The Creativ Brief: Secrets Behind Creative Excellence
Image by Cole de Brito
Businesses in the top quartile of creativity outperform their competitors by at least 64%, according to a study by McKinsey.
Yet, a bank page is daunting.
In my latest op-ed for THE DRUM magazine, I spoke to several creative industry leaders to distill the secrets of creative excellence.
You can read it here: Think inside the box: the secret guide to creative excellence in marketing.
For the busy professional here are the SparkNotes:
Managing creative talent: provide them autonomy plus support
Getting the best work: think inside the box; i.e. creative guidelines, clarity and specific feedback
Finding the best talent: create a space where creative people want to work. See above.
Creativity in business requires clarity of direction, positive feedback, ownership, and the space to make something new.
The reward? It pays to have creatives working on your business.
3 Stories Dominating Media and Tech Headlines
Snapchat+ draws 4 million paid subscribers in first year Snapchat announced that it has reached over 4 million paid subscribers in its first year offering a premium paid option, Snapchat+. At an attractive $3.99 price point, Snapchat+ offers users unique tools and functions for deeper engagement.
Why it Matters: Faced with investor pressure, social media companies have pivoted to paid social media features and verified accounts for extra sources of revenue. But these new ‘rundles’ have potential to add value to the user experience and prove out new digital business models for the future.
Billionaire brawl: all the latest on the cage match between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg. Following a brief online spat, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter’s Elon Musk have seemingly agreed to spar in a MMA cage match. UFC’s Dana White is currently helping hammer out the details, with proceeds from the proposed match going to charity.
Why it matters: Our fixation on billionaire technocrats has hit a crescendo. Both Musk and Zuckerberg have built massive giant social megaphones and the media responds to controversy. While it's not the Bill Gates vs. Steve Jobs match the 1990s would have salivated over, it could be pretty entertaining.
10 million sign up for Meta's Twitter rival app, Threads. Instagram launched its Twitter competitor, Threads, this week. While closely connected to Instagram, Threads is a standalone app that allows users to follow their favorite creators and friends and engage in tweet-like conversation.
Why it Matters: While many Meta side projects like tbh, Super, and Campus haven’t taken off, Threads may gain traction as Twitter has been riddled with scandal and hiccups since the Elon Musk takeover. Threads also has the added benefit of built-in distribution via Meta’s network of social apps.
Stat of the Week - AI Uses for Marketers
For creatives, AI can help spark ideas, save time, and serve as a form of collaboration.
According to data from eMarketer, 76% of marketing professionals that utilize AI use it for both basic content creation and copywriting. 71% use the technology to help inspire and jumpstart the creative process.
Beyond creativity, 63% say they use AI to analyze market data to better understand customers, clients, and current market trends as a whole.
We’ve dabbled in 1, 2 and 5 here at Creativ Strategies.
One Fun Thing - Video Game Recruiting
A trucking company, Schneider National, found a creative way to try and recruit new drivers: a video game. The company ran ads on billboards inside of American Truck Simulator, in hopes that some players may want to drive for them in real life.