Creativity in This Day and Age

Published in

startergeek

6 min readJul 12, 2017

How do we define creativity? Many business owners and organizations do all kinds of things online to grow their businesses. They engage on social media, do video marketing, and implement almost all kinds of different things to promote their brands and hopefully make it “big time”. Every day we see examples of what society refers to as creativity in this day and age.

However, a lot of these endeavors seem to be shooting arrows everywhere in the air. We see brands on Facebook posting live videos and advertisements.

We also see them on Twitter where they syndicate their blog posts and share other business updates. But in the end, we find that they are not scoring very high in the circles they belong.

“A follower with a vision is a leader. A leader without a vision is a follower.” -Simon Sinek

What Creativity Means

By definition, creativity means the use of imagination to produce work that possesses beauty or work that has the power to evoke emotions. Shakespeare played with it in ink to produce his classic Romeo and Juliet, and Michaelangelo embraced it in his Pieta.

It exists and thrives in any niche and time. It exists even in the world of business where owners and consumers meet at the cross-point of supply and demand.

Talking about creativity in business advertisements…

In this ad titled Language for Life, what first appeared as a casual scene at a workplace eventually revealed a funny reality that tickled even the sleepy head. Who would have thought that the failure to understand a language could actually risk people’s lives?

The trainee tried to understand what the caller was trying to say. He apparently did not expect a call to arrive so suddenly. You too may question whether the trainee even understood that the call required immediate action.

That’s where Berlitz appears to the rescue. They help improve a person’s language skills to help him avoid similar situations in life.

Creative enough to spark humor. Creative enough to turn a seemingly typical day at work into something eventful.

Here’s another one that’s simply unforgettable…

Creativity as a Commodity

Running a business with the hopes of increasing sales and conversions is indeed quite challenging. There’s competition, the need for resources, the need to be creative and stand out, and the list goes on.

Sometimes, however, it also requires being true to oneself. It requires a business owner to also admit that despite what he’s gone through in life and business, there are still things that he does not know.

“What do you want, what do you need, and what are you lying to yourself about?” -Yigal Adato in an interview at Stop Riding the Pine podcast

Could the lack of knowledge and expertise be the reason why some brands do not score well in their niche? Or, could we attribute it to the act of treating creativity as a commodity — a mere product that businesses use to increase their rankings or enhance their brand’s performance?

Well, isn’t creativity supposed to achieve a purpose?

“Imagination is being co-opted for purposes that have little to do with animating our sympathies and expanding our hearts.” -Maria Popova

One time, we were scrolling down a social media feed. We found that in contrast to entertainment circles, some brands receive only few feedback from others. Many don’t have feedback at all in the form of likes, shares, retweets, or comments.

What could they be missing out on?

From what Popova said, imagination has to be strong enough — vivid enough — to create an impact. It has to be carried out “creatively” to call people to action.

If businesses then have to position themselves as leaders, they need to be clear with what they want to achieve. This is because what they have in mind is the one that will direct the stories they create and share to their audience.

From their threads of ideas and imaginations, they are able to weave stories that can call people to act accordingly.

This further poses the question: What do you do differently? Anyone can post images, anyone can produce live videos, and anyone can write. But what do you have that you can call your own?

Creativity has to be more than a common thing in the market.

Opportunities to Be Creative

Nowadays there are many ways, many opportunities for businesses to practice creativity.

1. Chatbot Marketing

One way to do it is through chatbot marketing. Among those who can benefit from it are those in the real estate, legal, brick and mortar, or online business circles.

Chatbots serve customers 24/7. Businesses can use them to generate pre-qualified leads, increase sales as well as conversions.

“Chatbot technology is the biggest trend since the invention of the Internet.” -Peter Lisoskie of Chatbot Nation

Creativity is key in designing chatbots. But like they say, the sky is the limit. It depends on how far your imagination can go to providing unique business solutions to your customers.

2. Facebook on TV

Early this year we heard about Facebook’s plan to release their own application for televisions.

“We want people to be able to consume content wherever they are — whether it’s on their phone, whether it’s on their computer — and TV is just another screen for that.” -Dan Rose, Facebook VP of Partnerships

It was reported that the company intends to “complement the app to watching videos on mobile phones”. They saw how videos are taking up a place in the market. They also understood that people don’t have all the time to watch the content they like.

Overall, it’s one big opportunity for businesses to consider doing quality videos. How can they succeed? That is one thing that business owners can decide on and be excited about.

3. Websites

Regardless of how long they have been in the market, websites still present a great place for businesses to accommodate and serve their customers. Websites are timeless.

Having a website is like having your own place online. Social media sites may dissolve or decide to shut down, but your website stays.

What you can do is design your website in the best way you can imagine. You can partner with experts as we have at Slapshot Studio to have a place that effectively carries out your vision and mission.

Geared to Be Creative

Is there any difference between creativity in the past and creativity in this day and age? Did something change from the way our ancestors sparked a fire or from the way they crafted a language?

“Through story, every culture defines itself and teaches its children how to be people and members of their people.” -Ursula Le Guin

What we have today is a world that is always on the go for information. No wonder why millions of content are released every day in the form of videos, texts, images, podcasts, and a couple more.

With technology and the internet, businesses have a wider variety of audiences — a larger field to showcase their respective brands. How they deal with people, how they reach out and engage with them, may just be a matter of being creative in their approach. A matter of being unique.

To be successful in carrying out your message, creativity calls for consistency and the ability to adapt whenever is necessary. Just like what Le Guin said, it is through a story that you define a culture and foster a community — your consumers.

You just might need a little push, a little inspiration to run your business ablaze with creativity and success.

What tools do you have? Who are the people you can count on to fulfill different tasks? How far are you willing to invest in them to make a difference with your business?