This month IHAF is all about creativity and while we certainly would love to talk through all the ways we love to be creative, we have found, as you may have as well, that the creative process often starts as not that creative at all.

It is typical that the best creative emerges out of extensive market research, data drilling, audits, segmentation exercises, and even the dreaded ROI discussions. Good creative, the creative that in our industry moves the needle, raises awareness, impacts sales, drives differentiated messaging , and does not form out of thin air.

And the same holds true for good content marketing. Setting up Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Vine, Flickr, Google+, Pinterest, SlideShare, Vimeo, YouTube, FourSquare, Instagram, Tumblr (you get the point) does not equal content strategy.

Social media is an element of content marketing, typically the distribution arm of content marketing. But social media does not define content marketing. Great content does. And great content, great creative content, great creative content that moves the needle stems from a methodical approach to understanding the market, segmenting the audience, building a content engine, defining processes, and delivering beyond the audience’s expectations. It means you are influencing purchase decisions, building relationships, and driving revenue.

It may not sound as fun as creative brainstorming, but we promise if you come to our IHAF webinar tomorrow, we’ll at least give you a creative presentation about Capitalizing on Content. To register, go to bit.ly/IHAF_events.