Chapter 8:

Creative Strategy: Planning and Development

Nazia Choudhury
Lecturer
School of Business
ULAB
Advertising Creativity

Creative Determining what the advertising

Strategy message will say or communicate

Creative Determining how the message

Tactics strategy will be executed

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Determinants of Creativity
• Advertising creativity: ability to generate fresh, unique, and
appropriate or relevant ideas that can be used as solutions to
communication problem
• Two central determinants of creativity: divergence and
relevance
• Divergence: extent to which an ad contains elements that are
novel, different, or unusual
1. Originality: rare, surprising, or move away from the obvious
and commonplace
2. Flexibility: different ideas or switch from one perspective to
another
3. Elaboration: unexpected details or finish and extend basic ideas
4. Synthesis: combine, connect, or blend normally unrelated
objects or ideas
5. Artistic value: artistic verbal impressions or attractive shapes 3
and color
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 Determinants of Creativity
• Relevance: reflects the degree to
which the various elements of the ad
are meaningful, useful, or valuable
to the consumer
1. Ad-to-consumer: relevance refers to
situations where the ad contains
execution elements that are
meaningful to consumers
2. Brand-to-consumers: relevance refers
to situations where the advertised
brand of a product or service is of
personal interest to consumers

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Planning Creative Strategy

The creative challenge

Taking creative risks

The perpetual debate: creative

versus hard-sell advertising

Creative personnel

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 Young’s Creative Process Model
Get raw material and data, and immerse
Immersion
yourself in the problem

Take the information, work it over, wrestle

Digestion
with it in your mind

Turn the information over to the

Incubation
subconscious to do the work

The birth of an idea

Illumination
“Eureka! I have it!” phenomenon

Study the idea, evaluate it, reshape it for 8

Verification
practical usefulness
Wallas’s Creative Process Model

1. Preparation 2. Incubation
Gathering Develop Ideas
Information

The
Creative
Process
4. Verification 3. Illumination
Refining Seeing the
the Idea Solution

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Input: Preparation, Incubation, Illumination
• Background Research
• Reading: books, trade publications, general interest articles, research
reports
• Asking for product info: designers, engineers, salespeople and
consumers
• Listening to what people are talking about: visit to stores, malls,
restaurants
• Using the product or service
• Working in and learning about the client’s business to understand better
the people you’re trying to reach
• Product/Service Specific Research
• Problem detection
• Qualitative Research
• Focus groups
• Ethnographic research 10
Input: Verification and Revision
Evaluate ideas

Reject the inappropriate

Objective
Refine the remaining

Give ideas final expression

Directed focus groups

Message communication studies

Techniques
Portfolio tests
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Viewer reaction profiles
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Creative Strategy Development
• Advertising campaign
• Creative brief
• Developing the major selling idea
• Unique selling proposition (USP)
• Creating brand image
• Finding the inherent drama
• Positioning

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Advertising Campaign

Integrated

Interrelated Coordinated
Marketing Communication
Activities

Centered on a Theme or
In Different Media Idea Over a Time Period
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Some of the Best Advertising Slogans
• McDonalds – “I’m Lovin’ It”
• KFC – “Finger Lickin’ Good”
• Kit Kat – “Have a Break, Have a Kit Kat”
• L’Oreal – “Because You’re Worth It”
• Nike – “Just Do It”
• HSBC – “The World’s Local Bank”
• MasterCard – “For Everything Else, There’s MasterCard”
• Jaguar – “Grace, Space, Pace”
• Panasonic – “Ideas for Life”
• Google – “Don’t be Evil”
• Apple – “Think Different” 15
Creative Brief Outline
• Basic problem or issue the advertising must address
• Advertising and communications objectives
• Target audience
• Major selling idea or key benefits to communicate
• Creative strategy statement (campaign theme, appeal,
and execution technique to be used)
• Supporting information and requirements

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Model of Marketing Information Flow
(from marketing manager to creative staff)
Knowledge
of vital
marketing
information

Client/agency Internal agency

communication communication

Client gatekeepers Agency gatekeeper Creative staff

(Brand manager) (Account manager)

Internal client
decision Agency gatekeeper Art is created
to share decision on sharing
information client info with staff 17
with agency
Developing the Major Selling Idea

1. Using a Unique 2. Create the Brand Image

Selling Proposition

Four Best-Known
Approaches for Seeking
the Major Idea

3. Positioning 4. Finding the Inherent Drama 18

The Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

Unique Selling Proposition

Strong &
Benefit Unique
Powerful

Buy this Must be unique to Promise must be

product/service this brand or claim; strong enough or
and you get this something rivals attractive enough
benefit or reward can't or don't offer to move people

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Inherent Drama

Inherent Drama Messages generally presented in a warm,

emotional way

Focus on consumer benefits with an

emphasis on the dramatic element in
expressing them

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Positioning

Establish a particular place in the customer’s

Positioning mind for the product or service

Based on product attributes/ benefits,

price/quality, use or application, type of
user, problem solved

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The Only Rule in Advertising

There are no rules

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