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How to Fix a Creative Block in Marketing

Home How to Fix a Creative Block in Marketing

To be completely transparent, I’ve been stuck lately on which topic to cover next for this marketing blog.

In marketing, you always want to stay fresh, but it’s hard to be consistently creative and not get repetitive in your content. Hopefully, this frustration resonates with you and you’ll learn some new tips for getting out of a creative block and back to producing content that promotes your library’s services and connects your community!

Open blank notebook with pen beside it.

Start Small

When you’re in a rut, everything seems overwhelming and you don’t know where to start. By starting small, with a simple goal that can be achieved, you’ll start to get back into a routine and build momentum on your accomplishments. That could mean many different things in the creative process. Maybe that means finding a trending sound on Instagram or TikTok as a starting point for a video. It could mean sitting down to write a blog and only writing one paragraph to start. Or even just setting some time aside on your calendar each day to brainstorm. Whatever project you’re feeling stuck with, breaking it down into smaller bites can always help motivate you to keep going. Plus, when you accomplish that small task, feel free to reward yourself!

Get Inspired

We all know how easy it is to start doom-scrolling social media and not come up for air. In this case, that actually could be a good thing. Hear me out—I’m not recommending your mindless consumption after a long day.  I’m saying scroll with intention and critical thinking. Seeing what other people are posting and sharing can only serve as inspiration to your own marketing plan. Set a time limit for yourself to browse a couple different social media platforms and really look at what organizations are creating right now. Stumbling upon a new series, campaign, or trend that you hadn’t thought of before could get the creative juices flowing. It might even help to talk it through with a coworker or even a patron. You never know what might spark a new idea!

Embrace It

Fans of comedic TV show “The Office” might recall Michael Scott being one of the worst bosses in television history, but he was onto something when he said, “Sometimes I’ll start a sentence and I don’t know where it’s going. I just hope to find it somewhere along the way.” Be more like Michael Scott. Embrace the fact that you’re in a creative block and you’re not sure where you’re going to end up, but give it a try anyway. The worst thing that could happen is you have a really bad first draft that no one sees. But at least then you have something to work with and edit. Sometimes all it takes is getting the words out or shooting a half-baked idea for a video as a jumping point. The creative process ebbs and flows and if you trust yourself and ride the wave, you could end up with some pretty great content!

The NJ State Library and Talking Book and Braille Center will also be closed on Monday, February 17, 2025 for Presidents Day.
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