Thursday 2 December 2010
What is creativity? 5 things to think about
So i'm sure you might be wondering what is creativity? well obviously its not an easy definition. here's 5 questions/statements to get your juices flowing and get you to think about what you think this elusive devil is?
1. According to William Plomer “creativity is the power to connect the seemingly unconnected”.
2. Oscar Wilde observed that “The imagination merely imitates. It is the critical spirit that creates.”
3. If creativity is the ability to ‘think outside the box’ what constitutes ‘the box’?
4. The postmodern affinity with nostalgia (e.g. the revival of the Fiat 500, the resurrections of the Honey Monster, Tetley Tea Folk and the Milky Bar Kid and the retro rebranding of Virgin Airways) has meant that creativity has been increasingly superseded by reference to the past. Evaluate the diminishing role of creativity in the context of postmodern nostalgia.
5. “Notwithstanding all the rhetoric and attention in corporate corridors and boardrooms all over the world, lack of innovation remains a key problem in business today. One reason for this is the continued failure to systematically manage for creativity.” (C.D. Shepherd, 2010)
How and why do organisations fail to structure for creativity.
This stuff is adapted from questions for final year university essays. Think about it, there's some interesting stuff in there.
Wednesday 1 December 2010
Creative Must Haves...
OK, I have put together a brief list of my top creative books that are helpful and interesting...
Easily the the best book on copywriting. Simple. To the point. Used by copywriters all over the world.
Step by step guide to developing the strategy behind creative campaigns. One of the most important reads for would be creatives.
The best book on life within the industry. Luke Sullivan is a comic genius. Entertaining whilst still being extremely informative.
Let me know of any others that you have read that would be good to put up on the list, or just comment on some of the ones I have mentioned if you have anything to say about them!
Easily the the best book on copywriting. Simple. To the point. Used by copywriters all over the world.
Step by step guide to developing the strategy behind creative campaigns. One of the most important reads for would be creatives.
The best book on life within the industry. Luke Sullivan is a comic genius. Entertaining whilst still being extremely informative.
Let me know of any others that you have read that would be good to put up on the list, or just comment on some of the ones I have mentioned if you have anything to say about them!
Advertising Account Planning: A Practical Guide - Review
This
is a great advertising book for Account Planning. It's short and
concise chapters helped me a lot for my exam and coursework (yes i
actually bought this!). Highlighting the hell out of this book aided my
understanding of the area.
It shows how to do an account plan for a campaign with step by step analysis in the advertising agency style. Which i used to get a surprise 1st in my account planning exam! (ego rub)
Whilst i can't guarantee this will make you a genius planner, Account Planning does teach you how to pick out the key propositions of a brand and target audiences for campaigns and how to interrogate the brand. It's truly a useful book for anyone interested in advertising courses and how to plan advertising and marketing.
Amazon is where i tend to buy all my books for Uni from, check it out.
It shows how to do an account plan for a campaign with step by step analysis in the advertising agency style. Which i used to get a surprise 1st in my account planning exam! (ego rub)
Whilst i can't guarantee this will make you a genius planner, Account Planning does teach you how to pick out the key propositions of a brand and target audiences for campaigns and how to interrogate the brand. It's truly a useful book for anyone interested in advertising courses and how to plan advertising and marketing.
Amazon is where i tend to buy all my books for Uni from, check it out.
Monday 29 November 2010
Excellent Book - Excellence in Advertising
For a book that covers various aspects of the the advertising industry, Excellence in Advertising is a great book to get hold of. It helped us in our first year to have an understanding of the basics of each area. The book covers the Creative Brief format of BBH, which is helpful to those looking into Account Planning. It is particularly interesting as it is written by people who have been directly involved in the industry such as John Bartle (used to work at BBH). Every chapter has a wealth of information, knowledge and insights. It is a great study book for anyone who is looking to go into the advertising industry and it is just as good for those who are already there.
Sunday 28 November 2010
The Creative Brief
What is the Creative Brief?
As
previously mentioned, the creative brief is part of the Account Planners process in aiding the Creatives.
The creative brief is there to give direction to the Creative team as they search for a creative concept (Wells, 2006). It is there to give clarity to all involved in the campaign. Typically it would include; the problem to be solved, the aims and objectives, the target audience, the positioning strategy, the type of creative strategy, tone of voice and execution considerations. Different agencies tend to have a different format that they follow. Some may be outlined by a number of questions such as 'What is the key benefit?' and other formats may include any additional points that will help the creative, such as the role of the communications as a whole.
Last year at Uni, we were given a live brief by Fallon and Radio One to produce an Account Planning document. The final stage of the document was to produce a Creative Brief. I found the whole process exciting and it highlighted the importance of insights in developing a campaign. The insight must be a reflection of the consumer and it can either be emotionally driven or for a functional benefit. For anyone wanting to get into advertising, have a look at Account Planning books and practise developing a creative brief. Even if you do not want to go into this area, Account Planners will often communicate with account management, creatives, the client etc. So knowledge of what they do will be useful.
I will soon upload key Account Planning books, so keep an eye out!!
The creative brief is there to give direction to the Creative team as they search for a creative concept (Wells, 2006). It is there to give clarity to all involved in the campaign. Typically it would include; the problem to be solved, the aims and objectives, the target audience, the positioning strategy, the type of creative strategy, tone of voice and execution considerations. Different agencies tend to have a different format that they follow. Some may be outlined by a number of questions such as 'What is the key benefit?' and other formats may include any additional points that will help the creative, such as the role of the communications as a whole.
Last year at Uni, we were given a live brief by Fallon and Radio One to produce an Account Planning document. The final stage of the document was to produce a Creative Brief. I found the whole process exciting and it highlighted the importance of insights in developing a campaign. The insight must be a reflection of the consumer and it can either be emotionally driven or for a functional benefit. For anyone wanting to get into advertising, have a look at Account Planning books and practise developing a creative brief. Even if you do not want to go into this area, Account Planners will often communicate with account management, creatives, the client etc. So knowledge of what they do will be useful.
I will soon upload key Account Planning books, so keep an eye out!!
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