Create ideas using: Show the Future
How do I show the future without looking like naive sci-fi?
Ground it in current trajectories and real possibilities, not fantasy. Show where existing trends lead if your brand's vision wins. Make it aspirational but believable--close enough to now that people can see the path from here to there. Pure fantasy reads as escapism. Plausible futures read as vision.
What if the future I show seems impossible to achieve?
Then scale it back or make the path clearer. The future should feel hard but not delusional. Show the steps, acknowledge the obstacles, but paint the destination worth fighting for. If your future vision is so far removed from reality that people can't connect it to today, it's inspiration porn, not genuine vision.
Example: How it could look
A plant-based food company doesn't show hippies eating salad--they show mainstream restaurants, school cafeterias, and fast food chains serving plant-based options as default. Kids growing up thinking that's normal. The future isn't vegan crusaders; it's a world where plant-based is simply easier, tastier, and more available. Aspirational and achievable.
Or like this:
Why is Show the Future a great technique?
Showing the future creates aspiration and positions your brand as the catalyst for desirable change people want to be part of.
Inspires action by showing what's possible
Positions brand as visionary and forward-thinking
Creates movement by giving shared destination
Makes choosing your brand feel progressive
The future isn't fixed--it's contested. When you show a compelling version of what could be, you're not just selling products, you're selling a worldview. People who buy that vision become your evangelists because they want that future too.
! When not to use the Show the Future Technique
When your future vision has nothing to do with what your brand actually delivers. Visionary marketing without product backing is just empty promises.
Technique first described by www.deckofbrilliance.com