Does it happen to you? Each time you come across a great ad or a good piece of communication, do you go, “why didn’t I come up with that?” or “wish it was mine”! Guess we all have done that at some point. What is it that brings out such brilliant ideas?
Ideating/visualizing is an art that you master with experience. There are no set formulae, which we can apply to think in a direction that gives us award-winning ideas or result-oriented concepts.
In my initial years as a copywriter, I have had to struggle a lot to come up with workable ideas or ideas that would impress clients. I would try various methods each time I got a brief to work on. With time and practice, you evolve and manage to crack workable ideas faster.
Today with most of the briefs I get, I tend to follow a pattern that helps me come up with different innovative ideas that I improvise on to come up with campaign concepts.
This article is an attempt to share my experience and learnings with aspiring copywriters and other marketers, who are interested in the art of ideation and visualization.
- The ideas are all out there. One just needs to look – There are various stories out there, which can be part of your idea or spark an idea in your mind. Take these every day experiences/events and turn them into brand stories in a manner that it touches the audience’s heart and strengthens his/her bond with the brand.
- Read a lot – We are not here to invent new things. We are here to use what we know – at the right time, in the right place for the right brand, in the most effective manner. Reading helps us learn about things, people, places and cultures. It empowers us to express ourselves better and craft our ideas in a more effective manner – A good idea becomes great by the way it is communicated.
- Be inquisitive. Ask questions – Before we start pushing our brains to come up with bright ideas, we need to feed it with data. Before you start ideating, it is important to know, what, why and for whom are you creating this communication. So, don’t hesitate to ask questions. It is this habit that’s going to help you come up with the right ideas.
- Don’t be in a hurry to share your ideas– Sometimes it so happens, that while you are getting most of your questions and concerns addressed, your brain has already started churning out ideas. Don’t share it right away. By sharing half-baked ideas, you run a risk of killing a good idea, which had the potential to become a great one. Think, rethink, write, rewrite, and be the biggest critic of your idea, till you are really sure it will work.
- Don’t think headlines. Think experiences. – I have come across many budding writers, who are of the opinion that great headlines make great creatives. I feel it is the other way around. Ideation begins with an idea, a situation, a story, a visual, everything but a headline. The headline is just a step to communicate your idea, not an idea in itself.
- Discuss your idea with others – There are always different ways of interpreting one idea. And different perspectives help see the flaws in an idea and help craft them better or improve them. If not sure of discussing with fellow writers/designers, then discuss it with someone outside of your work, but discuss so you gauge how your idea is comprehended.
- Sell your idea – What takes your idea to the next level is the way you present it. You are not just a writer, you are a storyteller. If you cannot sell your idea, you cannot expect your idea to sell a brand. So, prepare well before presenting your idea to a group of team members, brand custodians or clients. Ensure your level of excited remains the same throughout each presentation.
While there are no set rules to creativity, some of these points have helped me in my journey as a copywriter. Do you have a list of your own? I would love to hear your thoughts and what works well for you.