Creativity is not just for ‘creatives’.

In the halcyon days of advertising, there was enigma around ‘the creatives’. Some leveraged this, believing their ideas to be pure and beyond question.

This fed into the skewed perception of what it means to be creative, or what in fact constitutes creativity. It also (wrongly) supported the paradigm that only those working under the banner of the ‘creative department’ could initiate ideas that were worthy.

Of course, generating ideas is the very mandate of the creative, and there is no doubting the skill required to consistently approach work through a creative lens, innovating on how to engage, create desire and connection, and stimulate a deep incentive to purchase.
In advertising and marketing, nurturing the kernel of an idea into something innovative is not about artistry in isolation, it’s held to a commercial responsibility which requires a kind of alchemy - aligning the objectives of the ‘go to market’ strategy, tapping the emotional mind of a discriminating consumer and discerning how to amplify product benefits in ways that drive results.

In short, storytelling that feels natural, relevant and persuasive, takes craft.

Outside of established job parameters however, there is a whole company of people who work each day with the product, be it a physical product, a service or a component of software. They’re thinking about the consumer need, identifying pain points and any friction. And the best and most effective idea is often rooted in a straight-forward insight about what role the product plays in the lives of the consumer, true in both B2B and retail.

Creativity as innovation in execution and methodology
I have always believed that ideas can originate from anywhere and any part of the business, and this inclusivity does many wonderful things for companies and brands alike. It engages teams beyond the bounds of business units and fosters collaboration.

Ideas are not limited to creative execution, they may spur a new way of working, methodology that encourages cross-pollination to capture the holistic customer experience resulting in a more fluid, productive and effective process.

While it may be the creative professional that takes the raw idea and massages it into being ready to engage customers, involving a broader team and making the development more transparent can protect the idea by creating space for it to be explored. This generates a kind of unified ownership, where everyone is invested in the success of the company, stimulating opportunity and advocacy.

Responsibility and skillset
There is a watch out, an importance balance when it comes to responsibility and respect for expertise. Not everyone’s opinion in creativity is equal, and this is for good reason. While often labelled ‘subjective’, creative execution does follow rules and knowing which ones are vital, when they can be flexed and which ones can be broken is part of the expertise of a creative professional.

Knowing when to share, what to share and what to leave open to collaboration ensures that the right decisions are made by the right skill set. And establishing these parameters early, avoids discord that can potentially derail strong work.

B2B are people too
In B2B environments, an often-overlooked source of creativity is mining for the underlying emotional driver. Those close to potential customers understand the underlying ‘emotional’ incentive beyond the functional aspects of inefficient workflow or inaccurate data.

In retail, a purchase may be influenced by what image a consumer wants to project, but this is also true of the B2B purchaser. Decisions influenced in part by the more intangible drivers such as a desire to create legacy, elevate professional status or even fear of career impact. This last one influences 74% of B2B purchase decisions making trust and credibility paramount.
In fact, a Google study of 3,000 buyers across 36 brands revealed that upwards of 50% of B2B purchasing decisions are made based on emotion. By comparison, retail recorded between 10% and 40%.

The finding suggests B2B buyers are actually more emotionally connected to brands than their retail counterparts, and not less as generally assumed.

The human-centred or ‘emotional’ approach was once the exclusive domain of the retail environment, closing ranks around ownership of the consumer leaving B2B out in the wasteland of dry, rational communication. Thankfully this theory has been debunked, supporting B2B marketing to expand, creating opportunities for brands to evolve by injecting personality into their expression.

A B2B purchase may not be as instant as a retail purchase, in fact, for the majority the purchase cycle can run anywhere from 6 months to 2 years and even beyond, continuing to tell the ‘product story’ in ways beyond the technical specs keeps it front of mind and builds momentum.

Humans feel before they think

Creativity has broadly been seen as peripheral to the main purpose of communicating product benefits in a B2B landscape. A bias towards tactical sales activity has formed a barrier to investment in brand creative potential.

It’s worth remembering that there is significant research that shows brand activity has more impact in building salience over the long term, more effective at embedding brands in the minds of buyers than any sales activity can hope to generate on its own.

Final word: Creativity has real potential to boost engagement by tapping the heart of consumers as people, recognising the importance of relationships, relevance, trust and timing. Collaboration and communication between teams strengthens the information and insights creativity can leverage.

The true creative skill is balancing this attention and connecting it with compelling reasons for customers to buy.

 Written by Tania De Masi