Hope Writes

[Guest Post] Creative Marketing: Your Marketing Idea Box

Posted by Hope

Today’s post is from Cathy Stucker, better known as The Idea Lady. Cathy really does have some terrific ideas, and this is just one of them. As writers, we know the importance of keeping a stash of ideas. This article will give you yet another method of collecting ideas that can be used to draw inspiration from later. Enjoy!

By Cathy Stucker

Do you ever find yourself looking for a great promotional idea? Or staring at a blank computer screen, trying to come up with just the right words for marketing copy? Do what savvy marketers do: Consult your idea box.

If you don’t have an idea box, start one today. The next time you see an ad that really seems to work, or you read copy that makes you sit up and take notice, put a copy in your idea box. The things you save don’t have to be related to your industry or for products or services that are similar to yours. They should simply be examples of great marketing.

Then, use your idea box as brain food. The next time you are stuck, pull out the idea box and review the items you have there. Your idea box may include books, sales letters, clever advertising specialties, print outs of Web sites or emails, and other materials.

The point is not to copy the items in your idea box, it is to use them as inspiration. See how they are constructed, what buttons they press, and how they present benefits, and learn from them. Use bits and pieces of ideas from several to create something that is uniquely yours.

Don’t copy the words, and don’t duplicate what someone else has done, but do learn from what has worked for others.

Copyright Cathy Stucker. As the IdeaLady, Cathy Stucker helps authors, entrepreneurs and professionals attract customers and make themselves famous. To learn more about marketing and publicity and get free articles and tips, visit Cathy at http://www.IdeaLady.com/

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Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

Posted by Hope

Creativity comes in many forms and fashions. For many, creativity is elusive, seemingly impossible to attain. If you’ve found yourself struggling lately in the creativity department, I have some ways to show you how to boost your creativity.

• Throw away perfectionism. The “P” word is the worst enemy of creativity. Stop trying to do everything perfectly. When you throw out perfectionism, your creativity levels will begin to rise.
• Stop comparing your work to others’. All creative work is equal in and of itself. There is no such thing as someone’s work being better than your own. Each creative person’s work is unique. So stop judging your work next to someone else’s.
• Play with the mind of a child. Have you ever watched a child create something? You’ve probably noticed their lack of inhibition when it comes to the creation process. Children just allow the creation to form on its own, without thinking it through. Take a lesson from that-play with your art as a child would.
• Make a “play” date with another artist friend. Children love play dates with other children. So why not apply this same idea to your art? Invite another artist friend over for a fun afternoon of playing with your art together. Before your play date is over, you’ll both be bouncing creativity off each other.
• Boosting your creativity is not hard to do. It merely requires practice and allowing yourself to have fun with your art. Stop thinking of your creative nature as an afterthought and start paying more attention to it.

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