegant words and sophisticated rhetoric are likely to overshadow the main content and inexplicably increase the information density. Also, you don't have to get too deep.

3) Use short sentences

Short sentences are a good thing. Even the most complex sentences will become concise and easy to read after being split into several short sentences. At the same time, it will make the narrative compact, create good tension, and make the reader feel more comfortable reading.

When using short sentences, try to use as many verbs and concrete nouns as possible. Verbs are the easiest to make users conjure up images in their minds and help them understand. The same goes for specific nouns. Don’t use adjectives all the time, as this will only make an already complex article even more boring.

4) Focus on details, tell more facts and stories

The concepts involved in practical articles are often vague and abstract, making it difficult for users to form an understanding of them. At this time, we need to pay attention to the description of details. The more details there are, the more vivid the picture will be and the easier it will be to read.

At the same time, tell more facts and stories. Because telling the truth is more real, readers can empathize more, and such content has a lower information density. Storytelling is undoubtedly the most visual and easiest to understand way of expressing content. You can tell your own stories, stories around you, stories you have heard... He will listen to you attentively.

5) Make connections with familiar things

This old thief has mentioned many times that for concepts that users are not very familiar with, you can use familiar things that they already understand to explain them, which can enable them to understand the information you want to express in a short time. In just a few seconds, don't try to force education on users. It is obviously better to use their existing knowledge.

For example, if you want to express that a new type of coffee has a very good wake-up function, can you say "just like an alarm clock in your ear"?

6) Build personality traits

Nowadays, everyone emphasizes having their own personality and unique style. They should be funny when necessary and scold when necessary. This will make it easier to touch people's hearts, and over time this way of expression will become a style.

When we write articles, it is also a way to communicate with readers, that is, to talk to people. Since it is speaking, everyone's tone, way of speaking, values ​​expressed, etc. are all different. We are not a robot speaking, but a living person. If you are portraying a "warm man", you should speak like a warm man!

7) Keep it interesting

Don’t worry about whether to create humorous, easy-to-understand content or serious, analytical content. You can add some humorous and teasing elements to your serious content. It is not difficult. Humorous and interesting content may be more suitable for a social experience.

8) Younger text

More and more Internet-born words are becoming media-oriented and their acceptance is increasing. When we create new media content for other age groups, we can also use more youthful internet vocabulary.

To work in the new media industry, you still have to keep up with the times and understand the language of young people. There is no other way. Even when you are old you have to learn it anyway.

Those born in the 1990s, 1995s, and even 2000s have an advantage in this regard. They can use new words with ease and understand the way of expression of this group, but we so-called "uncles" probably won't be able to learn even if we follow them. Therefore, give more opportunities to those born in the 90s, 95s, and 00s, and they may give you some surprises.

…

In short, everyone can use these methods more often when writing articles. Use whatever method works best. When outputting valuable content that is useful to users, users will be more willing to read it.

You will find that there will really be changes.

Now that the problem of users liking to read has been solved, the next issue is sharing and forwarding!

02What kind of valuable content do users prefer to forward?

Logically speaking, useful content is valuable to users, so why is it that no one is forwarding the useful content we write?

Isn’t it agreed that high quality content is enough? Is it that the quality of the content is not high enough?

not necessarily! ! Maybe you have been "cheated" by a loyal user!

It’s not that the quality of your content is not good enough, but that it is too good, so many users will choose to collect and reward it, but are unwilling to forward and share it, and are reluctant to share such good content with others. (This is a common phenomenon)

So are you going to be happy, or happy, or happy...

This kind of situation has been encountered too many times. In fact, many accounts that write vertical content will have a lot of collections but very few reposts.

Take my public account as an example. I often receive many similar naughty messages: "Great, I saved it, but I just don’t want to forward it."

Smiling and shedding tears is just like love.

What should I do then? It would be even better if users are willing to share and forward the valuable content after reading it.

The question is: What kind of valuable content would users prefer to forward rather than collect?

Here are 2 suggestions for you:

1) Enhance the social currency attributes of content

Think about this question: Why do readers share your articles?

This is just like selling products. In addition to the product itself being good, we also need to give users a reason to buy it. Creating content also requires giving users a reason to share.

In essence, everyone likes to share. How many people have you seen who can keep a secret? But people are all profit-seeking, so who would share without a reason?

This brings us to social currency. In life, money is the easiest to circulate; and on the Internet, social currency is the easiest to circulate (forwarding and sharing). On social media, the key to dissemination is to increase the social currency attributes of the content.

The social currency of this content mainly includes:

Provide users with topics for conversation: Can your content provide users with topics for conversation?

Help users express their ideas: Can your content help users say what they want to say? Can you help them express the thoughts that have been weighing on their minds?

Help users shape/reinforce their image: Can your content help users shape and reinforce the social image they want? Football fans are more likely to forward World Cup information, aren't they?

Satisfy users’ need to help others: Can your content enable users to help their friends, family, and colleagues and perform altruistic actions?

Facilitating social comparison: Does your content make them look more prestigious? More stylish? Or richer? Can you get them involved in social competitions?

If your content is of very high quality and can provide enough social currency (providing topics for conversation, helping others, showcasing your image, facilitating expression, and promoting comparison), then you can greatly increase the chances of forwarding and sharing.

When you finish writing an article with valuable information, you can often ask yourself, can this article of mine be used as social currency? What are the possible reasons for readers to share and forward?

Think about it, strengthen it!

However, nothing is absolute.

It doesn’t mean that if you provide users with enough social currency, they will definitely forward and share. That’s the next question.

2) Create content with skills

Generally speaking, vertical articles are very professional and in-depth. If they can express ideas, consolidate your image, help others, and even improve your status, they will be a good social currency.

Why is it that high-quality content is often rarely forwarded?

As mentioned earlier, this is a form of self-protection. The user's psychological activity may be like this: "Oh, this is good stuff, I'll save it quickly, but I can't let XXX and others find out. This is my knowledge base."

Therefore, when it comes to creating useful content, we should be more skillful in doing it.

Lao Zei has previously divided common useful content into two categories: "easy to share" and "difficult to share", which can be used as a reference for everyone.

Easy-to-share dry goods:

Thinking Tips

This type of content mainly includes various big-name thinking methods, methodologies, and in-depth analysis of strategic strategies (excluding operational methods that can be used immediately). Sharing this kind of content will make you look awesome.

High-end dry goods

This type of content mainly involves the excavation of in-depth knowledge in their respective fields, the interpretation of unknown things, the reinterpretation of subversive common sense, etc. It looks high-end, and the people who share it are also impressive;

Information-based dry goods

This type of content is mainly very exciting, complete, systematic, and timely news, which can be shared as first-hand topics;

Point of view

This type of content mainly contains various unique, sharp, and valuable opinions and attitudes. Sharing them can not only express what you want to say, but also consolidate your image.

Eye-opening stuff

This type of content mainly includes various decryptions, brain-opening knowledge, analysis cases, data reports, etc. This is similar to the "hard-core" content;

Inventory-type dry goods

This type of content mainly includes various industry-related inventories. It is currently quite popular, and the operation is relatively simple, with a high sharing rate.

This type of information is full of various social currencies, which can provide topics for conversation, help others, showcase one's image, help with expression, show status, etc. It can do everything and can shape one's self-image very well.

But one crucial point is that although these contents contain a lot of professional knowledge, they are actually not so obvious, direct, or easy to use in improving one's core competitiveness. Only a few people like to think deeply, so most people just share them.

Hard-to-share information:

Thinking Tips

This type of content is the same as the first one above, which also includes various expert thinking methods, methodologies, and in-depth analysis of strategic strategies. However, there is not only sharing of ideas here, but also practical methods that are highly feasible. Such content collection is more;

Skill-based dry goods

This type of content mainly contains various skills that are quick, practical, and can solve problems immediately. This is the obvious "competitiveness". The more powerful the skills, the less willing people are to share them.

Resource-based dry goods

This type of content is mainly various dry goods resources in the vertical industry. The more inaccessible and detailed the better. Of course, it is kept privately;

Tool-based dry goods

Every vertical field has its own magic tools. If you find a really cool and practical tool, will you share it as soon as possible?

Unique tricks and dry goods

This type of content mainly includes various clever tricks, newly discovered tricks, weird tricks, unconventional routines, etc. This kind of skills is fine if it is for mass entertainment, otherwise it will be more likely to be collected for personal use.

Although this type of useful information is also various social currencies, there are more practical skills, shortcuts, unique tricks, and high-quality resources that can be used immediately in a short period of time. Who is willing to share?

Therefore, if the useful content you write often has a low readership and you want more reposts and shares, you might as well try writing useful articles that can be used as "social currency" and are easy to share.

Of course, creating content does not only mean easy-to-share social content. In my opinion, both are needed. Everyone needs to adjust the ratio of the two categories of "easy to share" and "difficult to share" articles based on their own situation and find a rhythm that suits them.

Finally, I would like to share with you a sentence from Jiang Nanchun:

Ultimately, what you believe becomes what you become. Because the two most terrifying words in the world are persistence and seriousness.

Serious people change themselves, and persistent people change their destiny.

Source: Mumuseo