There are a lot of things you need in order to have a successful business. While many of these things can be learned in business school or with another type of formal education, there is one thing that is pivotal to a business’s success that can’t be taught—creativity.

Without creativity, businesses would never be able to improve upon their current way of functioning, create new and exciting products, streamline processes, and so many other things that contribute to having a productive and successful business. But if you’re still not convinced that you should begin nurturing a creative culture within your company, here are three more ways having a focus on creativity can help your business succeed.

Better Customer Service

When employees don’t feel that creativity is encouraged in the workplace, any attempt at improvement seems futile. Especially if ideas for new approaches are dismissed or overlooked, you will quickly begin to see your workforce shrink back into one robotic mass. However, if your company nurtures creativity and new ideas, Ann Gatty, a contributor to AllBusiness.com, shares that your employees’ relationships with customers could improve as a byproduct. Gatty states that 85 percent of creative and innovative ideas come from employees who frequently interact with clients. And if your employees know they can take good ideas for improvement to their supervisors and will be received with acceptance, that gives employees more incentive to have quality interactions with suggestive customers.

Become More Cost-Effective

Just because you’ve been doing something one way since the inception of your company doesn’t mean that that’s necessarily the best way to do it. However, if your workers aren’t encouraged to think creatively and innovate regarding their positions, chances for money-saving solutions go out the window. In fact, Siyana Sokolova, in an article published on LinkedIn, writes that nurturing creativity is the key to finding cost-effective solutions within your business. Without a determination to have creative employees, this monetary benefit can’t be realized.

Breeding Ground for Innovation

In order for your business to succeed, it has to be able to grow and change along with the ever growing and changing economy and customer. But if you haven’t invested in the creativity of your employees, you’ll have nothing to pull from when this creativity is needed. For this reason, Joshua Turner, a contributor to CareerRealism.com, recommends hiring creative employees so your company can have a broader approach and outlook in which to better face the future and bring innovation not only to your company, but to your entire industry.

While many business owners might think that exercises and activities that encourage creativity are merely time-wasters that can’t have a quantifiable return on investment, forward-thinking business owners understand the many benefits that can come from having smart, innovative, and creative employees. To see your business succeed, consider how you can encourage more creativity in your workforce today.

By Eddy

Eddy is the editorial columnist in Business Fundas, and oversees partner relationships. He posts articles of partners on various topics related to strategy, marketing, supply chain, technology management, social media, e-business, finance, economics and operations management. The articles posted are copyrighted under a Creative Commons unported license 4.0. To contact him, please direct your emails to [email protected].