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How do you present an established product in a totally new way? And cross-promote another line from a different corporate division?
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Annual Reports: In print and online. How do you capture attention, hold interest, communicate vision, build confidence? Tips for success.
Stuck? Fresh out of ideas and facing a deadline? Feeling pressure to perform?
Perhaps you're charged with updating an aging Web site. Or you're launching a product and don't know how to name it, package it, differentiate it. Or you need a compelling campaign theme to carry you through next year. Or your sales force is demanding better, more relevant tools — now.
Whatever your challenge, these seven strategies can help you generate ideas quickly and painlessly.
1. Zero in
What, exactly, is the task before you? State it clearly — in one sentence, if possible. This may take time, but it's worth it. "A problem well stated is half solved," said American pragmatist John Dewey.
2. Take off
Start thinking and don't hold back. Write down or sketch everything that comes to mind. Don't get hung up on the right answer. There isn't one. Not comfortable free-associating? Then force yourself to think in patterns: What's similar? What's opposite? What's more specific? What's more general? What does it look like, sound like, smell like? Keep going.
3. Defer judgment
Don't police yourself. And don't let other people police you, either. We've all met them: those with strong opinions and no ideas. Ask them, politely, to leave. They can help later (perhaps), when it's time to refine your top choices.
4. Mix it up
Those ideas of yours? Scramble them. Those images you gathered? Rearrange them. What you created in sequence should now be taken apart. Look for new patterns. Force random combinations. Value novelty. You'll get a fresh perspective. And even more ideas.
5. Take a break
Ignore whatever needs solving. Immerse yourself in something entirely different. Read a book or browse a magazine completely unrelated to your task. Let time pass. If you've done the work above, your subconscious will pick up where you left off. Just make sure you have a notepad handy.
6. Be decisive
Select your three best ideas. You simply can't use everything you created. (It's okay to grieve.) Then circle back to the problem statement you identified in step one. Do the ideas still work?
7. Refine and persuade
Polish your top three ideas, but don't overwork them. Know when it's time to stop. Write rationales that prove their merit. Convince yourself — and others. Then take a deep breath, choose one, and commit.
