Introduction
I’d say that brainstorming is the most crucial step in finding a great solution. You can have the best design, programming, or storytelling team—but without good ideas, the result can’t be great.
By the end of this article, you’ll be able to structure your brainstorm effectively, use a variety of techniques to brainstorm better, and know how to prioritize your ideas by order of importance.
In this article :
Why Brainstorming?
The strength of brainstorming lies in unlocking unexpected solution paths that might not have emerged through a standard “problem-solution” approach. By confronting and combining ideas, you break away from conventional thinking and open the door to innovative concepts—often ones that wouldn’t have been considered at first glance.
Brainstorm Alone or as a Team?
In general, experts agree that starting with an individual brainstorming session is more effective.
The advantage of brainstorming alone is that it helps avoid bias, influence, or fear of judgment that can come with group settings. Thinking solo allows you to get out all the ideas that come to mind—even (and especially) the “bad” ones. “Bad” because they’re not necessarily meant to be discarded. I’ll explain more on that below. The goal is to let all your ideas out—without judgment.
How to Create an Environment for Great Ideas?
Like a plant, even if you can withstand harsh conditions, a toxic environment for your focus will kill your ability to let ideas bloom.
Here are a few tips gathered from my experience and that of those around me.
- Know your best & worst hours.
- Listen to music – if it’s for you.
- Go for a walk.
- Do a 20 minutes exercise.
- Block out a solid chunk of time for ideation (1.5 to 2.5 hours).
- Write and sketch by hand.
- Bounce off others’ ideas.
- Alternate: work solo, in pairs, in trios.
- [In teams] Always include inspiring, similar projects that could spark ideas in others.
- Keep your workspace tidy.
- Sleep on your ideas – it helps you kill, defend, or improve them.
5 Solution Paths for Solo Brainstorming
1. Empty your brain—get out everything that comes first.
As mentioned earlier, you have to let the murky water out before the clear water flows. Write or sketch on paper, a notepad, or even a wall—avoid using a computer.
The goal is to avoid banality: the first ideas are often obvious and lack originality. Once the “bad” ones are out, you can start digging into more compelling angles.
2. Create an Association Network
Sometimes the problem—or the client’s request—requires making connections between the product and the desired outcome that aren’t obvious at all. Here’s a trick to broaden your horizons and access unexplored concepts.
Start with your product and create a mind map of everything it makes you think of.
Each word you note down has its own network of associations. The idea is that the second or third degree of association might reveal creative concepts when linked back to your original product.
For example, you could associate the Big Mac with a “Mission Impossible” concept—where the product’s secret recipe is protected in a high-security vault, and so on.
3. The Time Constraint
From what I’ve heard, every creative probably has their favorite time limit for this technique. Whether it’s 2, 5, 8, or 10 minutes, the idea is to set a time limit and generate as many ideas as possible within that window.
1. The Blitz: Set a 2- or 5-minute timer and come up with as many ideas as you can.
2. Crazy 8: 8 ideas in 8 minutes.
3. 10-5-1: Come up with as many ideas as possible in 10 minutes, then spend 5 minutes developing just one.
4. Get Inspired Online
Image & Design :
Ads :
5. See What the Competition Is Doing
You can’t skip an analysis of what the market is already offering. In a brainstorming context, competitor analysis is twice as important. First, it helps you ensure your idea hasn’t already been done. Second, it exposes you to different concepts that can enrich an idea you already have.
Tip: It’s important to constantly refine your general knowledge. For example, in the field of advertising, you need to watch everything that’s being done. Consume it. Broaden your perspective—look at what’s happening around the world.
What Makes a Good Idea?
An idea with potential is one that can serve as a beacon for a 360º campaign. It should be a central concept that guides the entire communication strategy. It’s a core idea that can be adapted across all platforms—web, TV, print, magazines.
Reframe the problem.
The problem identified in your analysis or brief isn’t necessarily the one you should be brainstorming on. What you really need to do is find the problem behind the problem.
In other words :
- Problem
- Why
- Why
- Why
Once you’ve reframed the problem, you’re setting a clearer direction for the creative team—it’s the first step toward impactful creation.
The reframed problem is about finding the human problem behind the business problem.
To find your solution, ask yourself what you want to project to the target audience:
- Inspire?
- Relieve?
- Make easier?
- Remind?
- Provoke?
- Highlight?
- Reconnect?
- Bring to life?
A good idea as…
Note that a good idea doesn’t need to tick all the boxes below—but they’re strong indicators of its potential.
- Integrates the strategy into a narrative.
- Clearly expresses the benefit.
- Generates an emotion.
- Influences how people will think about the product in the future.
- Surprises.
- Stimulates the imagination.
- Makes people laugh.
- Breaks the rules.
To have a good idea, you need 100.
A good tip (that might feel a bit daunting) is to not stop brainstorming until you have at least 100 ideas. Even if you have a stroke of genius, set it aside and keep going. The goal is to explore as many directions as possible without clinging to your favorite ideas too quickly.
Tip: You need to “dirty” your idea—test it under all kinds of conditions to make sure it still holds up (different ad formats, production contexts, unexpected events, weather, broadcasting environments, etc.). Anticipate every possible scenario.
The Importance of Positioning
Ask yourself: what type of positioning do you want to communicate to your target audience? Just a quick reminder—positioning is what defines the product, service, or brand in the minds of consumers. It’s the essence, the DNA of the brand, the foundation of its tone of voice.
The Economist is an excellent example of strong, distinct, and memorable positioning.
Brainstorm in team
With your ideas in hand, you’re now ready to share them with your colleagues and start narrowing them down. In theory, a moderator leads the session and ensures the key brainstorming rules are respected: spontaneity of ideas, suspension of judgment, and cross-pollination.
The advantages of brainstorming as a team
- Quantity: Allows you to gather ideas from everyone.
- Enhancement: A colleague can build on or generate a new idea from another. Don’t be afraid to test combinations of the best and worst ideas—you never know what might come out of it!
- Collectivity: New ideas can emerge from those already shared.
- Teambuilding: Helps gradually foster a culture of creativity within the team.
The Disadvantages of Team Brainstorming
- Domination Effect
More confident or extroverted participants may dominate the discussion. - Fear of judgment
Some participants may hesitate to share their ideas for fear of judgment (even if unintentional).
The Role of the Moderator in a Team Setting
They provide the session guidelines:
- Explain how the session will unfold to the group.
- Present the rules of brainstorming.
- Clearly define the problem the group will be working on.
- Propose activities to carry out and ask questions to the group.
They must adopt a positive attitude:
- Influence the group’s dynamic and performance with energy and positivity.
- Make participants feel comfortable by starting the session with playful exercises (icebreakers).
- Examples of such exercises can be found in Sheet 5 or online.
They keep the pace:
- Manage time to maintain the flow of the session.
- Refocus distracted participants or those who stray from the main objective.
They manage the group:
- Ensure a fair distribution of speaking time among participants.
- Prevent more outspoken participants from dominating the discussion.
- Ensure that brainstorming rules are respected, especially the suspension of judgment.
- Remind the group of the rules if any inappropriate behavior is observed.
How to Prioritize Your Ideas After a Brainstorming Session
Define Small, Medium, and Big Ideas
Big Idea :
The big idea is broader and more emotional—it goes beyond product features to captivate the imagination and tell a story.
For example, Always’ “Like a Girl” is a concept that redefines cultural perceptions and positions the brand as a force for societal change.
- The big idea is relevant: It addresses a real problem or need.
- The big idea is striking: It resonates with the intended audience.
- The big idea is adaptable: It can be expressed in multiple variations.
Medium Idea :
An ad that highlights a product’s features without a major differentiating element—for example, a classic car commercial focusing on its technology.
Small Idea :
A purely promotional ad like “Buy 1, Get 1 Free,” with no creative or narrative impact.ment promotionnelle comme “Achetez 1, obtenez 1 gratuit”, sans impact créatif ou narratif.
Place the ideas on the Impact vs. Feasibility Matrix.
To assess which of the top ideas are the most realistic, place them in the Impact vs. Feasibility matrix.
Dot Voting Method
Another way to rank ideas is by holding a team vote to gather everyone’s input. For each idea, team members are given a certain number of points (usually between 1 to 3 or 1 to 5), which they assign to the ideas they find most interesting.
Advantage: Helps identify the best ideas according to the majority.
Limitation: May favor popular ideas over those that are strategically most relevant.
Conclusion
While several tips can truly help fertilize your ideas or lead to a more effective team brainstorm, the reality is that coming up with an idea isn’t easy. There’s no formula. Still, these tools can be very useful in helping you explore further and from different angles.
The information presented is based on concepts studied during my university courses.