Be like Netflix: 3 ways to spark creativity within your brand

Creative branding used to mean clever ads and witty catchphrases, but content alone isn’t enough in 2016. Creativity today is all about disruption, attacking the market from an angle no one else has tried before, and establishing your business as the leader in that area before your competitors can scramble to adapt.

Think about the way we consume movies and TV shows compared to just 10 years ago. Once-powerful Blockbusters have turned into liquor stores, and streaming services like Amazon and Netflix are running the show.

Even Hollywood awards shows have begun to recognize that nontraditional platforms reign supreme in entertainment. A few years ago, stations like ABC and Fox were the ones heading nomination lists, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at this year’s Golden Globes nominees. Despite not taking home any wins, Netflix had more nominations — eight — than any other studio. Amazon came in fourth with five, and Hulu managed to snag a nomination as well.

The Oscars haven’t adopted the same kindly view of nontraditional media as the Golden Globes, but is there any question that it will soon? People are watching films outside of mainstream releases more than ever. The Oscars, like the Golden Globes, must soon choose whether to transform or be left behind.

As streaming services continue to crash the big network party, it’s interesting to look back at how this happened. This industry isn’t being disrupted — the disruption has already happened. The people thinking change is on the horizon are looking at the sunset, not the sunrise.

In modern marketing, disruption happens constantly. Experiential marketing is bigger than ever, and up-to-the-second techniques like in-store notifications have changed the marketing life cycle from a lengthy nurturing process into quickly passing moments of one-time opportunity. To turn your brand into a creative force, you must become an innovative disruptor, unafraid to challenge the status quo.

Of course, saying you’re going to make big changes and actually coming up with ideas are two different beasts. Rather than try to force inspiration, put yourself in a position where new ideas flow naturally. Follow these steps to keep innovation (and your business) at the forefront of creative strategy:

1. Create Multiple Plans

Chart multiple courses for your brand, just like a movie director charts storylines for sequels or a television producer plans episodes years in advance. You can’t predict everything, but you can create baseline strategies so when the time comes, you aren’t scrambling to catch up while everyone else moves ahead.

2. Notice Everything

Consume all the media you can about what’s happening in your industry and what the other movers and shakers are saying. Making better plans starts with knowing what the future possibilities are. Go to conferences, meet with other professionals, listen to podcasts, or read articles — whatever it takes to ensure that nothing slips by you.

3. Remember the User

If you start to get too wrapped up in big-picture ideas, put yourself in the shoes of the end user and ask what that person would want to see. Do people really want to go completely digital, or are face time and human interactions still important? Put your business in a position to exceed end users’ expectations in a meaningful way, no matter what happens within the industry.

Nothing stays the same for long. Will you be pushing forward the changes to come or struggling to keep up?