Creativity in Content MarketingThere’s been a good deal of talk about content overload lately.

How all of our efforts may soon come to a non-rapturous end in the Crap-ocalypse that now represents much of content creation and sharing.

One of the best commentaries on this is the pithy – and nicely designed (don’t get me started on the sorry state of conceptual and graphic design in content marketing) – slideshow from Velocity Partners in the U.K.

Because my own livelihood depends on people recognizing the value of real creativity in content (thank you, Mark Schaefer, for tapping Creative on Call to design your latest eBook), I frequently find myself cornering other creative types to get their opinion on the current state of, and outlook for, real creative thinking in content creation.

Naturally, then, I simply had to nab Jason Konopinski, one of my favorite writers, when I saw him at Social Slam 2013.

What is the Current State of Content Creativity?

(I encourage you to take five and watch the video – there’s some interesting commentary on branding and content – forgive, please, the background noise from the conference; it was catch as catch can.)

Jason Konopinski interview from Creative on Call, Inc. on Vimeo.

Here’s the gist of what the creator of the Riffing on Writing podcast and Poetry Friday had to say.

Chuck Kent: I’d like to know what your evaluation is of the current state of creativity in social media and content.

Jason Konopinski: Creativity is a challenging concept, and it’s something I write on frequently… stringing out the best way to present my unique voice, my unique perspective, and how to translate that into client work. Let’s be honest: Marketing creativity is hard, it’s not easy, and marketers in particular tend to take the path of least resistance. We try to replicate the success of others.

An example I used recently was the comparison between the brilliantly executed Instagram ad that went out during the Super Bowl for Oreo, during the power outage, and then comparing that same kind of content three weeks later during the Oscars, and how that moment of brilliance had faded into nothing more than noise because so many other brands were trying to replicate that success.

Imitation Runs Counter to Creativity

Jason Konopinski: Marketers are a tricky lot. We really try to look at creativity and take the path of least resistance, try to replicate the success of others and how figure [that] out in terms of a formula – but that runs contrary to really what creativity is. We have to think creatively to reach our audiences in the best ways possible, and that’s gonna take a little bit of legwork, a little bit of research.

Content – the current state right now – it’s sad to say I think we’re starting to hit a saturation point. There’s lots of “me-toos” in the space, lots of derivative content, often without a whole lot of thought, a whole lot of planning to take the opportunity of that moment, with very little to show in terms of success.

The Creative Opportunity for Content Creation

Jason Konopinski: For content marketers now, the biggest opportunity for this space is working within a set of circumstances, setting your guardrails an achieving those ends. If that means increasing sales 10 percent through the publication of a whitepaper, those are the guardrails that we’re setting. But if it’s simply increasing this nebulous idea of engagement through a hastily shot photograph, that’s really not that creative at all.

Two questions to you, dear readers: What do you see as the most over-used “me-too” content approaches? What examples of uniquely creative content have caught your imagination?

Chuck Kent

Chuck Kent is on a mission to make content marketing more creative and less “me too.” He is a brand strategist, writer and content creator, and creative director of Creative on Call, one of earliest virtual “non-agencies.” Previously a senior creative at BBDO, he writes about branding, content creation and their intersection, both on his own blog and as a contributing editor/author for Branding Magazine. He even sings about it in his weekly retort to #FollowFriday, #SocialSong Saturday.

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