When it comes to how we present ourselves and our content, there are many paths we can take, but it is up to us to deliver. Some people do what they want, in a style they want and a way they want, which is great, unless they are looking for specific kinds of outcomes and what they want doesn't facilitate reaching those results.
Communication is about the transmission and transfer of information from one point to another and the way information is communicated is going to affect things like uptake, interest, engagement and retention. Some styles are more effectual than others on average, but most individuals will have a preference (known or unknown) for how they best absorb and act upon information in the same way most content creators will have their own preferred style for transmission.
As a content creator, while we don't have to produce anything consumable for the audience or think at all about what kinds of styles the audience prefers, if we are looking for particular feedback - it is probably wise to consider how we present.
For example, I am a native English speaker, but my style of communication whether writing or speaking is simple, I am not overly flowery and I use a narrow vocabulary - but I do play around with sentence structure quite heavily. My style of presentation isn't for everyone, but neither are my choices of topics, length of writing or quality of image. I can't cater to everyone, I can't please every person.
However, if I take the approach that I am only writing for myself, in the style I prefer - I am likely going to severely limit the reach and penetration of my content. If I write like it is a doctoral dissertation or as if a thesaurus has thrown up on my text, I am likely going to turn people off, rather than have people engage. Not that I would write in either of these ways, as that is far from my own preference.
If I want my message (whatever that might be) to get out to people, it has to be in a way that people in my target audience consume - it has to be in a form that they are influenced by and are willing to spend some part of their time - they need to want to invest. This might be the way it is written or the medium it is distributed - but it has to not only fall into their eyeline, but also attract them to read, consider and act upon it in some way.
The feedback could be comments, shares, votes, follows or multiple other metrics - but no feedback is also feedback. Are people listening to the silence, or are their ears only scanning for the noise?
I think that a lot of content creators have the feeling that the role of the creator is to push ideas into the world, not listen to what is being reflected back. This means that they can push and push, but not realize there is no echo returned. Some will think it is the failure of the platform, some will think it is the failure of their target audience - very few will look at the reflection of themselves in their own content and delivery and note that potentially, they aren't producing what people want - not just on topic, but also style and delivery, tone and feel, personality and flavor.
Everyone is free to do as they please, but in general, there are patterns of behaviors that are probably going to get some results over others. If two people want to get into good physical shape and one eats healthy and exercises, while the other eats junk food and doesn't - the probability of outcome is quite clear to most.
It is no different to the processes of content delivery and while these things can change over time and will definitely vary on market segmentation, it is good to understand that a particular personal preference of communication style isn't going to necessarily reach the desired outcomes.
I can tell my daughter and wife I love them daily, but if I scream the words, have an angry look on my face and threatening body language - I don't think they are going to "feel the love" and want to give me a kiss.
The information communicated can be identical, but presentation matters.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
