Beyond the Obvious

Journeying Down the Rabbit Hole to Spark Creative Ideas

Introduction

Creativity can be a wild ride, full of twists and turns with surprising outcomes. We chatted with Lisa Knoop, Associate Creative Director at Catch+Release, about the Similar Content Suggestions search feature. In this blog post, we’ll share Lisa’s tips on using this tool to boost your creative thinking and make new connections.

1. Defining the Desired Outcome

"If you have a sense of the result you want, let it guide you. What do you want people to feel? Connecting to your own experiences and emotions before searching for content sets you up to recognize content that resonates."

Before diving into the creative process, it's crucial to define the desired outcome and the emotions you aim to evoke. Knowing what you want your audience to feel can guide your exploration and help shape the direction of your creative journey. Let's use the AI powered search feature on Catch+Release for “Joyful Connection” and see where it takes us.

2. Making Lateral Leaps

"You want to be able to make new connections, what Edward De Bono calls lateral leaps.”

Creativity thrives when we move beyond predefined constraints, or having to be “right” and allow ourselves to explore unexpected avenues. This means thinking beyond the obvious and making connections that aren't immediately apparent. Making time to gather inspiration and collect as you go on the Catch+Release platform using the search and collect features is a great way to get to these lateral leaps – and it’s fun too. The content is always fresh, many of our creators sync their social accounts giving us a direct feed of content from the internet. If you do the exact same search for “Joyful Connection” tomorrow the results will be different because the content is constantly updated – just like the internet itself.

3. Collecting and Gathering Insights

"Go broad, pull it in, narrow it down and gather, then go broad again. It’s like an hourglass. Follow the images that resonate and collect them without judging how you will use them or if they are right yet. Suspend your critic."

By broadening our initial search parameters, we open ourselves up to a wealth of possibilities. Starting with a wide net allows us to gather diverse ideas and inspirations.

The creative process involves a continuous cycle of exploration, collection, and refinement, akin to navigating through an hourglass-shaped journey. This iterative process helps in gathering a wide range of insights and then narrowing them down to the most relevant ones. Depending on the stage you are at you start your content search broadly and refine it more and more. If you know you need a certain mood or ratio for your end use you can search with that level of specificity as well. For this example we are starting broad and gathering as we go we know we want a certain feeling in the content but everything else is open.

4. Building a Repository of Inspiration

"I created a “Just Because” collection and I add to it whenever I find something I like. Sometimes months later it is the perfect piece of content for the new thing I am working on."

Building a repository of inspiration allows for ongoing creative exploration and the cultivation of a diverse range of ideas. Having a collection of inspirational materials to draw from can be invaluable during the creative process. Over time you will naturally start to see categories arise or perhaps you have a general sense of the type of content you need for: ads, blogs, social posts, eBooks etc. You can create repositories for these broad categories and add to them as you find things. With our Creator Community content you can begin clearance free of charge to get the process started and have content at the ready when you need it.

5. Embracing Unforeseen Connections

"Just by seeing things next to each other, new ideas arise."

Creativity flourishes when disparate elements come together to form new and unexpected associations. Placing different content side by side can spark unique connections that lead to innovative ideas. By the very nature of having different pieces of content in a collection that you add to over time you will see new connections.

6. Navigating Setbacks and Dead Ends

"Sometimes you follow content into a dead end, or too narrow of an alley, but you can always come back to search and use descriptive words to get back into the rabbit hole and find something new."

Searching broadly at first helps give you a starting point but setbacks and dead ends are inevitable in the creative process. They provide opportunities for redirection and renewed exploration. Use descriptive words like “cinematic,” “happy,” “moody” to refine your search and get back on track. You can also refine your search by color or aspect ratio.

7. Staying Awake to Possibilities

"It’s like being on a nature walk... you want to allow yourself to step off the path and smell the flowers, but you want to keep in mind that eventually you want to get to the end of the path."

Staying awake to possibilities means remaining open to unexpected detours while maintaining sight of the ultimate destination. This balance between exploration and focus is key to creative success.The Similar Content feature lets you dive in and out of the rabbit hole and surfaces amazing content you may not have thought of initially.

8. Flexibility and Groove-Jumping

"A flexible mind is required. You have to be able to get out of your own groove and make those lateral leaps to something new."

Flexibility is key to creative breakthroughs where you break free from ingrained patterns and explore uncharted territory. Being open to new ideas and approaches can lead to unique and innovative solutions. Taking a few moments a day or every week to search on the platform and enjoy the act of curating and collecting content that resonates with you will give you your very own “just because” collection and you can start making new connections for how to use that content or maybe you just find something that resonates and keep it until the moment it is exactly what you need for a campaign or project.

Conclusion

Creativity is a dynamic process that thrives on exploration, serendipity, and unexpected connections. By embracing the Similar Content Suggestions feature, creatives can navigate the rabbit hole of inspiration, forging new paths and uncovering unique insights along the way. Whether you're building a repository of inspiration or making lateral leaps to a fresh concept, staying flexible and open to new possibilities will enhance your creative journey.