In terms of things that have made a connection with me - and made me take some action - I'm pretty impressed with the charity sector.

I've blogged before about the creative approach taken by Pants to Poverty, ranging from eye-catching marches in central London (particularly catching the eye of a TV news crew), their videoing of stunts at festivals and events, and their great competition campaign against 'bad pants' harnessing people's passion through social media techniques.

I was alerted to the latest charity campaign to catch my attention via Twitter and loved the concept so much I just had to join in.

Adopt A Word is a fantasically synergistic link up between small charity, I CAN, which supports the development of speech, language and communication skills in all children with a special focus on those who find this hard and Collins the dictionary people.  What a match.

For a mere £20 you can adopt a word for a year, with a promise to care for it and give it plenty of exercise.  Give a Word a Happy Home.

Naturally I was pleased to have cottoned on to this idea quickly enough to adopt "marketing". as my very own.

As an example of great brand values coupled with a distinctive emotional appeal, the campaign must be a winner.

So what can a small business learn from these examples? What they undoubtedly do is to:

• Stand out with original ideas that would be impossible for anyone else to copy without being distinctly "me too" about it;
• Get an emotional reaction, one that makes you want to "get involved" whilst allowing you to express yourself and your own values;
• Create something to show and talk about, enabling their fans to spread the word for them.

Notable are the imaginitive ideas that go beyond the obvious, something that the typical small business could harness to great, and cost-effective effect, in their own marketing.

Do these examples give you any ideas to go beyond the usual brochures and advertising?

Francine Pickering
Clarity Marketing, Nottingham