The word on the "industry" street is that authentic people, and authentic writing, have finally come into vogue. According to Ad Age Magazine, companies (and recruiters alike) have learned from their past experiences in digital marketing and are quickly realizing that the long-lasting Google-loving key to getting noticed and appreciated online, is through original, creative, authentic writing.
In other words - BS and "cheesy" sales tactics are out for the online world. (it is still up for debate in the real-world)
Firstly, I would have to recognize and thank Google for this evolution. The online god's adamant desire to win the search engine "game" over those trying to prove their skill at out-smarting Google's search algorithms, has been admirable. If we break down this online under-world battle, and take a look at the path that was taken to get us to where we are today, we can see that with every unethical push from the black-hat (AND white-hat) SEO "experts", came the shove back from Google. This brilliant battle of wits has brought us out of the cheesy used-car-salesman tactic of filling a website with an intellectually worthless splattering of words, to a recognition that quality ultimately wins over quantity.
Currently the demand is for companies to find writers who are intelligent, tech-savvy, creative communicators of their products and services. [I will admit, not an easy task] Original humor is also a huge plus. These days online, if you want to go "cheap", and use either "stock" words or articles or third world writers that have English as something far from their first language, your website and social posts are gonna turn off, not only Google's search algorithm, but also those searching the internet for the best solution to their desire or need.
Secondly, I would like to offer a warm "thank you" to all the spammers, phishers, catfish, and hackers out-there. It has been a brutal and sacrificial learning curve for most of the users of the online world these last several years. Some are still being fooled but overall, I think most people have realized how incredibly easy it is to be "taken" online - by email, bogus websites, viruses, and everything in-between. With that education however, has come a true desire for people to seek out that which is authentic, and to have a strong aversion to that which has even the slightest scent of BS.
As much as we all would like to believe ourselves to be high-brow classy connoisseurs of the finer things in life, most of us are drawn to what makes us feel most grounded and comfortable. The way we feel with our trusted friends and family. As the online world grows to mega-world proportions, we, as consumers and social-seekers, are organizing our personal online experience into smaller "trusted" neighborhoods where we feel accepted, comfortable, and safe. That means that brands that seek our patronage are being forced to be authentic about how they represent themselves so as to fit into their consumers' neighborhoods. Gone are the days where corporations could manipulate the consumer to buy what they wanted them to buy. Back are the days where the consumer is seeking out the trusted neighborhood brand to buy from; brands that they and their friends see as part of their identity. Gone are the days where a corporate or Hollywood imposed "petri dish" façade is forced down the consumers' throats to be seen as socially acceptable.
Thirdly, I would have to thank the World Wide Web for the imposed information overload on all existence AND the hyped-up fast-changing world of technology. The creation of this current culture of immediate information and answers, and extremely intriguing tech creations happening daily, has lead society to be quickly and easily bored. That means that communications about a brand must be original, intelligent, and intriguing yet easily understood or relatable. To do it all in 140 characters, is genius.
In conclusion, I, as a life-long original thinker and authenticity seeker, feel a huge relief in knowing that my writing talents can be appreciated without being "corporately cleansed"...and that if and when I use the low-brow concept of BS...that readers, corporate and consumer alike,...will accept, and possibly even embrace, my love of the "real".