Understanding Relevance
rel·e·vance (rěl’ə-vəns)
n.
- Pertinence to the matter at hand.
- Applicability to social issues: a governmental policy lacking relevance.
- Computer Science The capability of a search engine or function to retrieve data appropriate to a user’s needs.
The American Heritage Dictionary provides the above three definitions for the word “relevance.” Notice that the primary definition is the broadest, and the tertiary definition is the most specific.
I recently went to LA (and flew Alaskan Airlines), and while there, I unplugged – traveled to a place where I had dial up or random wi-fi access only.
I didn’t blog, I tweeted less often than I generally do, and I didn’t post to my blog. I got back online when I got back to Seattle, and noticed my number of twitter followers dropped off, and that my last blog post was five days ago.
What does this mean?
I’m no longer relevant - my content got stale. In this day and age, users like and want fresh content, from 140 characters to a few hundred words. Readers want it. Fellow Twitter users want it. Search engines want it. And frankly, those interested in social change, social justice, and making the world a better place want it.
My message? Be relevant. At the very least, be relevant.
Relevance matters.