One of the biggest misconceptions about becoming a junior copywriter or a junior art director is that you have to be a born creative. Creative ideas strike you like lightning, and you don’t even have to think about it. But there’s a reason they call it brainstorming. Lighting only strikes when the atmosphere is ripe for creative ideas. 

Thinking of creative ideas is a learned skill. You have to practice, and constantly seek out inspiration. The best way to prepare your mind for thinking of big ideas is to always be curious, and reading: reading websites, trade publications, Reddit, books.

At book180 portfolio school, we encourage our copywriters and art directors to constantly do research on the industry, new trends, and the brands they’re working on.

Here are five of our favorite websites for art direction, copywriting and advertising inspiration.
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Inspiration Grid: ‍

https://theinspirationgrid.com

‍This site is full of daily inspiration for creatives. We love the technology category.

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Ads of the World ‍

https://www.adsoftheworld.com

Ads of the world is a huge aggregation of creative work from agencies and brands around the world. You can search by advertising medium, like print, out of home, or digital. You can also search by style, like photography. There’s a student section too, so try to get your work featured!

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Deck of Brilliance ‍

https://www.deckofbrilliance.com

This is an incredible advertising resource that includes 52 tools for working up ideas in short periods of time. It’s a complete idea-generating system and a fantastic way for juniors to create new pieces for their advertising portfolio.

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Activation Ideas‍

https://www.activationideas.com 

This site is updated weekly with creative brand experience and activation ideas. Recruiters and creative directors often look for big stunts and earned-media ideas in student advertising portfolios. This is a great place to look to get your brain primed for thinking of those activation ideas.

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Modern Copywriter ‍

https://www.moderncopywriter.com

This website features hundreds of portfolios, going back more than a decade. If you’re not sure what you want your website portfolio to look like, this is such a good place to see books from creatives at all different levels.

There are dozens of advertising resources out there, but if you get in the habit of browsing these sites every week or so, you’ll prime your subconscious mind for thinking of great advertising ideas. 

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