Sometimes in our quest to innovate, we have a tendency to complicate.

We should always continue to seek out new, never-been-done-before advertising executions that will wow readers and clients. But sometimes we don’t need to look far to find them.

A good place to start is existing product offerings. Look at them with fresh eyes.

• Are you using existing ad formats and placement to their full potential?
  
  
• Can you alter them slightly (size, position, or frequency) to provide unexpected impact or engagement?
  
  
• Can you create new ad placements within existing pages/sites that are unique?
  
  
• Can you leverage past or current content to create contextual ad placement relevant to the audience and the marketer?

Often times, the answer is yes. By taking a close look at what is currently available, while keeping in mind clients’ marketing objectives, you can create meaningful programmes and boost results – without re-creating the wheel.

One example of this is a programme our creative and automotive team created with the Ontario Honda Dealers. By increasing the ad size on the front of our business section from a banner to a third of a page, as well as creating a “hanging” ad position within our news section, we were able to increase ad recall significantly.

For Volkswagen Canada, our creative and sales team worked with their agencies to create an impactful wrap execution that included historical Star content (from 1952 to 1969) about the VW Beetle, to showcase its long history and celebrate its 60th birthday.

In addition to looking at existing products, you likely have a plethora of great material archived in past request-for-proposal responses, pro-active proposals, and brainstorming sessions that have yet to realise their full potential.

It never hurts to revisit the past for insight into future opportunity.

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