Creating a demand before the INITIAL REVEAL. Anticipation and suspense are effective tools when establishing a buzz for a specific launch. Steve Jobs of Apple embraces suspense on any new product he discusses. Steve Wynn in Las Vegas reinvents the town he re-established using suspense in his reveal of his new properties, and even J.J. Abrams (writer of V Shows Lost & Alias) is now applying the trick to his unnamed monster movie slated for 1.18.08. The true magic is finding a balance between what will be revealed and what information to pull out later.
The movie industry has embraced the method as a tool deemed trailers, TV shows uses the terms cliffhangers. These designed tools are to grasp the audience and unfulfill their insatible needs to understand the bigger picture. The suspense causes angst in not knowing what will happen next and create an emotional response to be prolonged until the next episode. Design and marketing usually have a reveal after the creative process that hardly uses the technique. However could advertising and marketing tools be adept to utilize this method in causing sensationalism or unperceived expectations of a product or service forthcoming? An audience loves to be teased and tested. Only the daring of companies risk their fortunes on suspenseful campaigns so far the products / services and companies leading the pack are in the clients perception leaders of the pack.
- Side bar -
Through a mutual friend, I was introduced to Jon Forrests site on Verbal Aikado (www.verbalaikido.com), a unique subject that will be a fascinating read. I will post more on a creative adaptation of the subject soon. Check back for more details.
-MThree
