Bringing New Ideas to the Table: How to Efficiently Brainstorm

WMA Blog

Productive brainstorming is key to cultivating fresh concepts and new content for a public relations program. When done proactively, it can fuel the PR pipeline throughout the year. It’s important to remember that brainstorming sessions can easily miss the mark without the proper direction. As a result, these meetings can fail to generate solid and innovative strategies, plans or actions. Before you jump into your next brainstorming session, consider the below ideas to successfully bring inventive ideas to the table and put them into action.

Pre-brainstorming

Dedicate 15 minutes to brainstorm individually before joining the group. Consider overall goals, tried-and-true tactics and forward-thinking vision. Jot down a few of your ideas on paper. These notes will be beneficial to reference during the meeting to help you effectively share your initial ideas.

Listening and adapting to ideas

Some of the best ideas are inspired by others. Not every idea needs to be comprehensive from the start. They are often strengthened by the input and contributions of others. By listening to and considering what is discussed during the meeting, the group can better adapt ideas to serve needs.

Sharing pie-in-the-sky ideas

Your idea may seem slightly out of reach, but don’t let that keep you from voicing it. The concept may be an ambition to work toward or an action to keep in mind for the future. Going further, that same idea can generate inspiration or be altered to meet more attainable goals.

Leaving with clear next steps

One of the main reasons ideas don’t take flight is that they are never put into effect. Before ending the meeting, ensure everyone is clear on next steps. This can be as simple as summarizing the ideas in an email, scheduling a follow-up meeting or conducting additional research. By streamlining actions following the brainstorming session, ideas are more likely to gain traction and remain top of mind.

Brainstorming can be a powerful tool and fun activity to bring something new to the table. By keeping these best practices in mind, collective brainstorming can be an efficient tactic that energizes your PR campaign with fresh and original ideas.

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