Posted on Aug 20, 2012

Why creativity is the key to the future of marketing

Mark Twain’s famous quote “The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated” might be the perfect statement to apply to the field of marketing.

Over the past 10 to 15 years, the flood of articles reporting the death of traditional marketing could fill a library. Just this month, a new article Marketing is Dead was published in the Harvard Business Review and is receiving much attention.

The author of this HBR article, Bill Lee, proposes that “people in traditional marketing roles and organizations may not realize they’re operating within a dead paradigm.” He goes on to propose four elements of what the new marketing model looks like.

To me, his proposed elements sound like the same ones that worked 10, 20, or 50 years ago. So, what’s changed? Strategically very little.

The role of strategic marketing is the same as it’s always been:
Enabling an organization to concentrate its limited resources on the greatest opportunities that will achieve revenue and profit objectives while building sustainable competitive advantage.

I would suggest a new addition to strategic marketing has been added of late: making a meaningful difference to the communities in which the organization serves. But this new addition can’t happen unless the first part occurs. It’s how the economic system of capitalism works.

In other words, marketing is still marketing. Just some of the tactical elements are changing.

Peeling back the marketing onion

There is a huge difference between strategic marketing and promotional marketing (e.g. this week only, buy 1 get I free). There is also a difference between strategic marketing and specific marketing communications (e.g. writing a press release or blog post, or tweeting).

Strategic vs. tactical. Long-term vs. short term.

While strategic marketing may influence and impact both long-term and short-term initiatives, it should not be confused with tactical marketing. The real need today is strategic marketing.

To me, “marketing” has always been strategic. All tactical elements should be derived from strategy.

I would agree that various marketing tactics are shifting in significant ways, and some are even fading away. Of course, new ones continue to appear on the horizon too. It’s always been that way.

The field of marketing is like the music industry. Just as vinyl records gave way to cassettes, which gave way to CDs, which gave way to MP3s and iTunes, so marketing tactics have also shifted over time.

Marketing is not dying. It’s just shifting.

So… how to survive the shift and stay alive? It requires creativity.

The Value of Creativity

As a differentiating value, Creativity means mental and social process involving the generation of new ideas or concepts.

Most people who embrace this value tend to focus on either the first part (mental process) or the last part (new ideas). If you want more creativity, then either think harder and longer or come up with more ideas (because more is better, right?).

Instead, maybe it’s time to stop and consider the middle part – the generation of.

If you consider the different types of generators that produce electricity (gasoline-powered, propane, diesel), they all work slightly differently. The same is true for how marketers use creativity.

What method are you using to generate ideas that convert into action? Is the value of creativity being applied to the right problems?

If you apply creativity to promotional marketing, then the focus will be on generating better offers (e.g. 50% off instead of buy 1 get 1 free). If you apply creativity to marketing communications, then the focus will be on generating a better message or identifying a better medium.

In both of these cases, Bill Lee is correct. You may be applying creativity within a dead paradigm.

However, if you apply creativity to strategic marketing then the focus will be on identifying better opportunities, or applying limited resources in better ways. It will generate ideas that will build a stronger competitive advantage. It can also make a more meaningful difference in the communities the organization serves.

When marketers apply the value of creativity strategically, the results will prove that marketing is alive and well.