Cue random music loud enough to drown out everything but my screen. My mind works either in full chaos or complete silence. For whatever reason, this practice leads me to wild ideas and the solutions to visual problems.

The creative process, at its core, is storytelling with a purpose through design and marketing. Be the purpose just to get an idea out in the wild or to drive sales and concrete results, the “story” is the same. They typically start the same, with a terrible first draft, acting as a basic framework and a starting point. After this, they twist and turn with insights and ideas that can come from other people and brands, songs or even little kids. 

This storytelling, as I like to refer to it, always starts with a visual and message, both crafted based on the medium they are being presented in. This two-part piece has to work together in harmony, otherwise the “story” is lost in translation. Bad visuals paired with irrelevant messages or great writing with poor imagery causes confusion and brand doubt. But when they work together, they are like the power couple everyone knows. They complete each other and can finish each other’s sentences. This symbiotic relationship creates dynamic creative with scroll stopping power, making consumers take notice. 

Even the greatest messaging and visuals can still fall short if they don’t appeal to your target users. This is where solid research and a deep understanding of your client comes in handy.

When you know the client’s “why,” it allows their customers into the larger mission they’re trying to achieve. Creative with stopping power hones in on this “why” approach or some sort of differentiator factor that your consumers can relate to that truth. At the end of the day, if your consumer doesn’t feel like you’re relating to them, they’ll ignore you and your message. Overall, I look at creative needing to have one of the following to be successful:

Is it inspiring?
Does it create an emotional connection?
Is it funny, sad or can your user relate to it?

Does it add to your perception?
Does it shed new light on old ideas?
Does it change your perspective on a person, product or idea?

Does it close the deal?
Does it help close the sales process?

The reality is that we are all bombarded with thousands of ads throughout the day. The disruptive power of great creative becomes a necessity for any ads to be effective. The mass amount of ads serve as a challenge for us at Caliber. To be honest, we also ignore most of the ads we see everyday. Only the very best (and sometimes worst) catch our interest. It’s our role and passion to create great creative storylines that forward brand messages and intentions.

At Caliber, we start this process with strong strategy for each campaign and optimize from there. We’re a flexible partner in the branding and creative process that listens and adapts based on feedback and testing. We take everything we learn and apply it to the next campaign continuing to share our clients’ stories. Get in touch to let us help you write your brand story.