Idea Vs.

Concept
by Orlaith Hendron
on December 30th, 2015

Idea Vs Concept
On the jovoto platform we often refer to ideas and concepts and we thought it would be useful
to take a closer look at both to really see what the difference is.

Ship to Shore
You can think of a concept as a ship and ideas as the crew. Neither are at their best without
the other. You want your ship to have a purpose. Is it carrying something? Where is it going?
What route will it take? The crew of the ship make all this happen, they fuel the ship, they
keep it on track to reach it’s final destination.

In the same way, ideas are what make a concept become reality, they are the crew that drive
the concept forward. Individual crew members are of course valuable without a ship, they
have skills that can be used elsewhere, just like some ideas can stand alone. But on a ship is
where a crew member works best and ideas are usually more powerful when they are used
within a wider concept.

Here are some examples to explain it even further:

Kit Kat – Have a break
A good concept can often be turned into a 360 campaign that works in many different
channels. This campaign from Kit Kat is a great example of a simple concept that can be
executed in so many different ways.

Concept: Encourage people to have a break once in a while.

Idea: A website where absolutely nothing happens.

 In 2009 Kit Kat released a new website that literally had nothing on it. It’s no longer available
but the whole idea was to go over there and take a break from the mighty internet.

Idea: Offer people a technology break with a free NO wifi zone.

Get disconnected and have a break

from it all.
Idea: A halfmade billboard.

The poster man is having a break while putting up the ad…

Idea: A voice command for android that gives you 5 funny Youtube videos to look at while you
have a break.

KitKat is an excellent example of how a simple concept can incorporate many different ideas
and run for decades. This concept was even used by Greenpeace to showcase the bad impact
Nestlè has on the rainforest and orangutan. Proof that a good campaign is not always enough,
you need to DO good as well…

Below are some more visual examples of how a concept and idea differ and they could offer
some insight into how you develop your next project on jovoto.
Sharpie Pens
Concept: Show that many brilliant ideas once started with a simple sketch with a Sharpie.

Idea: Suggest that early

sketches of classic
logos were made by
Sharpie’s.

The famous Apple logo

The Rolling Stones logo
Faber Castell Pens
Concept: Visualise the slogan “in every pencil there is an idea waiting to be discovered”.

Idea: Turn the lead of a pencil into a spotlight for different kinds of artists.

A beautiful poem first written with a pen A piece of music written with a pen…
…

PARISLOFT – Teeth Whitening Services

Concept: Demonstrate the slogan “we don’t like yellow”.

Idea: Posters of normally yellow objects turned white.

Looking at these concepts and ideas, it’s rather easy to come up with more ideas to add to
them. Try it! Where else could the above campaigns go? Write your suggestion in the
comments below!

So there we have it, we hope this post has been helpful for jovotans and for those of you not
on the jovoto platform just yet. If you want to get involved you can sign up for free here and
get access to high profile clients and our collaborative community of creatives. Check
out the current challenges here.

https://www.jovoto.com/blog/uncategorized/idea-vs-concept/