Creative Direction: Use Storytelling to Pitch and Sell Ideas
A course by Ray Smiling
, Creative Director
![After Hours [Webseries]. Film, Video, and TV project by Ray Smiling - 11.30.2021](https://cdn.domestika.org/c_fill,dpr_1.0,f_auto,h_109,pg_1,t_base_params,w_109/v1638309674/project-covers/001/335/568/1335568-original.?1638309674)
Learn how to generate, pitch, and sell powerful ideas that help brands build connections with their audience
- Best seller
- 100% positive reviews (141)
- 5917 students
- Audio: English
- English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, French, Italian, Polish, Dutch
Learn how to generate, pitch, and sell powerful ideas that help brands build connections with their audience
- 100% positive reviews (141)
- 5917 students
- 22 lessons (4h 59m)
- 11 additional resources (3 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: English
- English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, French, Italian, Polish, Dutch
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
Creative direction is about helping clients build a strong emotional connection to their audience. Creative director and writer Ray Smiling specializes in achieving exactly that, through problem solving and storytelling. He has collaborated with clients including Amazon Music, Beats by Dre, and adidas.
In this course, he teaches you how to go from a blank page to a creative pitch, and sell powerful ideas to clients and collaborators alike. Learn to identify a problem, and create an innovative solution that makes a statement about the world. Are you ready to captivate an audience with a thoughtful and compelling pitch?
What will you learn in this online course?
Course table of contents
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U1U1. Introduction
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U2U2. Generating a Concept
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U3U3. Creating the Pitch
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U4U4. Pitching the Idea
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FPFP Final project
Begin the course by getting to know creative director Ray Smiling. He talks through the creative career that has seen him work with a number of global brands along with the influences that inspire his projects, from designers to fellow directors.
Dive into what a brief looks like before learning how to understand an audience in order to generate ideas with them in mind. Discover how to connect the problem determined by a brief to a wider insight that relates to the world we live in. Use this insight to formulate an idea that serves an answer to the problem. Then gather visual references that illustrate your concept, to make it novel, dynamic, and clear.
Time to create your pitch. Start by introducing yourself and your expertise to potential clients, then learn how to introduce the context of your project and the problem it solves. Explore how to present your insight and your vision in a compelling way, and reiterate the benefits of your project.
Finish the course by hearing more advice on preparing your pitches and selling your ideas, including rehearsing and condensing your presentation. Ray also provides tips on how you can bring your visions to life by collaborating with other creatives.
What is this course's project?
Build an innovative pitch deck for a creative project, and learn how to sell it to potential clients or collaborators.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
This course is for creatives interested in learning how to generate and pitch innovative business ideas.
Requirements and materials
No previous experience is required.
You will need a computer with access to Google Slides.
Reviews
A course by Ray Smiling
Ray Smiling is a creative director and writer from New York. He first ventured into design and creative thinking by making CD covers and posters for his friends’ bands. From there, he worked in a number of creative roles, from social media to copywriting.
Ray later went on to specialize in advertising, collaborating with brands including Beats by Dre, adidas, Under Armour, CoverGirl, Foot Locker, Amazon Music, and the NBA. He has also written and directed short films and web series. No matter the format, Ray is passionate about creating content that elicits strong emotions and builds a connection between people and brands.
Content
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U1
Introduction
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About Me
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Influences
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U2
Generating a Concept
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Establishing the Brief
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The Audience 1
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The Audience 2
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Generating an Insight
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Formulating an Idea 1
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Formulating an Idea 2
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Visual Research 1
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Visual Research 2
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Developing an Execution 1
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Developing an Execution 2
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U3
Creating the Pitch
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Establishing Your Credentials
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Introducing the World and Problem 1
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Introducing the World and Problem 2
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Presenting Your Insight 1
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Presenting Your Insight 2
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Presenting Your Vision 1
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Presenting Your Vision 2
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Re-Establishing How Your Vision Solves the Problem
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U4
Pitching the Idea
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How to Pitch
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Collaborating
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FP
Final project
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Creative Direction: Generate and Pitch Compelling Ideas
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
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Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
Domestika's courses are online classes that provide you with the tools and skills you need to complete a specific project. Every step of the project combines video lessons with complementary instructional material, so you can learn by doing. Domestika's courses also allow you to share your own projects with the teacher and with other students, creating a dynamic course community.
All courses are 100% online, so once they're published, courses start and finish whenever you want. You set the pace of the class. You can go back to review what interests you most and skip what you already know, ask questions, answer questions, share your projects, and more.
The courses are divided into different units. Each one includes lessons, informational text, tasks, and practice exercises to help you carry out your project step by step, with additional complementary resources and downloads. You'll also have access to an exclusive forum where you can interact with the teacher and with other students, as well as share your work and your course project, creating a community around the course.
You can redeem the course you received by accessing the redeeming page and entering your gift code.
ninjaboii
Plusthe lessons were concise and straight to the point. he gave references and good examples. I have learned so much from thinking, researching, and how to pitch an idea, I practiced these with friends' and family's projects and they turned out great. it has helped me gain customers' confidence. and in terms of quality, the course's audio, visuals, and image quality are on point. I definitely would recommend
javieranaya
I'm a fan of this teacher's way of thinking and speaking. Very knowledgeable on the subject. Only half way through the course and I've already learned so much! Pitching and selling your ideas is a must, and this course does a great job at detailing how to do so in the best way possible. Most creatives would benefit from learning this. Highly recommend!
tribuskabana
Muito interessante.
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josh.dillon
Amazing course and instructor!
chipashachileshe23
Love this course ❤️. Great tips and easy to learn from.