Being creative is something people have to do in their daily work, from web developers to digital marketing specialists and especially graphic designers, which is why we’re sharing our eight ways to boost your creativity.
Of course, the reason we need to share this information is that being creative can be difficult, especially when you have to be creative. New ideas, creative arguments, the varied use of words, colors or drawings don’t always pop up when you need them, unfortunately. Sometimes, you’re simply stuck and have to find ways out of it so you can finish your task.
So let’s look at the different ways to shake up your brain so it lets ideas flow.
1- Change your space
A key aspect of marketing is tied to understanding your audience and understanding yourself. Great content is tailored to the audience, which is simply impossible to achieve if there isn’t a thorough understanding of that audience.
It’s more than just demographics. Different audiences will have various needs, questions and problems to solve. How can your content do this effectively if you don’t know all the pain points?
2- Use the “Why” method
This sounds a bit childish, but it’s effective. Start asking yourself “why” at each step of the process and see what kinds of answers begin to appear. Why are you doing this? Why do they need it this way? Why focus on this element or that other element? Why, why, why!
3- Try the “What if” method
What if we looked at this from the users’ point of view? What if we rearranged the words of the slogan? What if we took this drawing and cut it into 4 pieces and mixed them up on the page? What if we looked at it as a reflection in a mirror or upside down? There are many ways to incorporate the “What if” method into any task you have to spark ideas.
4- Go for a walk
Walking outside with fresh air and sunshine is a great way to stimulate your brain. To start with, many offices suffer from a lack of fresh oxygen as the day goes on, recycling more carbon dioxide into the air instead. Our brains need fresh oxygen to function at their best. Sunlight is also important for our mood. Combining the two while walking to boost blood circulation may be exactly what you need to shake off the problem and let your subconscious work while you walk.
5- Try different mediums
If you can’t manage to write a slogan, try instead to draw an image to cover it, and vice versa. Switching mediums can involve different parts of the creative brain.
6- The six thinking hats method
This process, created by Edward De Bono, focuses on the ideas of wearing six hats of different colors while you work through a process. It starts by putting on your white hat and stating the basic facts. Then, you move to the red hat and state the emotions. The third is the black hat where you state the negatives, though you shouldn’t go too far. The yellow hat follows, where you state the positives. Then, you move to the green hat, which is ideas and can include new alternatives. Finally, you conclude with the blue hat by summarizing what was learned.
7- Try a mind map
This is a diagram used to visually organize information. People sometimes call this technique the whiteboard, when you use a whiteboard to work with a single concept in the center and map outward with ideas, words and images related to the main concept. There are even apps you can use such as Popplet, iMindMap Mobile Pro or Coggle. There are also desktop apps such as Mindjet or XMind.
8- Avoid assumptions
There are a few different techniques, one called Osborn’s checklist and another the SCAMPER technique, which are used for concept development. What you do is create a list of questions about what you’re doing to help trigger other thoughts and ideas. The general triggers are: adapt, combine, magnify, minify, modify, rearrange, reverse, swap or substitute. Then, you simply ask questions such as: can we modify this for a new purpose? Can we change the shape, sound or color of what we have? Can we reverse the roles? These processes are used to move beyond the general assumptions we all get locked into from time to time given our own personal experiences.
Using these 8 ways to stimulate your creative process will certainly help you the next time your brain locks up when you really need ideas to flow and go.
Would you like to entrust the creation of your website and your digital marketing strategy to an agency full of creativity? Don’t hesitate to contact us, we’ll be happy to help.