Why Buzzfeed Has Taken Off By Embracing Clickbait Culture
Buzzfeed has taken an “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em” approach when it comes to the use of clickbait headlines; Find out how they mastered the science behind making their articles impossible to scroll past!
Buzzfeed is one of the most unique news media outlets and we are so lucky to be a part of its magic. A huge token of their success lies within their clickbait titles that deny being such. They’ve made several statements claiming their headlines aren’t clickbait because they are entirely accurate and not misleading, which is true! However, they do have a very specific algorithm for creating their headlines to ensure their content will be seen be the masses.
The master of clickable headlines, content curation, and pop-culture references. The almighty: Buzzfeed
Whether it be inspiring the audience to go on a wicked Amazon shopping spree. (source: Buzzfeed.com)
Get them hooked on the latest Kardashian drama. (source:Buzzfeed.com)
Or have them reminiscing on iconic moments throughout pop-culture history. (source: Twitter)
Buzzfeed covers such a large range of topics, yet all their headlines are basically the same. How?
Obviously the headlines differ, but they all have essential elements involved that make them so clickable. To make the cut, these headlines need to be trending, emotional, cool, interactive, or borderline clickbait. (source: https://www.contentpowered.com/blog/examples-buzzfeed-headlines-work/ )
Trending: Check. Emotional: Check! Boardline Clickbate: CHECK!
This caption embodies the same elements, yet its about a completely different topic! Buzzfeed has nailed their algorithm for captions and headlines!
Buzzfeed might be the smartest news outlet in existence.
Their feed consists mainly from curation so they don’t have to fret coming up with original content. This time is spent coming up with the most click-worthy headlines and captions that practically hypnotize the audience into spending so much time on random rankings and oddly accurate quizzes. Each headline includes one or more key elements that has proven to keep the audience clicking on these trendy, yet informative articles.
