New ideas can be very difficult to find. When you do find them and put them into action, they can provide a powerful marketing edge and become a license to print money.

Here are 8 ways to help generate new ideas:

1. Ask For Opinions

We get so close to what we are doing, that often we can't see another way of doing things. To overcome this problem you could hire consultants or simply seek opinions from someone who knows absolutely nothing about your business. There are times when we need to step outside our own environment, because sometimes ideas used in one trade can be adapted to another.

For example, which came first ball-point pen or roll-on deodorant? They both use same ingenious principle.

2. Encourage Staff Creativity If you employ staff, encourage them to think up new ideas and get them to suggest changes. You will need to be open-minded and encourage their input. You'll need to be tolerant when their ideas don't work. And you'll probably need to reward them in some way, although you'll probably find that satisfaction of "seeing their ideas in action" may be reward enough.

An awful lot are not done correctly. Far too many 'experts' think that all they have to do to captivate an audience is to stand at front with an overhead projector and drone on for a few hours.

The first thing to correct about this way of thinking is that people who have paid good money to attend are not an audience.

Plays have audiences. Movies do. Even lecturers talk to an audience.

Seminars and workshops have participants. And if they don't get to participate, they might as well have stayed at home.

Here are my ten pointers for a successful seminar or workshop. There is a lot more to it, but get these right and you will be halfway there.

1. Write a very full outline of everything you need to cover. It is vital that you are totally prepared. Nothing looks worse than a seminar presenter who is not 100% on top of flow of events.

2. Do a lot of market research before you start to write your outline. Ask people what they want/need to know. You will probably be surprised. I have found many times that things people find most fascinating or useful are things that I would have skipped over or assumed they already knew. Never assume possession of knowledge simply because it is second nature to you.

3. Remember that people learn in different ways. Some people are visual, some are audible and some have to experience things. Bearing that in mind, ensure that you provide educational stimulus for each type of person - visual charts, memorable commentary and interactive exercises.

4. Don't plan a 2-day seminar around a subject that can be covered in 2 hours.

5. Don't try to cover in 2 hours a subject that needs 2 days.