There are a lot of agencies, social media gurus and content developers pushing the notion that lots of small ideas are more powerful than a single big, creative idea. Judging from the work, they also believe that lots of boring, expected information (content) is just as effective. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Lots of small ideas delivered to lots of small audiences via lots of small tactics and technologies add up to small returns – if any. We politely call this ginormous waste of time, money and effort multimediocrity.
“So if big, creative ideas are more effective, why don’t we see more of them?”
Truth is, people hate advertising. When was the last time you enjoyed a pop up ad or paused your DVR to watch a commercial? The reason is all advertising is an interruption. And great advertisers know – have always known – that the best way to get your ads to work is to make damn sure the interruption is worth it. To accomplish this we set the creative bar unrealistically high. Our ads must be more interesting, entertaining or informative than the medium in which they appear. If it’s an online ad, it must be the most compelling thing on the page. If it’s print, it needs to be the best thing in the publication. If it’s a billboard, we want it slowing traffic down. Impossible to ignore, hard to forget and delightfully surprising are standards our communications must live up to so our clients can outsmart, outdo and outlast their competitors.
Research has unequivocally proven, people pay more attention to creative ads, recall them better and talk about them more. Clients who utilize them spend less on media and sell more. According to research conducted by Peter Field for the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA), creative ads are 11 times more efficient at selling stuff than other ads. What’s more, consumers have more positive feelings about companies and their products that utilize more creative advertising. *
So if big, creative ideas are more effective, why don’t we see more of them?
Most agencies simply don’t have the creative, strategic and production talent, experience or resources to develop big ideas – especially in the digital space. In fact, the most effective marketing they’ve done is to convince so many their glaring weakness is actually a strength. Amazing.
Here’s the truth. One big creative idea delivered to a big audience through a big integrated campaign of tactics and technologies produces a big return.
Doubt it? Name one successful product, service or company built from a bunch of small ideas. To see how your creative work stacks up against our Big Idea Checklist, click here.
To schedule a free marketing consultation, click here.
*The Case For Creativity, James Hurman