In our experience, the most productive methods involve groups of people. Ideas have a way of cascading and growing from one person to the next: again, it's all about stimulus. A random comment from one person can be the missing link for another's thinking.
Workshops can play a vital role: facilitated sessions that help groups to unload their experiences and articulate their thoughts. We often find that amazing insights and valuable ideas can be drawn out of a group of people who have probably never sat around the same table before. The situation alone, bringing together new teams and introducing new dynamics, can be the stimulus required at the early stages of a project.
Ideas created by a team will be owned by them, as a team, and help create a collective direction for the project. This unity can help bridge gaps between departments and help individuals appreciate a broader perspective than their own role permits.
Ideas can be captured and expressed in words, diagrams, pictures, sounds – in fact in almost any media that addresses our senses. However, in practice, words are often the quickest way to capture and share ideas. Well-written verbal concepts are easily understood and remembered by everyone. Combine them with a powerful visual expression and they become unforgettable: something anyone can relate to.
The value of ideas is easily overlooked. They are intangible, and it's sometimes hard to distinguish between a good idea and a poor one. More visible stages, like screen visuals, are often given more attention and are perceived to have more value than the creation of ideas. Yet without good ideas, it is unlikely that the design solution will be effective or long-lived, or enjoy the support and enthusiasm of the entire project team, let alone your customers.
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