Get Creative With Content

The content used in a content marketing strategy should, at the very least, be creative, says ADRIAN JEFFERY
Content creation is something all clients talk about in every meeting I’ve been in for the last few years and for all the right reasons. Because everyone understands that it’s vital to have a website that works fantastically on a technical level, but it’s just as important to consider what goes onto that website.
Sometimes, though, I think ‘content creation’ sounds a little like ‘let’s just make stuff to fill up the empty space’.
And the research doesn’t lie. A recent Content Marketing Institute report cited 88% of respondents – from a pool of UK for-profit marketers – saying they harness content marketing, and 76% stating that they are producing more content in 2014 than they did a year ago. As an advocate for the value of content these are great statistics, but delve deeper and the report tells us that only 42% have a documented content marketing strategy. It’s the sort of figure which indicates there are a lot of organisations producing more content than ever, and popping it up on their digital platforms without a lot of thought behind it.
If the actual content is not useful, insightful and entertaining, then why should anyone want to look at the content you’ve created? Or hang around? Or want to come back and see what you’ve created next? The answer, of course, is… there is no reason.
Content marketing is not simply about ‘content creation’, rather it’s about how creative you make the content. Let’s look at how you can apply a few principles to make your content creative.
Keep it simple stupid
What is the big single idea you want to convey with each particular piece of content you want to make? Work that out first then put all of your creative energies (or the energies of all your creatives) into explaining that message to your target audience in the clearest, most powerful and single-minded way you can. Simple.
Choose people, they matter
Trust is key. Ideas flourish in a space where people feel confident everyone is on the same wavelength. Yes, there are going to be differences of opinion, concepts that don’t make the cut, but if you believe that the creative team sitting before you truly understands who you are, and what you’re trying to achieve, together you’ll come up with the goods – creative content that is on brand, and says what you want it to. Seek out a team that, as well as the usual complement of talented digital practitioners, also has people on board who have been taught the principles of good old-fashioned advertising, those focused on the big ideas. Or better still, collaborate with a team of digital creatives – digital natives with creativity in their DNA. That’s the ultimate blend, and one that makes the difference between OK and great content.
Speak the language of your customer , not technical gobbledygook
All industries have buzzwords, acronyms, technical terms that in all honesty mean absolutely nothing to people who don’t spend eight hours a day, five days a week doing what you do. So don’t speak to them in your language, use theirs. Creative teams writing copy for advertising campaigns generally work on literally hundreds of different brands and services in dozens of sectors, and the role is as much a translator as a copywriter.
Be brave about the budget
Often a client will tell you they want to spend a few thousand pounds but then give you a list of films and ads they’ve seen saying they would like something similar. Without exception, these references will have cost ten times the budget they have. So let’s all be realistic and, most importantly, write great ideas to fit the spend. In fact I’d argue there is less and less reason for content creation budgets to be small. Just because your film is going to run online and not on national TV, it’s no reason to skimp on the spend. Firstly the viewer can always tell how much money a client has spent on the screen, whether they’re watching it on a 40-inch HD TV or an iPhone. So spend as much as you can…. not as much as you think online deserves. And secondly, online will soon be the main screen people turn to, so invest now.
Don’t worry about what compliance will say
All good creatives have to understand the parameters of what they can and can’t claim, whether that’s in the (very strict) alcoholic drinks industry, advertising to children or the financial sector. TV commercials are governed and judged at all stages, from script to first cut to final submission. So any good creative will understand what will and won’t be acceptable to your compliance department.
A good client is one that wants to do something good
If you really want to make great creative content, you have to make a few commitments. Be brave. Be different. Trust your agency to deliver. And be prepared for flack from some quarters. Not everyone likes to be different, it can scare some people. But the truth is that, as Bill Bernbach, the most famous adman of all said: ‘If you stand for something, you will always find some people for you and some against you. If you stand for nothing, you will find nobody against you, and nobody for you.’