Extending from Within

by Aaron ShieldsJun 29, 2010

I love magic, but I hate watching most magic acts: they lack a point of view. They end up being a collection of tricks loosely designed around a them or a”character” rather than having a purpose–something significant the audience should get from watching.

A recent trip to Vegas reminded me why I like Penn and Teller so much. You may hate their act, it is political, but at least you feel enough to hate it. Penn and Teller clearly want their audience to come away realizing that they don’t know everything about things they think they know everything about, and that they would be better off by more critically examining the world around them.

They are not doing tricks, their doing something. The tricks are merely tactics in service of that something.

When looking to do brand extensions, many brands enter the same predicament that most magicians do: they start doing things that may not be tied to the core of the brand’s purpose. They end up becoming just more places to stick a logo and end up diluting the brand.

Next time you want to extend outward, first look inward and see if those outward extensions realistically extend from within.