We are bombarded with advertisements wherever we go - billboards, TV commercials, online pop-ups, radio ads, the list goes on. Though we are exposed to more than 5,000 ads a day (a day!), only one or two resonate with us. They are the ones that make us cry or inspire us to make a change in our life.

You can create this type of strategy for your business. You can be unique, emotionally appealing, and you can inspire change in someone. How do you begin to develop good advertising creative? Leave it to us - We’ve developed an ebook on how to create such killer advertising creative that you’ll become the one ad a day that resonates with people. Read on for a peek at step 3 of the 4-step process to developing advertising creative ideas and download the full ebook for more details and insights.

Creative Brainstorming

It’s expected in our society that models are slim, beautiful, and elegant. We’ve come to expect that in every ad we see, and for the most part, it works as advertising. However, sometimes we just want to know how real, everyday people feel about products. We have a much better chance of connecting with products this way. Marketers have been forever scared to unleash this sort of campaign until Dove stepped in and introduced the “Real Beauty Campaign.” People went wild, and Dove sales skyrocketed.

We use this as an example because though one person may have initially thought of the idea of ‘Real Beauty,’ the campaign wasn’t developed in one day. It took a team of people to sit, brainstorm, and further develop their idea into the advertisements we see today. It’s an idea that was so well-thought out that Dove has been using it in as their main advertising for years, and other businesses, such as Aerie, have followed. It’s an idea that resonated with people.

Getting your team together for a creative brainstorm session is one of the best things you can do to develop killer advertising creative. As said by Tom&Co, “Brainstorming is not the uncontrolled chaos that it has been made out to be. When marketing professionals brainstorm, we look for ideas that are not part of the beaten path. It has become increasingly difficult in this day and age to come up with a unique marketing plan that will gather plenty of attention.” When you get together with your group to brainstorm, you are taking the time to examine all areas of your business to not only find the most compelling message, but to find the best way to share that message.

Preparing for Your Brainstorming Session

It’s best to come prepared with a plan to your brainstorm session. Have the questions you want to be answered ready, so you know what results to expect. Here’s an idea of the questions you should have prepared:

• What are you looking to achieve?
• Previous to your brainstorming sessions, you’ll have established parameters and goals, but this is where you dig deeper and identify your main goal.
• What are you trying to grow?
• A particular section of your business, or a particular audience segment?
• What is the primary call-to-action (CTA)?
• Based on what you want to achieve and what you want to grow, a primary call-to-action is chosen.

Besides your questions, develop a process previous to your brainstorm session, so your team can easily stay on track.

First, dig deep into brainstorming. There should be no stopping points or judging of others’ ideas - everyone should feel comfortable to throw any idea, no matter how crazy, into the mix.  In fact, you could even try spending the first few minutes of the session coming up with a bunch of bad ideas. Imagine if someone felt too judged to share their idea of using everyday models for Dove. The Real Beauty campaign would never have been born, and we can only guess that Dove would be in a very different place. Designate a person to keep a long list of ideas, so your team can later take everything into account. The goal here is about free flow and looking at all ideas and scenarios from numerous angles.

After every possible idea is on the table, then and only then, should you start narrowing down. Take those chosen ideas and develop them further for the best results.

Keep Those Creative Juices Flowing

If you feel your group is starting to hit a creative block, there’s a few tips and tricks you can try. One such exercise is called “word storm” - You first write down one word and then come up with a myriad of other words that come to mind from the first word. Consider all aspects of that word - What comes to mind first? What words make up the definition of that word? You’ll be amazed at how quickly creative juices start flowing and the ideas you or your team come up with. Here’s a helpful tool for creating an online word storm which you can save, export, and email to staff after your session.

To effectively brainstorm, remember to drop your ego, throw in all ideas no matter how crazy you think they are, listen to others, and consider everything evenly. Brainstorming is a very important step in the process of creating a killer advertising creative and one that should be exercised to the fullest. Remember to consider all angles and don’t narrow down until you’ve exhausted everything you have.

Ready to learn the next steps to develop your killer advertising creative ideas? Download our ebook “4 Steps to Developing Killer Advertising Creative Ideas” for a full run-down of exactly what you need to do to develop your best advertising strategy yet.