At the beginning of my career, I was fortunate enough to have taken a class at UCLA taught by two great names in Los Angeles advertising, Jean Craig and Jack Foster.  Some of the most innovative, freshest advertising in the 1980’s and 90’s came out of these two remarkable creative leaders.  Jack, especially, inspired me because he was a Student (capital S) of creativity.  He explored – and later wrote about – what it takes to become more idea-prone, in other words, Creative.

No matter if you are a Sales Manager, an Accountant or a Marketing Director, everyone needs ideas. Not every idea needs to be earth-shattering or ingenious.  But good ideas break new ground and often generate better results than taking the well-worn path.  Jack, in his book “How to get Ideas,” quotes the Italian philosopher Vilfredo Pareto who defined creativity perfectly as “nothing more nor less than a new combination of old elements.”

As you look around the marketing/advertising activities within your industry, you may come to the opinion that it may be sorely in need of new ideas!  And the market is wide open for new possibilities.  So it behooves anyone in marketing to think creatively and help bring about positive changes.  Here are some of Jack’s great insights into developing the mindset to think outside the box.

Have Fun

The best ideas usually come from people who are having FUN! Serious people don’t usually come up with innovative ideas. With humor and fun as the basis for creativity, you are more open to the unexpected. When we are having fun, we open ourselves up to new, unanticipated ideas and experiences.  Consider jokes: they are funny because they put a spin on something that seems illogical. I can always tell when I’ve come up with a winning idea because I find myself giggling.  Allow yourself to be playful!

Know that the idea is out there.

Jack believes that the ones who come up with ideas know that the ideas are out there; the ones who don’t come up with ideas don’t know that the ideas exist and therefore don’t pursue them.  Creativity, like so many other things is a self-fulfilling prophesy…just like telling yourself you’re not creative.  That’s a load of hooey!  We were all born creative but were taught not to be.

Go for the numbers.

One way to make it easier to get good ideas is to believe that there are many of them.  Never stop at “the first right idea.”  You have to muscle past that and go for idea quantity, no matter how silly some of the ideas seem at first.  Continuing to play after you think you’ve landed on an idea may produce a better one, or one that may combine with the “first right idea” and make it better.  Only after generating lots of good ideas is it time to be judgmental.

Set Your Mind on Goals

Free-thinking without knowing where you want to go will take you nowhere in particular.  Even within the idea of “playing around,” creativity must be a goal-oriented activity, just as with any other problem-solving effort. Start out by declaring what it is you want to achieve and then get playful on the road to getting there.

Be More Like a Child

Have you noticed that children play without worrying that their efforts are silly or childish? They don’t fret about painting outside the lines or making the sky orange. Jack points out that this is every adult’s problem: we think too much! Adults have too many boundaries, too many rules, preconceptions, assumptions, and restrictions. A child on the other hand, is innocent and free. They do not know what they cannot or should not do. Every situation is looked at with fresh eyes.  To be more like a child is to forget what was done before. Break the rules. Be illogical. Be silly. Be free. Then watch out, because the ideas that will flow.

Rethink your Thinking

There’s an old agency joke about how many art directors it takes to change a light bulb. The answer is, “why does it have to be a light bulb?’  That’s because creative people are always challenging basic assumptions and by thinking about the problems differently they often arrive at different solutions. So…why does a car have to be shaped like a car?  Or how can you double your income on a product you were ready to discontinue?  Make sure to ask the question “What assumptions am I making that I don’t have to? What unnecessary limitations am I putting on myself?”

The two most damaging phrases in business are “We’ve always done it this way” and “We’ve never done it that way.”  But, my friends and readers, give into your inner child as Jack Foster advises and say “What if…?” See where it can take you.  Like death itself, it may take you to a far better place.

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By Dan Katz, president, creative director of LA ads. To discuss your thoughts on this blog or any marketing matters, email Rolf Gutknecht, vice president, director of account services, via this link, or visit www.LAadsMarketing.com.  You can also connect with Rolf on LinkedIn.

Here’s something that I hear from business and marketing executives and, each time, I shake my head in disbelieve. Those words are “My customers aren’t asking for it.” Six words that are one of biggest marketing traps and why some organizations stop growing and lose customers to forward-thinking competitors.  In 1967, no customer said “You know what. I wish some company would make a machine that uses microwaves to cook food faster!”…yet the microwave oven was developed. Or said in 2003, “Why can’t a company invent a magazine-sized device to surf the web?”…yet the iPad and other tablets are now the rage.  And that’s the case the with the majority of new products, especially those that can help differentiate a business from competitors. Customers, meaning 99.999% of people, are not thinking like product developers, but that doesn’t for a nanosecond mean that when presented with a “WOW” product they won’t want it, tell their family and friends and their social media circles that they should get it as well.

“My customer isn’t asking for it” in essence says that your organization is one built on the idea that only after a number of customers come in asking for it, will you decide to create, utilize or stock the whatever-it-is. Which more times than not is after your competitors are already doing it.  We would agree that’s not how an organization should act if the object is to grow. And one of the tenets of growing means that you are leading customers. You’re bringing new ideas and solutions to them that either enriches their lives or drives future sales to your business or has them see you in a different light. “My customer isn’t asking for it” also suggests that the organization is a follower, a “me-too” and not an organization that people think of when they’re looking at viable alternatives, that wonders why customers aren’t doing business with them as they did many years ago.

“My customer isn’t asking for it” defines your organization on so many levels both to your internal staff as well as to the outside world. It speaks to how you view what customer service means; how you want your brand to be defined and compared to competitors; whether you’re seen as a progressive leader or a reactive follower in your industry or marketplace; if you’re a company that embraces new ideas or is the epitome of the status quo.

“A lot of times, people don’t know what they want until you show it to them.” — Steve Jobs

So, was Steve Job’s right?

Well there’s certainly a number of organizations that say he isn’t.  A lot of firms wouldn’t feel comfortable pressing forward with a new product offering or service feature without doing significant customer research to determine all aspects of consumer interest, purchase intent, etc. Think about the expenses, the manpower allocation, the buy-in from internal resources; and so on. Yes, there is much at stake.   Any innovative company struggles with how much to listen to customers.

That said, there are many respected professionals who would say that, yes, he was right. There are hundreds and thousands of new products each year that find overwhelming customer acceptance with little or no consumer research being done.  These companies are successful because they push boundaries and do the unexpected. They’re about anticipation, instinct, insights—and, ultimately, curiosity and experience. Going back to Apple, if customers were asked how they’d like to improve the music listening experience back in a day where CD players ruled, they likely couldn’t have envisioned the iPod.

Consumers can’t think in abstractions. They cannot envision a new concept. They can only compare against their current frame of reference. When you rely on consumer input, it is inevitable that they will tell you to do what other popular companies are doing.  So you need to make the big leap for them. You need to provide them with a reason to buy, a reason to brag to their friends. Expect the “new-to-the-world” ideas to fall on deaf ears. Consumers will, however, change their tune when they can see, touch, and explore.  So, do customers really know what they want?

“If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.” –Henry Ford

To avoid stepping in the “My customer isn’t asking for it” business trap, here are a few things to give thought to as you move forward:

• Start with understanding your customer better than you now do. Whenever our firm calls customers of our clients to gain insight about why they purchased a particular product or service and we then share it with our clients, I can tell you that in each and every instance, the client has said something along the lines of “Really, they said that?” Or, “I would never have guessed that’s why…” Or, “This is going to cause us to change how we do business.” Every. Single. Time.
• Successful, market-leading businesses hold a vision for their customers. These businesses use their unique insight into their customers’ day-to-day lives to see what tomorrow will look like and create the solutions that meet them at tomorrow and beyond. They understand that the customer is always changing. You have the opportunity to serve them as they change – or you can take a narrow-minded perspective and only sell to them that which you already have to sell.
• Understanding the business that you’re really in helps you to see what kind of products and services your customer would be receptive too, or even crazy about, beyond your current product and service offerings.
• Think about the sort of offerings that could have your customers react to emotionally.
• Seeing your current and prospective customers as people who desire new products and services… the kind that others aren’t offering, means that you see your company as a never being just part of the herd.

So maybe the next time the words “my customer isn’t asking for it” cross your lips, regroup and think for a moment what that might say about you and your organization. And then think about what if the competitor down the street said, “Hmm. That’s an interesting product. Let’s see if we can make something new happen for our customers. They might just love it!”

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Rolf Gutknecht is vice president, director of account services for LA ads. To discuss your thoughts with Rolf on this blog or any marketing matters, email via this link, or visit www.LAadsMarketing.com.  You can also connect with Rolf on LinkedIn.

When you write a Facebook post, what are you thinking about at that moment?  Are you thinking, “I want my readers to know this!”?   Are you thinking, “We need to increase our call volume!”?  Or possibly, “We need more Facebook Likes!”?

Or are you thinking, “Why have my followers chosen to Like me?”  How about, “What are they interested in to which I can contribute?”  “What will they share with their friends?”

The first set of questions are just about you and your business.  The second set of questions puts the readers’ interests first.  That’s the way to win over their hearts and minds (and business), certainly far better than the first set.

We call this “Outside-In” thinking, looking at your business from the outside-in.  Unfortunately, too many marketers suffer from “Inside-Out” thinking, seeing things only from the inside, assuming that everybody is as excited about their business as they are.

The reasons you want to communicate with your prospects and customers are certainly going to be motivated by your business objectives. But what you say to them and how you say it has to come from what motivates them.  For all your marketing communications, be it posts, tweets, blasts, banners, commercials or exhibit booths, you have to use your audience’s self-interest as your starting point. Merely posting about your new business/manufacturing facilities or listing a series of feature-based bullet points is not going to be appealing to their self-interest.  (Would it be to yours if it came from, say, the local muffler store, especially if your car’s running smoothly?)

So what does your audience want to know? What excites and interests them?  What’s good enough for them to share or pass along or even simply pay attention to?  You need to ask that question with every marketing communication you generate.

This is one of the reasons we use a lot of humor or emotions in our own clients’ marketing, because good communication starts with human interest. Anything that makes a person laugh, smile, cry, wince or raise their eyebrows touches deeper human levels and transcends purely rational thinking.

Sponsoring contests, especially if they’re relevant to your message and brand – especially if the prize is big or unique – always has audience-appeal. Showing how your product or service solves your customers’ problems, eases their pain, saves them money or eliminates inconvenience, all speak to their self-interest.

Think of it this way, when you go fishing, what do you put on the hook: what you like or what the fish likes?  It’s the same thing in marketing.  Make sure the bait is what they like. You’ll like what happens next.

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Dan Katz is president, creative director of LA ads. To discuss your thoughts with Dan on this blog or any marketing matters, email via this link, or visit www.LAadsMarketing.com.  You can also connect with Dan on LinkedIn. See agency work via this link.

If you’ve ever watched a sporting event, you or someone else with you probably have said “they’re not trying to win…they’re just trying not to lose.”  For me, there’s almost nothing more frustrating than seeing this approach take place, especially since it doesn’t need to be that way to succeed. And so is the case with oh-so-many companies who say one thing (i.e. we’re here to win) but act entirely differently. If you’ve spent any time in business meetings, from small companies to Fortune 100 as I have, you’ve heard gems like: “We’re not quite ready to take that step yet,” or “I just don’t know,” (reeking of indecisiveness) or my favorite “Let’s not go there just yet.” In short, these are all about the safe bet and not having the courage to step out and be different.

Speaking from experience, these verbal roadblocks are generally erected by people who have no involvement in the sales or marketing of the company. People who haven’t actually spoken to someone at the street-level (branch, store, dealership, etc.) in forever, and so what they “know” comes from what others may have told them or what they unfoundedly believe without any support.  These folks aren’t in the business of finding and pursuing new growth opportunities. Instead they’re the “glass half empty types.”

What I don’t get is how CMO’s and other executives in the marketing department allow the idea of “playing it safe” to become part of how the company does business. Playing it safe means trying to figure out how to please all the people all of the time (and protect one’s own butt in the process). It’s what happened to companies we once knew as solid brands and money makers…Radio Shack, Borders, and others. They became complacent with disregard (maybe arrogance) to the changing marketplace. From office politics (i.e., give the boss what he wants) to running the same ad month after month after month.  Wearing the clothing of “play it safe” doesn’t lead to standing out in a crowd. Nope, it’s more like being part of the herd.  You’ve heard the old saying: “safe bets never bring in the big money.”  You see it in Las Vegas.  When the odds are low, there’s not much money to be made. When the odds are high…well, that’s when the payout is high.  In business, it’s pretty much the same. If you play it safe you’ll probably make some money; but it’s those who are willing to venture out where the naysayers can’t be found who are more likely to come out on top again and again.

Let’s be clear, I’m not at all advocating throwing smarts and due diligence out the window. We’ve seen dumb risky moves played out day after day, from reckless over-expansion in a turbulent marketplace to not taking cover in a tornado and finding that person a county over.   What we don’t see are news headlines that say, “Astonishingly risk-adverse solar panel company on verge of collapse.” Or, “Stunningly conservative business approach pushes technology company to the brink of failure.” Or “Manager retires after a run-of-the-mill career and regrets never having pushed the envelope to see what was possible.”  The dangers of playing it safe aren’t immediate, evident, and spectacular. They’re not headline makers. They develop slowly over time and are almost impossible to pinpoint. This makes them more dangerous than the prominent screw-ups that get written about because they’re like a nail in a tire that causes a slow leak and you don’t readily notice it as you go about your business on a daily basis. You only come to realize what’s going on when stuck and you’re not really sure how it happened. The dangers of playing it safe are hidden, silent killers.

I’m convinced that too many people put too much energy into playing it safe. There’s a fear that they might do something that everyone won’t like and as a result they’ll possibly lose customers (when instead they should be putting as more energy into getting more customers).  I get it…playing it safe, while dangerous in the long term, just feels better in the short term.  And so people naturally gravitate towards playing it safe. But I’m here to tell you that’s wrong because it leads to boring marketing and, last I checked, boring leads to ignoring.

The reason boring is something you company should avoid like the plague is because you don’t see the underlying harm it causes. You never see the customers who don’t show up. You have no idea of the business that you’re not getting because your marketing isn’t memorable or passed along person-to-person. It’s not fascinating or captivating. Now it’s easy to convince yourself or others throughout the organization that the problem is there’s too much competition, or that prospects are focusing on something else or that people have a short attention span. And while maybe some of that is true, it’s just easier to point the finger at others or other reasons to explain the lack of success you’re having.  So you see, playing it safe doesn’t keep you safe, and in fact, it’s the riskiest thing you can do.

I’ll leave you with a quote by the advertising legend, Bill Bernbach, who said: “The truth isn’t the truth until people believe you, and they can’t believe you if they don’t know what you’re saying, and they can’t know what you’re saying if they don’t listen to you, and they won’t listen to you if you’re not interesting, and you won’t be interesting until you say and do things imaginatively, originally, freshly.” To bring this home a bit more, insert that name of your company each time you come to the word “you.”

C’mon, life’s just too short to settle for “blah.” .

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Rolf Gutknecht is vice president, director of account services for LA ads. To discuss your thoughts with Rolf on this blog or any marketing matters, email via this link, or visit www.LAadsMarketing.com.  You can also connect with Rolf on LinkedIn.