02/02/2021
Why The Scientific Method Should Be Used More in Indonesia’s Creative Industry
The scientific method is a method of acquiring knowledge that involves formulating hypotheses based on observations and refinement of the hypotheses based on the experimental findings. When conducting research, scientists use the scientific method to collect measurable, empirical evidence in an attempt to support or contradict a theory. Although it is something that’s taught in university classrooms, we often don’t value it as much when it comes to professional fields that don’t directly involve science such as those that are in the so-called “creative industry”.
When it comes to the creative industry in Indonesia, not all of them sees and values the scientific method as an effective tool to tackle challenges and solve problems. A simple illustration can be made by referring to the amount of scientific researchers in Indonesia. According to data provided by the Ministry of Research and Technology, for every one million people, there are only around 1.000 researchers in Indonesia. We can then draw a contrast from South Korea for example where for every 1.000.000 people, there are at least 8.000 researchers. This reality becomes more vivid when we look at creative businesses that are just starting out or are still in the small to medium scale. A habit of constant adaptation is more common and often seen instead of generating meaningful hypotheses and conducting rigorous testing.
It has to be admitted that some form of scientific method is already applied towards a certain degree by adopting tested and proven methods in a lot of small to medium creative businesses. These methods might be a certain modification of Eric Ries’ Lean Startup Method for businesses that try to create products or some other form of market research methodologies for businesses in the area of communication. However, by understanding and applying the scientific method more firmly, a lot of false positives can be mitigated and with overall yields of better results.
Interesting Observations
Applying the scientific method will push creative businesses to constantly make interesting observations and try to formulate meaningful hypotheses from them. Not only that are businesses encouraged to observe more, but they are also encouraged to make the right observations. A habit of conducting observations will help businesses to not only better understand their audience and consumers, but also their internal workings. Through the practice of conducting meaningful observations, businesses are able to approach problems and challenges through a more structured framework.
Asking The Right Questions
Asking questions has always and will always be an essential part of improving a business. However, asking the wrong questions, let alone pushing to answer them, can also be a waste of time or even worse, a step-back for the business itself. That is why the scientific method is applied to try and help businesses ask the right questions based on observations that have been previously made. These questions, or hypotheses, could then be tested using certain tools and methods that are available to the business in order to establish what is true and what is not, what works and what doesn’t.
Craft Better Strategies
Through the previous processes of observing and asking questions, businesses in the creative industry could then start crafting better strategies to tackle their challenges more effectively and generate growth. Through this mindset of habitualising the scientific method, businesses can start acknowledging the methods that don’t work and not fall into the trap of false positives.
In a country where the dawn of creative industries and startups has just risen to a new day, the scientific method can be a solution towards sustainable growth and meaningful impact especially for newer and younger businesses. As an agency that has the spirit of “liberation” at its core, Local To***co tries to adapt approaches based on the scientific method to solve problems. By constantly experimenting and improving, we hope to be able to realise our goals and ideals in the creative industry and improve it as a whole.
