Creativity can be the key to catching customers, according to Daigo Smith, co-founder of UK online dating website Loveflutter, writing for The Guardian.
Smith summarises the company’s key learnings from the creative process that brought the site to life and “helped generate the industry buzz seen on both sides of the Atlantic”:
• Scan your crowd and take a look at your competitors and industry. Identify which life cycle stage your industry is in: infancy, growth, maturity or decline.
Smith advises: “If you’re entering an industry in its infancy with only a few competitors, the task of standing out is arguably a little easier. Chances are that your industry is in growth or maturity, meaning fierce competition for market share.”
• Fire up your creativity. You need to cut through the marketing noise of the established brands. You’ll probably find homogeneity in the marketing and brand strategies of your bigger competitors. You can use this as an opportunity to differentiate and be creative, suggests Smith.
Although it might feel risky to veer from the tried and trusted formulae of the market leaders, moving away from the norm can give your brand a creative edge and help it stand out from the crowd.
However, While sticking to the ordinary will see you blend into the background, Smith warns that if you stray too far from the creative norm, you’ll risk confusing your audience, so strike a balance.
• Manage your creativity. Smith explains: “Brand identity isn’t simply your logo. Consider all the elements when deciding your strategy, including brand name, visual identity, communications and tone of voice. Be creative in all of these, but be extraordinarily creative in those elements which you believe will give your brand the creative edge against your competitors.”
• Put creativity at the heart of everything you do. Carving a niche with a creative brand identity isn’t enough – you need to make creativity the core of all your communications. Smith points out that as a new entrant into a crowded market, your identity will need to be reinforced with every chance you get in order to maximise brand awareness.