The content of mind and heart

There are only two types of engaging content on Steem, that which stimulates the mind and that which motivates the heart. Well, this is not really true, but perhaps from an end user consumer perspective it is a way to declutter and bring some focus on what "good content" is. I think good content is better than the common use of "quality" as the label, as what is value-adding doesn't necessarily have to be of quality.

There is actually a thing called The IKEA effect where people add disproportionate value to something that they have partially put together themselves, regardless of the actual quality of the product. I see this is an extension of the sentimental value added to a piece of artwork from one's own child, regardless of how horrible art made with macaroni elbows is - it gets treasured.

When it comes to valuable content on Steem, it is hard to put a finger on exactly what that means, as it is going to depend on the target audience as well as the current conditions of the platform and world at large. However, it is also useful to think of value as level of engagement or attention, but again, it is going to depend on type of content. Comments are a good indicator of internal engagement but aren't overly useful when evaluating what gets seen externally, what attracts outside viewers and perhaps introduces them to the Steem ecosystem.

Lately, I have been sharing content on twitter for @ocd's #PoSh (Proof of Share) initiative and started a new Twitter account for this. I started it toward the end of November and have been slowly growing it by pretty much only sharing Steem content.

November

December

January so far

As you can see, with only 10 tweets of content so far, the impressions are close to that of all of December and,most of the posts are getting click throughs to Steem. Whether this makes a difference in the long-term future of Steem is still an unknown, but not doing this means that it definitely doesn't have an impact.

Mind or heart?

Going back to he mind or heart sides of content creation, I think that I prefer to try to find the happy medium between giving information that engages the mind, and connecting the audience emotionally to what I offer. I do write a lot of Steem content but only, very, very rarely is it purely information or technical as, that is not my methodology for learning or consuming personally. The content I connect with the best is that which engage my heart into the dialogue, and it is a dialogue.

What a lot of people tend to forget when creating content is it is actually a conversation with the audience, as based on what is offered the viewers mind will create a personal viewpoint, raise and answer questions as well as build a relationship with the content, including the writer. I believe that those who are the most consistently engaging users on Steem are those who offer a blended approach to their content. Too dry and technical wears on the concentration, too emotional desensitizes quickly.

There are plenty of outbursts that get a lot of engagement on Steem, but if coming from the same users over and over again, it is much like the boy who cried wolf and it becomes unbelievable and inauthentic, or a symptom of instability that will eventually lead to distancing rather than getting caught in an emotional spiral. Drama creates a lot of interaction because that is what the internet has been designed to propel, but it is always short lived before the next cycle arrives.

What has been interesting over the last few months where the showcase-sunday tag has been supported is, what kinds of content gets reposted. It isn't the price information, or news that this coin is going to the moon - or the outbursts. It is what people connect with at a more enjoyable and personal level, art, stories or in what I usually share, observations about the world. Nearly all of it is evergreen content, content that is timeless.

Evergreen content can be mind or heart, but when most people dredge up a post from 2 years ago, which one is more available in their memory? Nearly every time, emotion trumps thought, which is something to remember when creating those outrage posts. In time and if the Steem SEO capabilities are utilized (a different post perhaps to discuss this), this kind of content could find its way as becoming part of the Steem content catalog that gets found time and time again, rewarded or not. This is especially true once niche communities form and content narrows to serve more refined purpose.

Personal and heart engaging content is great, but what most people will find is that unless it offers the audience something of personal value for them, it is hard to keep engagement long term. And, while some people like to write what is akin to an emotionless high school book report, this offering will have to compete on a case by case basis and essentially start fresh each time, as the relationship between the audience has not been created with a strong bond.

I see it kind of like an actor who can release a movie and have people take the risk and pay admission on the reputation and relationship they have with the actor. Many people see celebrities like family members and friends - "Did you hear about Brad and Angelina" - using first names when they have never even come close to talking. This is the dialogue and relationship built between content and audience and generally, it is a one-sided conversation held between the heart and mind of the viewer, catalyzed by the delivery and presentation included through the content.

Personally, I have spent a fair bit of time considering what I find "good content" to consume for me, and it will likely differ from your preferences. But, when it comes to content creation, do you spend time considering the conversation you are part of whether someone comments or not, whether an upvote arrives or not or - if it is discovered a month or a year from today?

I know that some do, and they generally deliver what would also be seen as quality.

Taraz
[ a Steem original ]

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To note and bring some more awareness: 10% of the rewards of this post will go to @sbdpotato as part of the @ocd *beneficiaries experiment.. The "ocd community is found under the #hive-174578 tag and you can join the community through the Beta site https://beta.steemit.com/trending/hive-174578

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