Creating visually stunning content is important. But good creative strategy goes beyond making something that simply looks good.
Before developing the look, tone, style or messaging of a campaign, there’s an important question to answer: Who are we trying to reach?
Understanding the target audience is one of the most important parts of creative strategy. It gives creative teams the foundation they need to make intentional decisions and develop content that connects with the right people.
As Krista Baddour, Director of Brand Strategy & Creative at TRG, puts it:
“Creative strategy is all about creating content that hits the right audience and resonates with the right audience, not just creating beautiful content.”
We sat down with Krista to try and understand what she thinks are the core deal-makers when it comes to transforming creative strategy. This is what she said.
1. Start With the Audience
At TRG, the audience is one of the first things we want to understand when developing a creative strategy.
Who are we trying to reach?
What kind of content are they consuming?
Where are they consuming it?
What behavioral patterns are we seeing?
“I usually love to start with the audience and get really into the mindset of what kind of content are they digesting,” Krista says. “What behavioral patterns are we seeing with this audience? Where are they digesting content?”
Answering those questions helps us understand which kind of creative will resonate.
Because ultimately, the goal isn't just to make content look good. The communication, language, tone, style, messaging and visuals should all connect with the people they're intended to reach. As Krista explains, the goal is to make content that will “hit the right audience at the right time” with messaging that feels authentic to the brand.
2. Research Before Creative Development
This is where the research and development phase becomes especially important. It can be tempting to jump straight into creative development, especially when timelines are tight. But spending time upfront understanding the audience can help guide the decisions that come later.
“The research and development stage is really important and really crucial,” Krista says, adding that it's “oftentimes, I think, rushed or skipped.”
Once we've established who we're trying to reach, we can look more closely at audience behaviors, available data and analytics, the product itself, and the larger industry.
Then we can start asking:
Based on what we know, what kind of content is going to work with this audience while still feeling authentic to the brand?
The answer will look different for every brand and every audience.
Take food content, for example. There are certain things we know generally make food appealing. Taste and appetite appeal are important. But that's only part of the equation.
As Krista explains, “The strategic part is how do you display that in an ad that resonates with your audience?”
That's where audience insights start becoming creative decisions.
3. Looking Good vs. Connecting
At TRG, we have the creative talent to deliver visually stunning assets. Creative strategy helps connect those capabilities to what the client is actually trying to accomplish from a marketing or business perspective.
The content should look good, but it also needs the right messaging, tone, and visual approach for the people it's intended to reach. Without that foundation, you run the risk of developing great-looking content that doesn't actually mean anything to the audience.
It's a distinction Krista feels strongly about.
Her biggest creative pet peeve?
“Really, really good-looking content that doesn't mean anything.”
Beautiful content can get someone's attention, but strategic content gives that attention somewhere to go.
4. Creating With a Purpose
Understanding the audience also gives everyone involved in a campaign a shared foundation. Rather than creating content for the sake of creating content, the team can continually return to the same questions: Who are we talking to? What are we trying to accomplish? Why are we creating this?
That helps make sure the story, messaging and creative direction all ladder up to the same objective.
It also means the content a brand is investing in isn't just visually compelling but created for a reason.
As Krista says, “You're not just creating random content, you're creating content and creative for a purpose and for a reason.”
Because the goal isn't simply to make something that looks good. It's to create something that reaches the right audience, at the right time, with a message that genuinely connects.
