Pen to Profit: How Writers Can Use Creativity to Supercharge Marketing

I had to be creative. Compensation for poor eyesight in early childhood. The wrong glasses, a difficult prescription. Whatever the mix up, I came to reading late and indeed last of all my schoolmates.

It deterred me not one bit.
I didn’t think of it as a handicap but rather the chance to live inside my imagination. A place of derring-do and wonder. The possibilities went far beyond “See Spot run…”
On some level, I must have known the setback was temporary. I came from a family of voracious readers and lived in a house knee-deep in books. Surely, I would inevitably catch up at some point? So, even if I couldn’t decipher the words, I could let my fancy free and create my own stories by look and feel of the physical book and the illustrations hidden inside, the illustrations—blurred though they may have been.

Later on, I found those early skills useful techniques in business. Imagination is vital in marketing and creativity is the magic that transforms challenges into opportunities. These are some of the elements I still use to stir my creative juices.

Dialogue

I created a litany of techniques that could trigger the fictional stories I wanted to tell. For example, I found a way to grow a character. I would start with a mere marker, (the fisherman’s ancient mother) and transform her into something resembling a living, breathing entity.
Growing a persona or envisioning your target for marketing purposes is similar to fleshing out fictional characters. You need to know who the person is, especially if you’re selling something, be it an emotion or a new backpack.
How do you get to know them? Start a conversation. Make it realistic. Be polite. Give them space to answer.

“Hey, how are you doing?”
“Did you struggle to find a parking space?”
“How do you feel about EVs?”

Go for a walk together. Step onto the treadmill, go for a bus ride downtown. Sit at your desk. But let your imagination lead the way and say the kinds of things you would normally say to someone you’re meeting. Be sure to allow the two voices to remain distinctive.
By the time the meetings are done, you’ll have a reasonable idea of who this persona is. You might even be a bit surprised at what you discover.

One thing is sure, she’s no longer the fisherman’s ancient mother. She’ll have a name, a past, and you’ll be comparing playlists or whatever it is that the fisherman’s ancient mother is interested in.

Storytelling

So, you’ve got your characters. Now put them in a story.
There’s no better place to expand and enrich their attributes than weaving a story around them. Put them in a space and time and allow them to grow. Understand their joys, their foibles, even vulnerabilities.
Nominate yourself as a guide and help them realize themselves. Offer them answers to things that bother them, provide them with the solutions you want to propose— even sell them that backpack.

Oh, and inviting other people into your conversations helps grow the audience. There’s an opportunity for a wider conversation with diverse inputs. Your storytelling just gained a little more oomph!

Words

Nurturing the imagination is very much like cultivating a garden. One fascinating flower can draw attention and provide an alluring hook for flower lovers and perhaps other curious minds.
All you need to decide is what kind of soil and what kind of flower you wish to plant there. Same with creativity. You determine how to express yourself, which words to use to describe what you want to say.
The important things you need are all around you. These could be things visible to the naked mind alone, or things you can see with your eyes. In some conceptual way, they exist and it is words that give these concepts visibility.

So it could be “a dark a stormy night.” Or perhaps ”Rain cut slantwise through the gloom.”
It comes down to words.

Every language with its unique vocabulary and structure offers its special brand of creativity. Indeed, multilingualism is in and of itself a dynamo of borrowing and inspiration that fuels the artistry of composition. Like many languages, the English language has a large word-hoard.
We have shades of meaning for our shades of meaning. Our roots are deep, broad, and various. And no, I don’t mean varied but various— if you see what I mean?
Words offer writers a feast. Your imagination can forage for free and gather the perfect word for the right occasion.

Mix it Well

Combined, these three elements create a powerful synergy. Begin with dialogue to bring your vision to life. Use storytelling to deepen the connection and words to paint the story in vivid colors.
Altogether they give your marketing content the kind of appeal that captivates an audience. It taps their emotions, draws them closer, and strengthens bonds.

By using creativity your marketing content becomes a dynamic, engaging experience. If you succeed at the task, your message will be impactful because you have invited your audience into their own story.
In the world of marketing, that’s the true power of creativity.