From being squeezed into the tail end of an above-the-line shoot to replacing the shoot itself, content marketing has come a long way. Today, content creation is central to brand strategy, but with more platforms, economic pressures and touchpoints than ever before, the old ways of working simply don’t work anymore. 

The future of content and campaign marketing calls for a rebrand – one that prioritises agility, cross-agency collaboration and a holistic approach to brand storytelling. Here, Content Hustlers managing director David Vale shares his take. 

From in-house to production powerhouse

My marketing career began in the noughties, when content was barely a buzzword. As the global marketing manager for Lovisa, I specialised in product, fashion and retail, supporting the brand’s expansion across six countries and 200-plus stores. Back then, above-the-line creative led the charge, while social media (i.e. Facebook, still very much in its infancy) received whatever assets could be stretched across our feeds. 

Content production was an afterthought, and marketers would often scramble for budget after major campaign work was complete to support ambitious add-ons to the communications plan. Even then, I could see the growing trend for brands and agencies to meet the insatiable feed, and at pace.

Content Hustlers, then Hustler Workshop, was created in 2014 to meet this need, offering agencies with an autonomous extension of their capabilities, without the overheads. Our brand-side experience gave us a sharp understanding of what clients really needed: quality creative, captured efficiently with a hands-on team who delivered without fuss. 

This approach resonated early on, with our client-side experience helping us to expand from fashion to food and beverage, FMCG, pharmaceuticals, and even finance.

Content, cost pressures and collaboration

Fast forward to today, and the content marketing landscape is almost unrecognisable. Customer engagement supersedes the social feed, blurring the line between digital, above-the-line and beyond. 

Between algorithmic updates, monetisation strategies and audience segmentation, content is no longer a sideshow but the main attraction. Outputs span everything from TikTok ads to billboards to high-production TVCs – often with the same teams behind it all.

With this evolution comes new challenges. Budgets haven’t necessarily grown at the same rate as expectations. Marketers are now tasked with producing a high volume of high-quality, brand-aligned content across multiple channels, often with budgets that would once have covered a single hero TVC.

Social has also accelerated the importance of speed to market. Increasingly, brands are coming to studios like Content Hustlers for social assets, campaign work and shopper marketing – before the product packaging is even finalised.

To succeed within the current economic climate, marketers are having to cover breadth with the same commitment to brand, within budget. It may sound cliche, but ‘building the plane as we’re flying it’ is less about fortitude during production and more about strategic planning and creativity to ensure that the conditions work in your favour.

The good news? It’s absolutely possible. In fact, the success of independent production studios depends on a more nimble, collaborative and strategic model. This approach proves that you can have it all. In fact, you should. 

Now that we have the tools, teams and techniques for more efficient productions, ‘better, faster, cheaper’ is genuinely achievable. The days of siloed planning are well and truly over. Instead, marketers are driven to think holistically – treating every creative output as part of a broader brand ecosystem, rather than isolated campaign bursts.

Considerations for the modern content marketer

Weathering the shifts in content and campaign marketing over the past decade, there are a few key considerations I believe every marketer should keep top of mind.

1. Think long-term, not just launch-term

Campaigns shouldn’t just be designed to hit a seasonal brief, they should ladder up to the brand’s broader narrative. Planning for longevity means budgeting and briefing with respect for the 12-month window, rather than a 12-week one.

2. Approach content holistically

It’s no longer enough to have ‘social assets’ and ‘campaign assets’ as separate streams. Think about the full customer experience: every channel, every touchpoint, every interaction. How might this campaign support broader brand deliverables?

3. Budget for brand, not just assets

While efficiencies can be found, high-quality content that carries your brand forward still needs proper investment. Being strategic about spend – and trusting your production partners – leads to better outcomes (and often, surprising savings). This might mean spending less per campaign and running more of them at a brand level of production quality.

4. Why cannibalise when you can collaborate?

A gatekeeper approach to marketing isn’t serving anyone. Even the studios known for their niche are being forced to diversify. Agencies, production partners, clients, creatives – we’re better when we work together. While seemingly controversial in this competitive climate, cross-disciplinary collaboration unlocks better ideas, more strategic solutions, and more value for the brand.

5. Chemistry matters

Shared ambitions, open communication and brand alignment produce both creative and business efficiencies. Beyond answering the brief, chemistry is what supports partnerships to withstand challenging commercial climates and overcome the temptation of trend-marketing, especially when activity doesn’t ladder up to the brand’s strategy.

The old models of campaign and content production are falling away, and that’s a good thing. Traditionally, production has been an area where agencies have found revenue wins; where the studio has worked for the agency. But, independents have proven that we can achieve more (outputs and quality) for less spend. We’re ironing out the fluffy jobs to remind teams who they work for. Because while awards and accolades are lovely, ultimately, the brands funding the production are fuelling our industry. 

The brands that will win in this next era won’t be the ones with the biggest production budgets or the flashiest campaigns – they’ll be the ones who think holistically, collaborate openly and invest in content that connects on a brand level. In practice, this means looking at content and campaign work as part of your bigger brand narrative so that your budget stretches beyond the season. 

At Content Hustlers, there’s no room for ‘playing it cool’ and our industriousness and ingenuity reflect this work ethic. We invite brands, agencies and partners to join us in casting their egos aside and remember why we’re here: to get together and to do great work.

Bringing more than 15 years of experience in branded content to clients across the fashion, food, beverage, beauty, health, pharmaceutical and hospitality industries, David Vale is the managing director and co-founder of Content Hustlers – an independent creative production studio with the intimacy of an in-house team.

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