Get creative with marketing

Marketing involves creativity- new modes and methods of communication, to just get the attention of prospective clients or consumers. What do you do when you feel tapped out and the idea mill has dried up?

Creative people have methods they use, consciously or unconsciously, to give their minds the maximum capacity to think creatively and generate new ideas.

• Take time to think freely. This may be lying in bed before falling asleep, during a morning walk or run, in the shower, or during a long commute.

• Exercise your imagination. The more you use your imagination, the better it works for you. Visualize your success. Ask yourself, “What would happen if…?” Fantasize about the impossible.

• Do something new. Your brain’s neurons start firing when it has to learn something new. Read something different, volunteer, try a new exercise class, or start a new hobby.

• Create. Paint, knit, write, carve, cook… the result doesn’t matter. It’s the process that gets the right side of your brain active.

• Chill out. Creativity flourishes in a relaxed atmosphere. Take a walk, meditate, find a quiet place, breathe deeply. Put your worries aside for awhile and de-stress.

• Get back to nature. Spend time appreciating the colors of the season, the sound of water churning, or the changes during sunrise or sunset. Get inspired.

• Immerse yourself in creativity. Go to the theater or an art museum. Pick up a classic piece of literature or poetry.  Creativity breeds more creativity. 

With a tight schedule and multiple deadlines looming, you may think some of these activities are a waste of time. However, they are methods that “sharpen the saw” as Stephen Covey would say. When you take time to cultivate your creativity, you’ll spend less time chasing a muse, and more time wowing your clients with innovative ideas.

Outside Marketing

Marketing is most effective when it reaches the target audience. Common sense, right? The question is, where is your target audience?

One suggestion by marketing expert Kim T. Gordon in her article “Fresh Ideas for Innovative Marketing,” is to “take it outside.”

Do your potential customers value environmentalism? Adopt a section of highway. Do they visit the gym? Buy ad space in the locker room. Are they parents of school-age children? Sponsor a little league team. Do they frequent the local coffee shop? Buy a placemat ad. Do they do the grocery shopping? Advertise on the shopping cart. The key is to have the name of your business in front of your potential customer at the right time.

As trite as “think outside the box” may sound, successful marketing strategies go beyond traditional print and media ads. Yet, they’re purposeful- not throwing money at every opportunity, but focused at reaching specific people with your message.

Another “outside” opportunity is to partner with other businesses. For example, if you are a business targeting brides-to-be, you can place your business cards at a photography studio or bakery. You can place an ad on their website, or offer a discount if the customer uses both services. The opportunities created by this kind of partnership, also called affiliate marketing, are only limited by your imagination.

So, take your marketing to the streets, where your customers are.  And don’t forget to check our website for a chance to win 20% off your first project with AMW Marketing!