Don’t Bother with Fluff (In your content)

I hate page fillers. Maybe it comes from writing for page counts in school and being told to add it and thinking that was stupid. Maybe it’s because I hate reading it from others. Maybe it’s that and/or other things. No matter. I hate it.

That said I try to avoid it in my own work, my last podast episode was short – not because I was feeling lazy, but because I had nothing left to say at the time for that episode and I realized anything I added at the time would become largely “fluff”.

What is fluff? you may ask, it’s adding sentences reexplainig an idea or adding words just to add length, its adding unneccesary, unhelpful content, whether it’s copy, or video, or photos. It’s not always obvious I’ll admit, To me it’s also things like YouTubers adding their “sorry it’s been a minute since I posted, or here’s some goofy faces with weird editing, or maybe a instagrammer adding too many different photos to keep your eye on their post.

I understand there’s some strategy to it in the content space – long-form stuff keeps viewers looking at the creator’s content longer without having to continue adding value. But that’s just it – it allows creators to stop adding value to their content.

I think it’s a bit of a cop out even if it’s sometimes funny.

I think the one exception to this rule is summaries, and conclusions/intros, if they help guid the reader.

Some people think you need page counts, time limits, and other minimums (or maximums) to create good content. I’m ready to say that it’s better to create meaningfully until you don’t have more to say, and don’t keep going afterward.

Photo by Delia Giandeini on Unsplash