The trend in today’s media is short, snappy, bite-sized bits of information.
I think it started with the 140-character Tweets by then, Twttr. Vine (eventually bought and killed by Twitter) raised (or lowerd…?) the bar with looping videos capped at 6 seconds; TikTok limits videos at 15 seconds; investment platform, Robinhood sends out their “Snacks” newsletter; and news media breathlessly interrupts with 10-second “breaking news” segments.
These are all designed for “people on the go” – who need to know what’s going on now and don’t have time for the fluff.
But so much context lives in the unspoken. Ties are made and dots are connected.
The argument I hear is, “attention spans are shortening” and the only way to attract eyeballs is the make it short and witty. This is a chicken-egg conversation. Are attention spans shortening or do non-stop information bits result in FOMO?
When was the last time you did a deep dive into a subject? Rather than a cursory overview of a topic, do yourself a service and dig in.
In fact, what type of content does your brand generate? Shallow, pieces that will be forgotten tomorrow? Or meaningful pieces that establish you as a leader?
Where are the thoughtful, complex, useful pieces that will change the trajectory?
There is a place for the short, the quips, the bites – but we need to intentionally lean into the deep, the thought-provoking, and the texture.