Some Ideas - Other Ideas
The line is, "The amount of technology in today's cars is like something out of a spaceship."
The reality is - in almost all new cars, there's probably more technology than in the majority of spaceships that have actually flown outside Earth's atmosphere. Don't believe me? Visit the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum in Washington, DC and check out an Apollo capsule. Not only will you realize you've probably got more advanced technology in your cell phone, you'll also gain a new appreciation for the level of courage and dedication it took to step into one of those machines and be blasted away from home.
But I'm not writing to impress upon you the amazing achievements of engineers and astronauts, what I want to point out is that this line works because of the perception of the audience. The perception is that "spaceship = impossibly complex advanced technology". Yes, more recent spaceships - and designs for future spaceships - incorporate some very advanced, even breakthrough technology, but that's not the point I'm driving at here. It wouldn't matter if the space shuttle, for example, were actually made from lashed together bamboo (it's not, by the way - just in case you were wondering).
The perception of the audience as "spaceship = advanced technology" is all that actually matters (from a marketing perspective, at least).
Perhaps you want to shake up your target's perceptions - and that can be a great way to grab attention - but you have to do it right, and in this case right means not half-heartedly. If you're going to change someone else's perspective, you have to do it with a jolt.
So, when you're telling your marketing stories, are you keeping your audience's pre-existing view of the world in mind?
(Oh - and if you want some of your own perceptions possibly shaken up, check out this video of Mike Rowe's presentation at TED.)
