Getting creative is a great and the most promising way to achieve marketing objectives

BY Santosh Shrestha

You may think you have a pretty good grasp on the aspects of communication. After all, you do it every day. But is there a real science to it? It may not be rocket science, but it's still important to understand the nuances of effective communication.
Communication is much more than just the verbalization of words. It encompasses everything about who you are, what you do, your beliefs, values, and how you are perceived. In marketing and promotion, effective communication is a critical tool that determines your hits and misses. The way you communicate with your target audience can make or break the fate of any brand or industry.
What you communicate is important, but how you communicate it is even more crucial. In formal marketing communication, it's essential to present even the simplest message in an appealing and attractive manner. This is where graphic design and creativity come into play. The creative approach, combined with a resonating graphic design, is what drives communication. It gives shape and form to the message, making it more impactful and memorable.
Today, there are many brands, industries, and businesses providing similar products and services. This makes it even more important for businesses to be distinct and clear about what they are marketing. Brands have to stand out and connect with their target audience, or they risk getting lost in the crowd. The communication approach of a brand is what makes it distinct and sets it apart from its competitors.
In the world of marketing and promotion, brands only have a few seconds to capture the attention of their audience. Whether it's through print, TV, digital or on-ground media, brands do not have the luxury of prolonged undivided attention. That's why they have to make their communication visually astounding, emotionally stirring, and attention-grabbing. Getting creative is a great and the most promising way to achieve marketing objectives.
It is exciting to see how creative thinkers and graphic designers come together to blend ideas, strategies, and visual language to communicate innovative ideas and stories. As the saying goes, "a picture speaks a thousand words", well-crafted and well-thought out ideas can speak volumes to their target audience. In graphic design, every colour, visual, shape, alignment, and composition, the choice of font and typography, and its placement tells a different tale. It is through the effective use of these tools that many brands have established a distinct identity and niche for themselves.
The creative approach and its application help create an identity for a brand. It shapes the personality of a brand and develops a perception of it in the minds of its target audience. Depending on the brand, its products and services, and its target audience, the creative approach may differ. For instance, luxury brands such as Lamborghini, Rolex, Louis Vuitton, and iPhone, among others, are associated with achievement, affluence, and high status. This is because their communication is crafted in a way that appeals to a higher sense. These brands often use top global icons like movie stars and rock stars to endorse their products, and invest a significant amount of time, money, and resources to create and maintain their brand image. Even though similar products that deliver the same core purpose are available in the market, these brands always remain at the top of the list, because of the perception that they have developed for themselves. People are willing to pay a premium to own these brands, and those who can't afford it will always aspire to own them someday. This is the power of communication
Today, many brands invest a lot in advertising and promotion, because they have realised that selling is not as simple as it sounds. They are not just selling a product or service, but also a promise, a solution, a value, and most importantly, an image. This is why creative arts, graphic design, advertising, and promotion have become lucrative professions. With the growth of multimedia, the internet, and digital media, this field is constantly on the rise.
In the context of Nepal, just a while back there were just a handful of brands that hired professional agencies to devise and deliver their communication needs. But now, almost every other brand has realised the immense marketing possibilities that effective communication can generate. This has cleared the way for a positive change. More and more creative agencies are opening up and fields like copywriting, designing, animation, photography, and direction have found a place in the academic space.
Just over a decade ago, Nepal witnessed a huge influx of multinational brands and products. This paved the way for advertising, design, printing, production, and several other related services. Since this sector was relatively new back then, the core manpower was in short supply. And most of the top-tier positions were usually filled up by outsourced personnel from India, Bangladesh, and elsewhere. But since Nepal was a comparatively smaller market than India or Bangladesh, these outsourced personnel found better growth opportunities back in their own lands and soon migrated back. This has left the reins of the industry totally in the hands of the local talents. But sadly, even today, when clients want high-quality or top-notch service like in TV commercial making, generating 3D models, creating animation, etc., these jobs are outsourced to experienced and seasoned professionals with a proven track record.
Despite the immense opportunities and demand in the creative and graphic design sector, there is a shortage of academic disciplines and courses that can groom individuals to professionally meet industry requirements. While there are a handful of independent institutes that do offer relevant courses, the lack of an early basic academic background can make it difficult for some to fully adapt and understand the basic concepts.
Today, Nepal has seen a tremendous boom in the creative and IT sector. Home-grown local organisations have made remarkable growth within a short span of time, and these organisations provide great opportunities and packages for deserving and experienced talents. So hopefully, there are better days ahead.
To a certain degree, we can agree that creativity is something one is born with. But through both personal and professional training, you can also groom yourself to be creative by following certain factors such as. Input-output: Without input, there is no output. So, we must learn how to grasp the right information in order to yield the desired output.
Learn appreciation: The more you learn from others and appreciate their work, the more you will hone your own creativity. Keep an open mind: Ideas can come from anywhere and anyone. So, keep an open eye and an open mind to grasp great ideas. Teamwork always works: Always exchange and share ideas. This will help you filter and refine your ideas.
Try random stimulation: Sometimes it's best to avoid the tried and tested path and try something new, wacky, and wild. Stimulus-response: Always be clear about the message you want to convey and pre-visualize the expected response.
Single-mindedness approach: Be focused on your goals and be clear about one specific purpose that your creative work should address. Strive to stand out: Always try to do something different and unusual and explore different ways of achieving your purpose.
Dare to be brave: Always believe in yourself and your capability. You only have one life to showcase your creativity, so do it with conviction. Never stop being inspired: There is so much to learn and master. So, always keep abreast of the best creative works and keep the inspirational juices flowing.
Communication is not something new; we have been engaging in it since the evolution of mankind. It is mainly due to communication that we have been able to make so much progress and achieve so much. And it is through effective communication that we can pave the way for a brighter future. 
(Shrestha is a former president of the Advertising Association of Nepal and Managing Director of Mars Advertising & Research)