There is no question that a great creative idea can break through and create attention, engagement and strategic advantage in today's crowded marketplace of ideas. But to come up with creative business solutions, one must first understand the basics of creativity. How do you develop and differentiate creative ideas? What does creativity do for business? How can a team become more creative?
- The “Voices” section of this issue of Perspectives features two distinguished contributors from outside our agency: John Greenleaf, head of marketing for Ketchum client DoubleTree by Hilton, and Scott Berkun, a noted innovation expert and author of the best-selling book Myths of Innovation.
- In “Viewpoints,” Ketchum counselors share insights on how creativity contributes to reputation, brand and media results, and how companies and marketing teams can stimulate creative ideas and cultures. Our “Roundtable” features an interview with Second City’s Lisa Linke, who leads workshops on how the concepts of improv comedy can be applied in business settings. We also asked two members of Fast Company’s 2011 “Most Creative People in Business” list, Mideast activist Esra'a Al Shafei and social venture consultant Joy Anderson, to share their experiences in creative communications.
- In a section titled "Reflections from Cannes," Ketchum colleagues who participated in the Cannes Festival of Creativity as judges in the PR Lions Awards and the Young Marketers Competition reflect on their time spent there and the importance of the creative element in the work.
- And in a special section called “A Creative Idea Is . . . ,” eight participants in Camp Ketchum, the agency’s distinctive immersion experience for employees, share their definitions of a creative idea. Browse the section to see whether any of your account team members weighed in.
We hope this issue makes you think about the importance of creativity and helps to inspire you to infuse creativity into your business challenges. Our focus on creativity is in part what has helped Ketchum win more PR awards than any other agency. This recognition from our industry peers reinforces my belief that continuously generating creative ideas is one of the most important services we can provide to our clients.
If you have a question that isn’t addressed here, or if you would like to share a comment, e-mail me at ray.kotcher@ketchum.com. As always, I look forward to hearing from you.