How to do a Brainstorming and generate creative ideas for your business

Companies must continually make decisions, solve incidents or look for alternatives to certain problems and procedures and improve their processes. To tackle this type of situation and avoid choosing the most common solutions, which ultimately lead you to the same point of departure, it is interesting to use creativity techniques such as Brainstorming to generate innovative and effective solutions.

What is Brainstorming?

The Brainstorming is a creative technique, devised in 1939 by  Alex Faickney Osborn , based on the interaction between members of a group to create new ideas on a particular topic.

 Definition: Brainstorming, also known as brainstorming or brainstorming , is a creative group technique whose objective is the generation of new ideas on a specific issue or problem in a relaxed environment.

According to this technique, the interaction between the different members of the group promotes creativity and generates ideas that, working individually, would not be achieved. In this way, thanks to the group work , the ideas of the users are fed back with those of the other members of the group.

What is a Brainstorming for?

Brainstorming is used primarily to:

• Generate a lot of ideas. An example would be when you want to start a business and you do not know what to ride
• Improve the creativity of work teams. As for example when they ask you to create a logo for a client.
• Look for new opportunities to solve problems or improve some process of the company.

The use of Brainstorming helps solve problems, generate innovative solutions and overcome conformism in a specific job or situation. At times, it can also help find ideal business opportunities to implement in a company.

Pros and Cons of Brainstorming

Advantages of brainstorming

• It helps to improve creativity and teamwork.
• It is a fairly inexpensive technique and does not require a large amount of time.
• It is very useful to deal with a specific topic.
• It helps to define and coordinate objectives.
• Generates very varied ideas thanks to the diversity of people who make it.
• The ideas of others inspire the ideas of other users.

Disadvantages of brainstorming

• It does not take into account the personality of the people who participate in the session. There are shy people who have trouble speaking in public.
• It requires the figure of an experienced organizer.
• It focuses on getting lots of ideas and not on the quality they have.
• For some businesses or corporate cultures, this technical type is not appropriate.

• Brainstorming session step by step

  Phase 1. Preparation of the brainstorm

  Before conducting a brainstorming session it is necessary to know several fundamental aspects of brainstorming, such as the basic rules , figures that intervene in the session, the space in which it is performed and, finally, common failures to avoid at all costs . In this way, all the necessary steps are taken so that the brainstorming is satisfactory and it is easier to achieve the target set.
  
  

  ► Basic rules

  There are four main rules and what to follow to do a Brainstorming:
  Suspend the trial
  During the process of generating ideas, there is no need to make any assessment or criticism about them. Only the ideas are pointed, the evaluation is made later. This rule is very important and, perhaps, it is the most difficult for people to follow, since we are trained to be analytical and practical.
  Think freely
  The most practical ideas are often born of other ideas that, for the most part, are not viable. Therefore, it is very important for an effective brainstorming session, that users think freely and have impossible ideas . In this way, it is possible to get out of logical and habitual ideas, thus promoting the creation of new solutions.

  It is easier to perfect an idea, than to create a new one.

  The quantity is important
  When doing a Brainstorming, we seek to generate a large number of ideas , and then choose the best of them all. This is so for two reasons:
  1. At the beginning the most obvious and habitual ideas usually appear in the mind, so these ideas are not innovative.
  2. The more ideas generated in the session, the more you can choose, combine and adapt to solve the problem raised at the beginning.
  Multiplier effect
  Participants in brainstorming not only contribute to their thoughts, but can also suggest improvements or combine the ideas that others have. Thus, the ideas that some users have serve as a stimulus for the other participants .

  Improving one aspect of an unfeasible idea can make it the perfect solution to the problem.

  ► Main figures

  Moderator
  It is the person in charge of guiding the Brainstorming session so that it is effective and fulfills the marked objective. This figure is essential , as it serves as a filter to resolve doubts, and moderates and stimulates the participation of the members.
  Secretary
  The secretary is the person in charge of solving any problem or need that may arise in the session. In addition, she is the person who points out all the ideas that arise during the Brainstorming session. Depending on the number of participants in the session, the secretary participates or not in the session.
  Participants
  They are all those people who intervene in the storm of ideas to find and propose solutions to the proposed problem.
  
  

  ---

  For a #Brainstorming session to be effective, it must first be well organized 
  Click To Tweet

  ---

  
  

  ► Choice of space

  Space is an important factor in making a Brainstorming. It is advisable to do it in a large room, with natural light and blackboards to write on them.
  Sometimes, many, this idyllic space is not available. Therefore, you should take into account the following factors , as far as possible, so that the brainstorming is effective:
  1. The place where the session is held should be broad . Thus, the fluency and creativity of the participants is improved.
  2. The furniture in the room should be as comfortable as possible for the participants of the session.
  3. It is necessary to have a blackboard , computer or notebooks to write down the ideas generated by the participants.
  4. The disposition of the participants should encourage them to be one in front of the others, to encourage communication and the generation of ideas.
  5. Source of hydration with water and drinks rich in sugar and caffeine . in this way the neurons are kept awake
  
  

  Common problems when brainstorming

  • Do not clearly define the objectives of the session.
  • Losing the focus of the main objective. The moderator must redirect the session.
  • Choose the moderator of the session badly. If this does not lead well, the session will not go well.
  • Choose members specialized in the subject to be treated. This will only generate perspectives already created.
  • A very large group of participants encourages many users not to talk and lose valuable opinions.
  • Choose the first ideas as the best ones. This influences the direction that other ideas take.
  
  

  Phase 2. Development of the Brainstorming session

  Once all the elements for brainstorming are prepared, it is time to start the session . Brainstorming is made up of four stages : Warming up, Generating ideas, Improving ideas and, finally, Evaluation.

  
  

  1 # Problem Statement

  It's time to start brainstorming. At this point you should:

  1. Explain the purpose of the session to the participants.
  2. Set a maximum duration time of the Brainstorming session.
  3. Indicate a maximum or minimum number of ideas that you want to reach.
  4. Remember the basic rules to follow in a brainstorm.

  Having said that, the participants should start to let their imagination run free and say the ideas they can think of to solve the problem.

  Techniques to define the problem

  These are techniques that, although they do not belong as such to brainstorming, are necessary to achieve an optimal definition of the problem. Generally they are not usually done with all the collaborators, but only with the moderator and some participants of the session.

  5 Whys technique

  What does it consist of?

  It is a fairly simple technique, but effective. It consists of asking 5 times in a row why a situation, action or thing in order to understand in depth the cause or ultimate motivation of the process.

  How does it apply. Example:

  Problem: The wheels of the car are deflated

  Why are they deflated?  - Because they have not bloated.

  Why have not they gotten bloated?  - Because I have not noticed.

  Why did you notice?  - Because I have not taken the car.

  Why has not the car been used?  - Because I have not had the time.

  Why have not you had time?  - Because I've been traveling.

  If we only stayed with the first answer, we could change all the wheels thinking that they are punctured. However, after several questions, we see that the fault is lack of care.

  
  

  2 # Generation of Ideas

  Before starting with brainstorming, it is necessary to break the ice between the participants of the session. This is important to encourage better collective functioning during the brainstorming and avoid potential tensions among the participants.

  It is common to use games and / or tests such as, name all objects that have a price below € 20 or say all species of animals.

  Once the game is over, it is time to start generating ideas that can solve the problem previously raised.

  Techniques to generate ideas

  They are techniques that allow multiplying the generation of ideas and, when combined, help the Brainstorming session to be a success.

  Classic Brainstorming

  What does it consist of?

  It is the original technique of Brainstorming. The only thing that must be done to be able to follow it is to explain the problem and generate ideas.

  How does it apply

  To use this technique, simply pose the problem or launch a question to the participants and they will say everything they can think of about it.

  All these ideas must be pointed out by the secretary of the session in order to register them. In this case, it is also recommended that it be in a visible place for all participants and thus encourage the combination of ideas.

  When is it used?

  This technique is recommended when the Brainstorming session is performed with participants who already have experience in this type of session.

  Brainstorming 3-12-3

  Brainstorming 3-12-3

  What does it consist of?

  It is a brainstorming that is divided into the three fundamental phases of Brainstorming. The numbers 3-12-3 refer to the minutes that each of the phases lasts. In addition, this technique stands out because it works individually and in groups.

  How does it apply

  The first thing to do is define the problem you want to solve with the storm of ideas and write it in a place that is clearly visible to everyone. Then, you must distribute paper and pen to all the participants.

  To develop the phases, it is first explained and then developed. This process is repeated with each of the three that there is.

  Phase 1 (3 minutes): Participants individually, write down on the paper all they can think of to solve the problem. In this phase there are no filters, so everything they write is valid.

  After completing the 3 minutes, the moderator collects the papers and shuffles them.

  ** TRICK: If participants find it difficult to start, they should be encouraged to start writing names and verbs.

  Phase 2 (12 minutes):  The participants are grouped in pairs (groups of two people) and 3 papers are given to each group. Once distributed, they have 12 minutes to develop a concept of the 3 distributed.

  It is common to use questions such as "How could it be improved ...? to focus all ideas and proposals.

  In addition, teams must be notified that they will then have 3 minutes to explain their idea to the rest of the participants.

  Phase 3 (3 minutes):  each group exposes their ideas to the rest in 3 minutes.

  When is it used?

  This type of brainstorming technique is useful for those sessions where the problem is very well defined. The only negative thing about this session is that it leaves a large number of ideas from the first phase undeveloped.

  Map Mind

  Cut and shred in Map Mind

  What does it consist of?

  This brainstorming technique involves analyzing a product or service in depth d to be able to improve it.

  How does it apply. Example

  This technique is very simple, since it is enough to go shredding the product or service into smaller elements until it can not be more.

  We are going to use a car as an example:

  1. We divide the car into smaller elements such as wheels, engine, brakes ... etc.
  2. We subdivide each one of the previous elements like the wheels in air chamber, hubcaps, tire ... etc.
  3. Each item is written in a post it and placed on a wall or blackboard to treat it as a mental map.
  4. We analyze each element individually asking questions such as: How can it be improved? Is there another way to perform that function?
  5. The generated responses are written and placed around each post it creating the branches of the mental map.

  When is it used?

  This Brainstorming technique is useful for in-depth analysis of a product or service.
  
  

  ---

  Every storm of ideas has 3 phases: identification of the problem, generation of ideas and analysis. 
  Click To Tweet

  ---

  
  

  3 # Analysis and choice

  With this last step the ideas are analyzed and the most appropriate / interesting one is chosen to solve the problem raised at the beginning of the session and, therefore, the brainstorming session is considered to be over.

  Analysis Techniques

  Analysis techniques are very important in a Brainstorming session, since they help you visualize the ideas generated based on common characteristics, create categories of ideas and, finally, choose the best solution.

  Group ideas

  What does it consist of?

  It is a technique that helps us categorize a large number of ideas , and then choose the most appropriate one by voting.

  How does it apply. Example

  The first thing to do is write all the ideas generated in the session in a post-it and put them on a wall or blackboard. In addition, you have to add a post-it with the general objective so you do not miss the focus.

  Once you have all the ideas displayed on the wall it is time to classify them by teams. In this way, you put together those ideas related by their characteristics or functionalities. Put one on top of another so you can see with a simple glance the amount of ideas that each category has.

  ** If some ideas do not fit into any category, do not worry. Leave them loose.

  When you have all the ideas separated by categories, review them and give a representative name to each category.

  Finally, distribute votes to each of the members of the group (whichever you want, but distribute all the same amount) to choose the one or ideas that they like the most. The idea that has the most votes will be the one chosen.

  Another option is to choose the idea by consensus. This option takes more time, since it requires agreeing to the different participants, but when implementing the idea is better.

  When is it used?

  To be able to analyze a large number of ideas by ordering them by categories.

  Forced ranking

  Forced ranking

  What does it consist of?

  Sometimes, it can be difficult to choose between several ideas , especially we are deciding on complicated issues. This technique is perfect for these situations.

  How does it apply. Example

  The first thing to do is reduce the number of ideas to a maximum of 10, but if they are 5 better. If you have more than 10, use the previous technique to reduce the number.

  Once the ideas are chosen, they must be put in a table. One below the other, forming as many rows as you have ideas. In the columns, you have to put criteria that help to choose the most appropriate idea, taking into account the final objective.

  Each participant places an assessment in each criterion, so that if there are 5 ideas, the idea that best suits that criterion will receive a 5, the following a 4 ... etc. This process is done with all the criteria and with each idea.

  To finish, add the value given to each idea in each criterion and choose the one with the best overall rating.

  When is it used?

  To choose between a small group of complex ideas.

  If you want to know more techniques to define the problem, generate ideas and analyze, I recommend the Thinkernauts blog .

• Tips to make a Brainstorming session more effective

  Encourages the proposal of bad ideas

  For a brainstorm to be truly effective, all of its members must feel comfortable and not be ashamed to share their ideas, regardless of whether they are good or bad. This is especially important when some of the participants are shy or may have an impression to speak in public.
  A good idea to put an end to these negative feelings is to dedicate a few minutes of the session to encourage the participants to propose absurd ideas . This causes the environment to relax and lose the possible embarrassment.

  If the participants are not receptive, the moderator should begin to say their bad ideas.

  Once the goal of relaxing the participating team has been achieved, it is time to refocus the brainstorming on feasible and useful ideas.

  Organize games to encourage improvisation

  For creativity to flow, it is necessary to create a good environment / climate . Therefore, many brainstorming starts with improvisational games that help to promote good atmosphere and relaxation.

  «That experience relaxed us and opened our minds before starting the most traditional brainstorming session» - Corey Blake

  Create inspiration panels

  Inspiration panels, also known as moodboards , is one of the most used ways in brainstorms for ideas, emotions and feelings to flow.

  Moodboards are very useful when you want to try new concepts of brand and design.

  To do this, in these moodboards, multiple images are used, colors and other visual elements are combined that are directly or indirectly related to the theme or problem to be solved.
  
  
  
  

  Image credit: http://bit.ly/2Gyazpf
  The moodboards that you use in your brainstorming can be on a cork, blackboard or virtual as the example you have right above. Also, you can use other tools such as applications that create moodboard that help you organize and share your own inspiration panel.

   Change of place

  Performing the brainstorming in a different space can affect the functioning of the brain, so that if you change to a motivating environment , generate more and better ideas .

• Online tools to do Brainstorms

  Below you have 7 online tools that will help you manage and improve the Brainstorming session . All of them are free and allow other participants to be added.

  IdeaBoardz

  IdeaBoardz  is a tool that allows you to create and configure a virtual board . Also, you can create a different section for each problem or situation for which you need to brainstorm.
  Once you have this part created, you can invite other users to add comments with the ideas that come to mind. In addition, IdeaBoardz allows to make similar votes to the "likes" of Facebook, so it can be very useful to establish an order of priority when evaluating ideas.

  RealTime Board

  Realtime Board  is very similar to a collaborative virtual whiteboard where you can add comments and ideas in the form of post-it. It is a very easy tool to use. You can use predefined templates and add files directly from Google Drive or from your computer.
  With the free version you can create up to three Brainstorming boards and share it with up to three people.
  
  

• FreePlane

  Freeplane  is a tool with which you can create mental maps that help you structure yourself. Its operation is very simple:

  1. Add all the ideas that you have taken during Brainstorming.
  2. Organize them with lines, nodes and styles.
  3. Visualize the result and use filters for a better experience.

  In addition, you can configure tasks and reminders , as well as present the result as if it were a Prezi.Use online tools to help you organize and manage all the ideas generated in the #Brainstorming 

  Click To Tweet

  ---

  Coggle

  Coggle is a tool used to capture different nuances on a topic in a very visual way and share it with other users. In these diagrams you can add images, set colors and draw links. In addition, it has an inspiration section where you can see the diagrams that other users have created.

  With the free plan you can create three private diagrams, but public all you want. Once finished, you can export it in PDF or PNG.

• WiseMapping

  WiseMapping is an open source project with which you can collaborate with other users and create mental maps with fonts, colors and personalized icons. Once you have finished it, you can export it.
  It is a free tool for companies , so it is ideal not only as help to make brainstorms, but for any project.

• conclusion

  Creativity, innovation and differentiation are elements today that every company seeks and needs . Brainstorming can be very useful to achieve something really different and that will surprise your clients and users.
  Of course, it is a technique that, although it does not seem complex, has many factors that form it and influence its outcome. Therefore, you should pay attention to each of them or otherwise, the results you get will not be what you expect.
  If at the end you decide to do a brainstorming session, I hope that this content will help you improve the results and prepare everything perfectly.
  Tell us in the comments your experience and in what situations you have used the brainstorms.
  The entry How to do a Brainstorming and generate creative ideas for your business appears first in.