How to Evolve as a Creative
Being a creative of any type–especially a content creator–requires continuous evolution.
Creative evolution is an ongoing process. It’s a balance between acknowledging how far you’ve come and looking to the future. It’s meditating on the experiences you’ve gained to strategically propel yourself into your next set of goals.
To stay active and up to date in the content game, you need to continuously review your methods. Evolution is key to both brand strategy and creative longevity.
Why Does Creative Evolution Matter?
Continuously evaluating your work is pivotal to improving as a creative. Not only does this increase the quality of your content, but it also helps you enhance the return on investment (ROI) of your efforts. Otherwise, your hard work may be going to waste without you realizing it.
For example, if you’re spending hours a day making perfectly-edited reels, but your most relevant audience doesn’t use Instagram, you won’t see much ROI until you start cross-posting on other platforms. If your ROI is not improving, it’s probably time to evolve your content strategy.
Evolving as a creative isn’t just about the type of work you do, it’s also about strengthening your brand identity. The first approach isn’t always the most effective. It takes time and intention to develop a strong and consistent online presence.
For content creators, creative evolution is also a balance of logistics and artistry. This means comparing analytics to your vision to see what your audience is responding to. Sometimes, this means innovating new ways to connect with your audience while staying true to your art. This combination can result in truly original and compelling content.
In addition to keeping your own interest as the brand creator, evolution keeps your brand from stagnating. Stagnant brands have a harder time expanding their audience, staying relevant, and maintaining conversions. Without growth, innovation, and evolution, viewers easily fall off. It can be incredibly difficult to pull an audience back once they're gone.
Creative evolution prevents you from pushing out repetitive content. It keeps your current audience invested and invites new viewership through new and different points of interest.
Additionally, creative evolution helps you stay true to your brand personality. As you and your brand grow, you’ll discover new things about your mission, your community, and your goals. Staying in touch with these aspects and bringing them to your content will not only keep your brand fresh, but will also keep your work compelling and authentic.
Ultimately, your brand is a reflection of you and your values. As you grow and change, it should evolve with you. Just as you aren’t the same person you were when you started creating, your brand transforms too.
What Does Creative Evolution Look Like?
Creative evolution looks different for each brand and small business. It’s a combination of natural progression, intentional strategy, and artistic vision. It’s about looking beyond your initial ideas and staying open to new opportunities.
Creative evolution comes from both within and outside of the brand. This can be the owner or team behind a small business sharing new values as their lives change, or an emerging platform that allows you to connect with your audience in a brand new way.
Creative evolution also comes from observing your analytics and responses to your brand strategy thus far. If most of your content comes through social media, it will likely be affected by ever-changing algorithms. Look not only at the trends your audience is favoring, but what the platform itself is pushing.
Creative evolution can be influenced by trends or function independently of them. Trends are fickle, however, if one truly resonates with your brand, it can be an opportunity to authentically expand your target audience.
One way to evolve is to review your content pillars. These make up the foundation of your content strategy and should be continuously reviewed to make sure they are still relevant and effective.
Don’t feel like you have to stick with the original pillars of your brand. If one isn’t working or no longer feels right, throw it out and try something new. Conversely, any emerging themes or passions in your brand should be strategically considered and integrated into your content strategy.
Evolving your brand can also involve investing in new tools or expanding your team to simplify your workload. It can be more cost-effective in the long run to save your energy for content creation.
For example, a small fashion brand owner may start off by designing clothes, making promotional content, and balancing their books. But as the brand grows, and the creator spends more time on orders, it can be more efficient to hire an accountant or even a social media manager.
Don’t be afraid to invest in your brand–but be smart about it. Remember to continuously evaluate your ROI to make sure additional tools and team members are worth the cost.
The Challenges of Creative Evolution
While it’s incredibly important to maintain a lasting brand, creative evolution isn’t necessarily easy. It will become more natural over time, but the early stages of development can be confusing and a bit overwhelming.
A major challenge is deciding which direction to grow in. One of the best (and worst) things about being a creative is being pulled toward multiple paths at once, both internally and externally.
It’s not always easy to see what the best step forward is, but you can’t only allow outside influences to drive your decisions. It’s up to you to reflect on your mission and decide where your brand vision should take you next.
Ultimately, creative evolution requires you to always be prepared to adapt. Your initial vision may be completely different from the content landscape you find yourself in, and you may have to adjust in ways you didn’t expect
With creative evolution, your brand can continue to grow and improve. Remember that while you are better than you were yesterday, there is always a chance to become even greater tomorrow.
Always In Your Corner,
The Content Queens
