What makes content “good?”

For this Newsletter, I wanted to look at three different content creators who all do the same thing – play music – but have vastly different follower counts and engagement on their videos. I want to compare and contrast their styles and see if we can learn the most effective way to deliver a message to a wider audience.

Example 1: Steph Strings

https://www.instagram.com/p/CAFiJ9ulmnT/

Steph Strings has 259k followers on Instagram. What works about this video is how energetic it is. The way she’s moving her head and body with the music, looking right into the camera every so often, you can feel the song like you're right in her living room with her and she’s performing just for you. She doesn’t have to say a word – she lets her music do the talking for her. This just goes to show you that charisma is more than just verbal – it’s in the whole way you carry yourself. It’s also cool how you don’t really notice the guitar in the shot until later, so when she picks it up, it immediately makes you want to keep watching to see how she’s going to incorporate it with the rest of the song. The fact that she’s able to essentially be her own band is really impressive, giving the video a novelty factor that keeps you engaged throughout its runtime.

Example 2: chacritmedia

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCkAFXnHFzA/

Chacritmedia has 135 followers on Instagram, so naturally, this video has substantially less views – but why? It’s certainly not for a lack of talent – the guitar playing is impressive. I think the biggest reason for the lack of engagement is that there’s no Hook Point. Where Steph Strings is a one-woman band who can connect with the viewer on an emotional level, this is just one person playing guitar. It doesn’t stand out from every other piece of content and doesn’t make draw in the audience to feel anything, so a viewer isn’t going to feel that urge to click and watch. I think with these two videos we can see just how important giving your audience that complete experience is. Whereas the first video felt like I was making a real connection with her, seeing this amazing song unfold before my eyes, this video is just a guitar player showing off their skills, and nothing more.

Example 3: Jaxwritessongs

https://www.tiktok.com/@jaxwritessongs/video/6922593215824530694?lang=en&is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v2

Jaxwritessongs has 1.4 million followers on TikTok, and it’s easy to see why. This is the most successful video by far, with 10 million views. Jax’s personality shines through, effectively using her musical talent and her sense of humor to put a fresh spin on a well-known song. She has a vibrant, playful energy, and you really feel like she’s your friend who is just trying to do something silly to make you laugh. The title of the video, “Party in the USA from the Uber Driver’s POV,” is a great Hook Point – it immediately makes me want to check it out to see how exactly she’s going to deliver on the title’s promise, which builds retention. I think this just goes to show you that if you want to stand out among the billions of messages that are being sent across all the social media platforms each day, you want your titles to be both clear and interesting, and your content has to give your audience an experience they can’t get anywhere else.