In tough times we need ideas more than ever before. New ideas are the rocket fuel that can propel growth, ignite economic opportunities and improve our quality of life.

INSEAD’s Global Innovation Index 2009-2010, currently ranks Ireland as the 19^th most innovative country in the world. Ireland Inc is basing its recovery on forging a new smart economy built around innovation. Crowd-sourced competitions like Your Country Your Call have recently been launched to encourage citizens to generate new ideas and proposals that could transform Ireland by creating new jobs, new opportunities and a new way of thinking.

The IDA (Industrial Development Authority) have also invested €2m launching a global campaign with the positioning ‘Ireland – Innovation comes naturally’. It is designed to attract greater direct foreign investment and stimulate economic growth. To highlight this focus, the ‘I’ word has even found its way into our political lexicon. Minister Batt O’Keeffe is now fondly known as the Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Innovation.

So what can we do locally to become more of an Innovation Nation? As part of a new series, we’ll take a closer look at innovation and how we can apply it to our businesses and our lives.

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Running a business without marketing is like winking at a pretty girl in the dark – you know what you’re doing but nobody else does. Marketing is the lifeblood of any business and the engine that drives demand, turnover and cash flow.

Marketing is not about boring your customers to death. When you have a personality and a story that is all your own, you can create marketing that’s a tough act to follow.  Why is it then that marketing is a bit of a hit and miss affair for so many businesses? Team ThinkTank sat down to map out  the 5 reasons why companies get it wrong when it comes to marketing right.

1. It’s not planned. Read the rest of this entry »

New opportunities or good-paying jobs won’t come from bailouts like NAMA. They come from start-ups. And where do start-ups come from? They come from smart, creative, inspired people who are willing to take risks and not handouts.

So if you’re considering starting your own business – or looking for ways to expand an existing one – here are three time-tested strategies you can implement to fast track growth and gain a competitive edge.

1. Discover an untapped niche that’s ‘hot’

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In celebrating St Patrick’s Day last week, advertising agency Leo Burnett developed a great tactical outdoor campaign for McDonalds in Chicago.

This execution was placed on the banks of the Chicago River, which is dyed green each year in celebration of  St. Patrick’s Day.  A perfect way to generate brand awareness and promote McDonald’s seasonal ‘Shamrock Shake’ in a fun and creative way.

This got us thinking as to why local Irish advertising agencies do very little to tap into celebrating our National Day. After all it’s a perfect opportunity to get your brand noticed and generate great buzz on social networks and other media.

Have we just become too blase about St Paddies Day? Are clients too risk averse or are our  local advertising agencies starting to lose their creative edge?

Paddy Power has been forced to pull  its latest ad on TV after regulators feared it could cause widespread offence.

The spot, the third in a series of three ads created by the bookmaker’s new ad agency Big Al’s Creative Emporium, features four wheelchair-bound actors “doing a runner” on their bill from the ‘Star of Bombay’ curry house.

After the restaurant’s owner gives up on chasing them, a brand spokesman consoles him by explaining that while Paddy Power can’t get him his customers back, it can in some cases help get him his money back, thanks to its new Money-Back specials initiative, which gives customers the opportunity to have their stake, refunded even if their bet didn’t come through.

What do you think about the TV ad? Does it cause offense, and should it have been pulled.  Either way the ad, which has been launched to coincide with next week’s Cheltenham Festival, will  certainly create a buzz online and generate great PR for the Paddy Power brand.

In the wake of the recession ThinkTank is proud to celebrate our 1st year in business. We started with an idea to build a new type of business and branding consultancy – one that creates new profit opportunities for our clients by applying different kinds of thinking to how they operate. Like architects we add to the vision of our clients by developing bespoke strategies that help them shift their thinking, drive growth and improve performance. 2009 has been an exciting year for ThinkTank as we partnered with both local and international clients to help them build strategies and create new brands. We hope that you enjoy our new web site and blog, where we will be sharing our thoughts and ideas in the areas that we are most passionate about – strategy, marketing, branding and innovation.