This is a tough question to answer. Most advertising agencies stake their reputation on the creativity of their work. But you’ve probably been influenced more than once in your life by advertising that isn’t particularly creative or well-designed. So our answer is, “it depends.” If you’re selling products or services in an incredibly crowded and competitive market space, then it’s definitely important. Likewise, if your product or service falls into certain market categories, like gaming or entertainment, then creativity and style are also important. But if you’re selling HVAC service for a company, trying to be too clever with your messaging might actually work against you. One such company told us that their most successful marketing tool is a plainly written, text-based email campaign. Plus, think about how many times you’ve seen a wildly creative television commercial but had no memory of the brand, product or service? So creativity is great as long as it serves the brand and product messaging. But don’t believe it if an agency tells you that every successful piece of marketing has to be wildly creative or include innovative design. It’s just not true.