For Creative Facilitators, every marketing project begins by defining a clear marketing objective. The marketing facts are used as detours to help generate relevant ideas.
You as the facilitator might inspire novel ideas by unexpectedly turning the marketing objective on its ear! The two-words technique allows you to have a little fun with the marketing objective while helping the resource group offer fresh ideas.
Let's say the marketing objective for the project is, "Persuade a woman in her 30s to buy an 8-pack of LaCroix sparking water at the grocery store this week." The two-words technique works with any two words in the marketing objective. In this example, we'll use this technique with a verb and a noun by taking the following steps:
- On a separate sheet of flipchart paper, create two columns.
- The left column is headed by the verb in the marketing objective.
- The right column is headed by the target consumer in the marketing objective.
- Ask the participants to make a list of alternative words for each column.
- Beginning with the column on the left, ask the group to list alternative words under the verb.
- Then, ask the group to list alternative words for the target consumer in the right column.
- Connect the words in the two columns that intuitively work together.
- Insert those words in the marketing objective and add new ideas to the list.
Contact Creative Resources for more detour techniques.