About this column
Juicy content. Do you know it when you see it?
It’s one of the hottest buzz phrases around the blogosphere right now:
Juicy content.
I want to know: what does juicy content really mean to you? How do you know, viscerally, that a blog post or a video or an audio download or what have you is juicy?
And don’t give me “provides tremendous value” or other catchphrases like that.
I want to know stuff like this:
- Content is juicy when I feel like I’m reading the blogger’s secret diary.
- Content is juicy when I know the blogger could be charging top dollar for this advice.
- Content is juicy when there’s nothing else of quality like it anywhere on the web.
Okay, your turn. The more nakedly honest and non-party line-ish, the better.
Hello, you.
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
Content is juicy when it moves me emotionally or turns something in my worldview in a way I’d never thought of.
Also when someone like Havi gives us such a brilliant look into her own internal process
I guess to borrow Natalie Peluso’s phrase, when people are “singing their truth” there’s a power and reality and magic in that which is unique, and at least for me, totally arresting and engaging.
I like it when people share more about their psyche than you expect they will. I guess because it helps us connect to our own psyches {?} and realize we’re not alone in thinking or feeling the way we do. I also have this awareness that revealing content like that should not create the expectation that the blogger be transparent in all his or her dealings. We have to allow for some measure of personal privacy, too. Just thinkin’ aloud here.
Hey Abby–
I’m a selfish blog reader. I want a shift in perspective and awareness if I’m going to take the time to read it from start to finish. As I read/scan I’m looking for myself in the writer’s story. I think it’s juicy when I feel known. Like the writer was spying on me, gets me and then articulates a message that will help me move forward, shift, open up, say “a-ha”.
Just sayin’.
xox
Jac
Hey, Jac —
It’s really cool when that happens: when a reader finds herself or himself in someone else’s content. It occurs to me that that really only happens with content where the writer is putting herself out there in a way that would normally be uncomfortable with strangers. Doesn’t happen quite so easily with “how to” and list posts, though those have a value all unto themselves.
I’m always pleasantly surprised on this blog when I open up a bit more than I think I should — and then the outpouring of reader support, empathy, and personal identification makes me so grateful that I did. Still, then, there’s always a pullback that happens for me. It’s like I tell myself, you can’t have too many of those really open-hearted posts in a row…even though they went over so well. Must be the fear talking.
I think “juicy content” is content that is “palatable” to not only the mind, but our souls. A “knowledgable” authenticity can whisper, or it can smack us in the forehead like a 2 x 4. Regardless, it wakes us up; makes us re-think; inspires.
It’s not so much in the having to sell our souls in writing, as it is in just being honest about who we are and what we know; and the willingness to do that.
Jane, I like what you’ve said here about a “knowledgeable authenticity.”
There are some bloggers, like Chris Brogran and Danielle LaPorte {two who come to mind}, whose content offers a world of depth and “actionability” {another blogosphere buzzword} yet without revealing too much about their personal lives. I admire this type of blogger — one whose posts are revelatory {and juicy!} without being particularly self-revelatory. I find it hard to pull off.
Abby:
I was thinking of Danielle LaPorte specifically…Very “present” and wise, making her believable — in my opinion. AND I liked Chris Brogan’s post today about “Pushing Past Defeat”. It was another example of a realistic wake up call expressed with honesty and “know how”. Both writers allow you to feel their humaness, without being too vulnerable — and they teach us something.
People respect honesty. End of story.
For me, it’s the bit that resonates on a deep level, excites new thoughts, makes me look at something upside down, re-affirms my unconventional approach, makes me stomp my feet and giggle at it’s unexpected truth… something that grabs me by the soul and stirs me into action of some sort.
And I even if I don’t relate to it, personally – I can recognize that other people will relate to it. I can see THEM giggling, and stomping their feet, because it’s dripping with relatable-ness
Oh, it’s so refreshing when somebody says something new, isn’t it? That doesn’t happen all that often in the blogosphere. :) The challenge, as we’ve talked about before on this blog, is how to hear one’s own voice when you’re immersing yourself in other people’s content.
Juicy content…what a great question!
Juicy content is news breaking, insightful, humorous, honest and relevant to me. That’s right, what I find juicy might make most people yawn. Creating juicy content is a true challenge. You have to know your audience and you have to be okay with the fact that some people just won’t dig it. There is a fine line when it comes to being juicy. (Can I get that on a t-shirt?)
Great post, Abby!
Welcome, Bridgid!
If you end up making that T-shirt, please tip me off where I can get one!
You’re right: creating juicy content is a true challenge and I stand in amazement at the people who crank it out continuously, post after post. I think some bloggers just have the juicy gene. The rest of us, we can learn. :)
I think it is juicy when I bite into it and it drips down my chin and makes my fingers all sticky. Wait…no, that’s an orange. Nevermind.
For me, CONTENT (not oranges) is “juicy” when it is something that not everyone else is saying. So much of the blog circles that we move in (you and I have very similar circles) just rehashes what everyone else is saying. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want something bizarre and intangible either. I just want something that people have tried for themselves instead of repeating what other A-Listers have said.
I also think it is juicy when people can very precisely convey their point. I’m not actually thinking of word count here. A precise article might be less than 200 words or it might be more than 2000; it just depends on the concept(s) being conveyed. Contrast this with what I see often which is a lot of fluff that does nothing. I’d much rather see a precise conveyance of a point.
I also like stories. While that might appear to contrast with my last thought, a good narrative that houses the concise point is awesome.
So basically: Unique content that conveys a concise point but may also include a story around that said point.
It should also have unicorns in it.
Natch, with the unicorns.
I agree with you that juicy has to be well-paced and well-edited. Juicy holds our attention in more ways than one, and good writing is not the least of these.