1. INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS
Lecture week 6
Creativity and Creative Strategy

2. Objectives Discuss the nature of creativity
Outline the mechanisms by which the process can be managed as part of the IMC
Explain approaches to the development of creative strategy
Examine the relationship between branding, positioning and creative strategy

3. ROLE OF CREATIVE STRATEGY IN IMC
Create and support brand positioning
Demonstrate consumer problem-solution
Influence CDP and brand choice
Remind users of reasons for purchase
Reduce dissonance

4. ROLE OF CREATIVE STRATEGY IN IMC
Brand awareness
Provide meaningful information
Change perceptions and/or attitudes
Create conviction
Provide reasons to change behaviour
Reinforcement and reminder

5. THE ROLE OF CREATIVITY Applies to all aspects of IMC strategy:
message elements
media strategy
E.g. Boddingtons “cream of Manchester” creatives and magazine approach to national launch
Applies equally to all marcomms mix
Can also be used when determining target audiences

6. STAKEHOLDERS Creativity means different things to different people …….
Consumers – entertainment & information
Brand managers – clear positioning
Agencies – awards
Account teams – creative solutions

7. DEFINITIONS Imaginative and artistic Developing new and creative ideas
Relevant to target audience
But …. must be objectives driven, creativity without purpose is not effective communication
“The ability to generate fresh, unique and appropriate ideas that can be used as solutions to communications problems” Belch and Belch 2004

8. MORE DEFINITIONS The ‘big idea’ that can underpin a whole campaign
Attention-getting and catalytically relevant representation of the brand position
Amenable to multiple executions
Koslow et al (2003) creativity is:
Originality, novelty or newness
Problem solving
Situationally appropriate

9. MANAGING CREATIVITY
True creative processes involve ‘no rules’ but for IMC the process needs to be harnessed in order to justify and be accountable for the chosen approach
Picton and Broderick suggest:
Audit the competition and do something different
Forget the logical proposition and find the brand personality
Define the target so that you like and respect them

10. PRODUCTION LINE CREATIVITY?
Immersion
Digestion
Incubation
Illumination
Verification

11. CHECKLIST (1) FOR HARNESSING CREATIVITY
Does this advertising position the product simply and with unmistakeable clarity?
Does this advertising bolt the brand to a clinching benefit?
Does this advertising contain a power idea?
Does this advertising design in Brand Personality?
Is this advertising unexpected?
Is this advertising single-minded?
Does this advertising reward the prospect?
Is this advertising visually arresting?
Does this advertising exhibit painstaking craftsmanship?

12. CHECKLIST (2) FOR HARNESSING CREATIVITY
Every ad should embody a clear, straightforward proposition
Say what you have to say in as few words as possible
Use humour with caution
Give the target audience credit for some intelligence
Be original

13. CREATIVITY, BRANDING AND POSITIONING
Applied creativity means you connect with audiences through a clear position and differentiated and understood brand
Brand relationships with targets have changed from advertising-led strategies to communication-led ones

14. USING CREATIVE APPROACHES TO DEVELOPING BRAND RELATIONSHIPS
USP unique selling proposition
focus on brand properties
“I use”
ESP emotional selling proposition
focus on shared values
“I relate”
PBR participatory brand relationship
focus on active involvement
“I love”

15. PARTICIPATORY BRAND RELATIONSHIPS
Creative strategies need to:
Stay in touch
Be surprising
Be reassuring
Stimulate
Involve
Add value

16. PBR IN PRACTICE TBWA ‘Disruption’ philosophy
communicate by disrupting the conventional
A way to reach consumers bombarded by marcomms messages
Saatchi & Saatchi ‘Lovemarks’
“Lovemarks transcend brands. They deliver beyond your expectations of great performance. They reach your heart as well as your mind.”

18. Lovemarks
Check out the website and blogs!

22. POSITIONING – key approaches
Positioning by attribute, product characteristic or consumer benefit
Positioning by price/quality
Positioning by use/application
Positioning by product user
Positioning with respect to product category
Positioning against a competitor
Cultural positioning
Re-positioning

23. DEVELOPMENT OF CREATIVE STRATEGY
Identify the target audience
Describe the basic problem, issue or opportunity the communication needs to address
The major selling idea/key benefit/big idea
Brand position
Build/maintain a relationship between the brand and the target audience

24. KEY TYPES OF CREATIVE STRATEGY
Generic: claims could be made by many brands; no real effort at differentiation; common in monopolistic markets
Pre-emptive: uses a common attribute/benefit but gets there first
USP: uses a distinctive differentiation based on product attributes
Brand Image: differentiation often based on psychological differences/emotions

25. KEY TYPES OF CREATIVE STRATEGY
Positioning: establishing a place in the consumer’s mind relative to the competition
Resonance: uses significant/important situations, lifestyles, emotions that the target audience can identify with
Affective/emotional: PBR type approaches, using emotions or ambiguity to break through clutter and indifference

26. Any Questions?