One of my favorite definitions for Creativity goes something like this:

“People who experience the world in novel and original ways. These are individuals whose perceptions are fresh, whose judgements are insightful, who may make important discoveries that only they know about. The have changed our culture in some important way…”

What you’ve just read, written by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi from his book Creativity – Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention, is still as relevant today as the day in which it was written.

The truth is, when we think of creativity, we generally refer to it in the context of art. But in reality, we apply creativity to every aspect of our lives, and every day. Societies that embrace this concept as a means to improve all aspects of itself – work,  products, market strategies, advertising – are far better equipped to produce groundbreaking solutions to daily activities that may change the course of nature, habits and traditions. For them, it’s the means as it is the end. Edward de Bono once said: “There is no doubt that creativity is the most important human resource of all. Without creativity there would be no progress, and we would be forever repeating the same patterns.“

A few months back I stumbled onto this section of the Fast Company site and loved it. Besides having the coolest writers on the planet, they always come up with interesting topics that are devoted to the concept of vision and creation. “How to lead a Creative Life” is no exception. This part of their website focuses on this age-old concept coupled by interviews, facts and infographics on the subject of those who think outside the box.

“For most businesspeople, realizing any creative vision–while addressing concerns about scale, tradition, and profitability–is a Herculean task.” 

How can we lead a creative life on the job? Jason Feifer’s illustrates it for us in this guide::

Last, but not least, check out these two videos. When it comes to ideas and creativity, they are just too cool to miss:

By Maria Elena Moré

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Hey there designers! Here’s a neat infographic created by one of my favorite blogs (Mashable, of course), that illustrates the different typefaces throughout history, its origins and its uses.

A fun treat for the eyes, no doubt. Enjoy!

By Maria Elena Moré

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It all starts with the pitch.

Following the success of Mad Men, AMC is bringing us the glitz and drama of the advertising world with a new show called “The Pitch”, that will air with a sneak preview on April 8th. The unscripted series will chronicle the deadlines and hustle-and-bustle of ad agencies when they set out to find new business. With only 7 days to prepare their creative and strategic proposal, we’ll see what it’s like when ad men go head-to-head for clients.

The agencies pitching each week will be: The Ad Store, Bandujo, BooneOakley, Bozell, Conversation, DIGO, FKM, Jones Advertising, Kovel/Fuller, McKinney, Muse Communications, SK+G, The Hive, WDCW and WOMENK!ND, and will be presented in a documentary style fashion, in order to capture the high stakes experienced during the process. Some of the brands that will be featured include: Frangelico/Campari, the Subway restaurants, Benjamin Frankilin Plumbing, Mister Sparky, among others.

“Advertising is really the idea business, but with incredibly high stakes; and Studio Lambert has captured, in a very feature doc style, just how hard it is to come up with a great idea, only to walk into a room and have it all ride on The Pitch.” says Joel Stillerman, Executive Vice President of Original Programming for AMC.

Look out Don Draper fans. The shiz just got real.

 

By Maria Elena Moré

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 About a month ago, More Than Branding’s very esteemed and principal blogger, María Elena Moré, called me up (tweeted me up to be honest) and asked me to collaborate with More Than Branding as a correspondent in New York. I just moved to the city to pursue a M.S. in Integrated Marketing at NYU, so I was super excited and honored to be part of this digital space she’s worked so hard on.

I’ll be writing about whatever strikes my marketing eye, from huge ad campaigns, to personal and digital marketing, to street marketers… Basically, I’ll keep you posted on all that this 24 hour infomercial called “New York City” has to offer. So with no further adieu I give you my first post, entitled “Creative Riders“…

Just after I moved, as I was getting used to waiting for trains, I started to notice that, if any of the ads on the subway stations had any loose ends, some very creative subway riders would tie them up. If you’ve ever worked in an advertising agency, you know that the planning of most out-of-home advertising is thought out from creative to production to media to installation. But, what happens to your advertising after you put it up?

 Ironically, the campaign that has engaged most of these Creative Riders (that’s what we’ll call creative subway riders from now on) is the Mad Men season 5 campaign. Just a white background and a falling man, leaving room for creativity in every station! Heck, some Riders even pulled some Dr. Seuss prose on Don Draper. It is amazing how this campaign has called the attention of so many New Yorkers. In my opinion the entire promotion is not that great, because you need to be a Mad Men fan to quickly understand it. But, Creative Riders have made regular, none Mad Men fans look for the ads and see what clever alterations Riders have included in them. In this particular case, the people from AMC should hire some Riders for the season 6 campaign.

On a less positive note, have you ever played Scrabble? Well Creative Riders have too. Don’t you think that using the letters of the ad itself to alter the message is just pure genius!? Look at the Master Card campaign and see how much difference one single letter can make to what you’re trying to say. Master Card, being a financial entity, suffered a bit of negativity with the Riders, but you know what they say… there’s no such thing as bad publicity. The Riders‘ creativity makes you look twice at the Ads- and no ROIs or KPIs measure these second looks.

The last picture is a little bonus, cause, don’t we all believe news are just truths coexisting with profitable lies?

Till’ next time, and thank you to all the Creative Riders out there… you should put all of these pieces in your portfolios!

Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter and Tumblr…

 

By Patty Yunén

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Lights? Check. Cameras? Check. Commercials? You got it.

The 84th annual Academy Awards were nothing short of memorable and left us with the spirit of that old Hollywood glamour. The glitz, the ads and the magic of cinema make up what is perhaps one of my favorite nights of the year.

According to Mashable, “Social conversations have taken on an increasingly important role in the 2012 awards season.” Even before the show, the Oscars red carpet received attention not only from viewers but from followers on interactive platforms all over the world, who noticed the stunt pulled by Sasha Baron Cohen a.k.a “The Dictator” on Ryan Seacrest, with the hopes of promoting his new film. A Twitter account that goes by the name of @AngiesRightLeg was created minutes after the star paraded herself into the stage and struck a pose that left everyone wondering “What’s up with Angelina Jolie?” The Muppets, Cirque du Soleil and Diet Coke were just a few of the world renowned brands who combined their presence at the awards ceremony with a unique twist on social media.

But alas, let’s hit the ads. From Diet Coke’s tailor-made campaign for the Oscars, Ellen Degeneres’ much talked about endorsement for the (newly refreshed) JCPenny brand, here are More than Branding’s favorite spots of the Academy Awards 2012:

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Diet Coke

Title: ”Hollywood”

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Johnson’s Baby

Title: “You’re going OK, Mom”

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JCPenny (or now simply JCP)

Title: “Ellen: 50′s Wake-Up”

Title: ”Ellen: Roman Returns”

Title: ”Ellen: Western Coupons”

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Hyundai

Title: “Modern Life”

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Mercedes-Benz

Title: “Art- The 2013 SL Roadster”

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Kraft- Macaroni & Cheese

Title: “Diamond Jubilee”

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Apple

Title: “iCloud Harmony”

By Maria Elena Moré

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