WHY SUSPENSE BEATS MYSTERY
http://www.psychotactics.com/artsuspense.htm
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Every year, millions of kids go through weeks of pure suspense.
Will Santa bring me my guitar, they wonder.
Will Santa get me a train, they speculate.
Will Santa deliver me that gorgeous doll, they ruminate.
Now let's for one second kill those weeks of suspense.
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Let's say, the kids didn't wonder, or speculate, or ruminate
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Let's say Santa just slid down that chimney.
He got in on Christmas Eve, did his thing, and when those kids
woke up, there was their gift.
No suspense. No build up.
Just this big box of goodies, lying under the tree on Christmas
morning.The kids tear open the wrapping paper, and hey, it's all over.
One second of mystery, and then finito.
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Mystery that Alfred Hitchcock would not approve of at all
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Alfred Hitchcock was a master movie maker.
And he specialised in creating suspense, instead of mystery.
'Mystery' is simply that startling moment. That moment in a movie
when you're jolted out of your seat.
Suspense on the other hand is slow-burn. Where gulp follows gulp,
and is amplified with a dose or two of pre-determined 'mystery
jolts.'
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So how do you create suspense?
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Hitchcock created suspense in a simple fashion.
Right at the start of the movie, he told you who the killer was.
Then being 'generous', he showed you who the potential victims
were. And having established the relationship, he then proceeded to
amplify the tension with the non-stop suspense.
So you knew who the killer was.
And it would drive you nuts that the victim couldn't see the
killer hovering.You'd be at the edge of your popcorn-strewn seat.
And the victim would be walking right into the trap.
And your heart would be going thump, thump, thumpity-thump.
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Much like the hearts of most kids thump all the way to Christmas
morn
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They know Santa is coming.
They know what Santa is getting them for Christmas.
They just don't know if there's the off-chance that Santa doesn't
show up.
Or if Santa has them on his 'bad-list.'
And the suspense drives them crazy.Using suspense in business is
relatively easy, but we're lazy.
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Lazy enough to use mystery
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So mystery is when you show up to a presentation, and make the
presentation.
No build up.
No rumination.
No suspense.
You do your presentation. And it's all over.
Yet look around you, and you'll find suspense every where.
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Every Harry Potter book release is piled to the top with suspense
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Every movie shows you a trailer with specially created clips that
create suspense.
Every TV serial leaves you with enough information to create
suspense for the next episode.
Every Miss Universe ceremony builds up systematically, creating
suspense; even dragging it down to second-runner up, first-runner
up and then eventual winner.
So how do you take these lessons of suspense in your business?
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So let's whizz back to that presentation you were making
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Let's say you're making a presentation at a networking meeting,
here's what you'd do:
1) You'd announce the event weeks in advance (and make sure you've
got a catchy title).
2) You'd drip-feed the audience with bullet point about what
they'd expect to hear at the presentation.
3) Through a website, blog or even a series of postcards, you'd
even give them a chunky bit of information.
4) You'd get the event organiser to send in a teaser before the
event itself, ensuring that most people attend.
5) You'd get the announcer on the day to tease with the
announcement (written by you of course.
6) You'd then make your presentation.
And that audience is more than prepared to hear what you say. In
fact they're actually keen to be there for a change.
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Adults are like kids. We love to know what's coming
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And we like to be in control of the situation. We don't like
surprises at all. And mystery makes us feel unsafe.
It makes us just a tiny bit hassled, because we don't know what's
coming.
Suspense, on the other hand allows us to savour what's to come in
a far more manageable fashion.
But suspense has a natural sense of hoopla.
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And it makes you wonder...
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Is Santa's build-up too much hoopla?
Is Harry Potter's build-up too much hoopla?
Is the Miss Universe too much hoopla?
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If you answered yes, to all of the above, you're right
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It can be too much hoopla. But hey, without the so-called hoopla,
your so-called mysterious presentation will come and go like a
ship in the night.
But Santa, Harry and Miss Uni, stick around despite showing up
year after year, after year. Their success depends on the build-up
and the suspense.
Call it hoopla, call it what you want. Your sales are directly
proportional to the build-up.
If you simply show up to make your presentation, sell your
product, or announce your event, you won't do badly.
But if you want to really get the attention of your audience,
you'll need to use suspense.
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Ask any kid and they'll tell you
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The secret isn't in the so-called mysterious goodies.
The secret is in the nail-bites, all the way to Christmas morn.
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