Introduction

This e-book draws inspiration from the timeless classic A Technique For Producing Ideas by James Webb Young. Originally delivered as a lecture in the late 1930s, the book outlines a straightforward five-step process for generating ideas.

While some may find the method too simple, industry veterans like Tom Christmann, Catch+Release ECD, and a 30-year advertising expert, vouch for its effectiveness. “That book is the secret formula,” he says, “the cheat code used by the most award-winning creatives in the business.”

You don’t have to be a creative professional to benefit from this e-book. Building on Young’s work, it updates his technique for the digital age, guiding you on how to harness the power of the internet and social media to gather raw material and boost your creative process in developing brand stories.

Brands Are Co-Creations

Every day, billions of people share their lives online through words, pictures, and videos. Whether or not we call ourselves “creators,” we are all contributing to a vast stream of content across various platforms.

Professional marketers and creatives, whose job it is to craft campaign content for these same platforms, are now part of this content ecosystem. With modern smartphone technology, there’s little distinction between the content produced by professionals and everyone else.

At Catch+Release, we help creative professionals tap into this endless stream of online content to co-create brand stories. We teach you how to curate, and license content safely and ethically, and ultimately create more authentic, impactful campaigns.

In the following pages, we’ll guide you on how to mine the collective creativity of the internet to create visceral, real content that audiences love.

From Brief to Bounty

Before diving in, we encourage you to create a free account at catchandrelease.com. As you follow the steps in this e-book, you’ll begin building collections of content that will serve as the foundation for your creative process.

PRO TIP: Get your team involved. The more minds gathering material, the better the results. Marketing is a team effort, and sharing collections allows for more collaboration.

Step 1: Gather

Imagine this: You’re tasked with leading a campaign for a new truck from a major automotive brand. The brief includes all the vehicle’s features and customer research, but it’s not enough.

Some might jump straight to brainstorming, but if you follow A Technique For Producing Ideas, you’ll know the first crucial step is to gather materials. The brief is just one part of the equation—there’s always more to explore.

Start Your Free Collection

1. Take the brief and highlight key terms as you identify them. Create a list of related topics and search terms. Be sure to include trending topics or even “random” elements that might relate to your category.
2. Go to Catchandrelease.com/discover and start entering your keywords in the search bar. The page will fill with content from the Catch+Release Creator Community, individuals who are open to licensing their work to brands and agencies. No need to worry about licensing anything at this stage—you’re simply gathering content to inspire ideas.
3. When you find an asset that resonates, click on it and hit the “COLLECT” button. If you have a free account, you can either add it to an existing collection or start a new one. Name your collection appropriately (e.g., “Truck Brief”).
4. Continue exploring and searching. You can create a new collection for each keyword set—just click “create new,” and name it based on the topic or keyword you’re focusing on.

Unlock the secrets to creating compelling, authentic content with ease. Download our free guide “Made from the Internet in 5 Steps” and learn how to leverage user-generated content to supercharge your next campaign. Discover step-by-step strategies to find, curate, and legally license the perfect assets for your brand stories. Start creating content that resonates with your audience today!

• Introduction
• Brands Are Co-Creations
• From Brief to Bounty
• Start Your Free Collection
• Find And Collect What You Love
• Digesting the Material
• Let’s Get Unconscious
• Nurturing the Unconscious
• The Idea: Write It Down
• The First Eureka
• The Light of Day

Number of Pages:

• 13 pages

Pricing: 

• Free