Anatomy of a "Whimper"
/Benjamin Budzak from ThoughtCast Magic sent along this email…
“Latest release from magic live…went out with a whimper… can I get your feedback on this?”
The question of why a trick didn’t go over as well as hoped is an interesting thing to consider. (Assuming it’s a halfway decent trick.) It’s essentially an extension of my offer to tell people the worst thing about their trick.
So let’s consider why this trick might not have taken off the way Benjamin wanted. I don’t know if these are the actual reasons, but just some considerations.
The trick is a signed card to box, where the card visually appears in the box. The box used is a Trader Joe’s mint box (although it can appear as a generic mint box if you don’t have Trader Joe’s in your area).
The notion of a card visually appearing in a box is a good one. And—depending on what you’re going for—could be considered a big advancement to the standard card to box. Or could even make for an interesting follow-up to a standard Card to Box.
So if I had to guess why this version didn’t gain the traction he had expected, these would be my suppositions. These are based only on the demo and the nature of the trick itself. I haven’t handled the actual effect in person or seen how it was marketed elsewhere.
Card to Box Isn’t Sexy. These things tend to go in cycles. In the late 2010s there was an influx of Card to Box effects. This version may have come out at a non-peak time.
It’s Too Familiar. “A card appears in a mint box? Oh yeah… didn’t Danny Garcia release that?”
With so much magic released every week, it’s hard to pull eyes to your product if it doesn’t feel truly unique.
While this version is significantly different from other variations on Card to Box, that might not be completely obvious unless people really pay attention (which they might not do if they feel they already know what they’re looking at).
It’s Too Unfamiliar. What is this box? If you go to Trader Joe’s and buy the mints regularly, then this is an “ordinary object.” But that is—at most—probably 1% of the population. For almost everyone else, this is a somewhat unusual looking box.
The Demo Video Style. This style of advertising video, that’s focused on the reactions, feels somewhat dated. I think there was a time when magicians would look at videos like this and think, “Wow! Look at the reactions this trick gets. If I get this trick… then I can get these reactions!” But I think in 2024 magicians understand the reactions in demo videos aren’t a good barometer for how good the trick is. I think we still like to see reactions, I just don’t think they’re persuasive anymore.
More than ever, I think magicians expect to see something close to a complete performance on the demo video.
The Incomplete Demo. Traditionally, in a Card to Box effect, the moment people want to see is when the card is removed from the box. That moment isn’t shown at all in this demo. So most people will think: “It must not look good. If it looked good, he would have shown it.”
Some Minor Tweaks. You should have always used a red-backed card in the demo. It’s harder to see the appearance of the blue card in that video.
The appearance also needs a little finesse. As it’s performed in the demo, the card looks like it pops into the case when the case is squeezed. It looks too mechanical.
I think it’s better if it feels like the card fades into existence more than that it “pops” into existence. A smooth wave of the hand back and forth would hide the squeezing action and look more magical
Inherent Issues.
A card appearing in a mint tin has no particular meaning to anyone.
The label which covers the front of the mint tin makes the appearance significantly less visually arresting. Obviously it’s necessary for the method, but it also means that you’re only seeing a small portion of the card appear.
His Reputation. ThoughtCast Magic is known for producing tricks using phones and electronics. So the audience he has built up might not be overly interested in this style of effect. Whereas if Sankey or someone like that had put this out, it might have gotten a better response as it’s more in line with the style of his previous releases.
The Price. I think the price of $65 is completely fair—especially since the trick is a relatively small release from an independent creator. But that price is still above the $20-$40 impulse purchase price that I think most magicians are willing to take a chance on. And given that this is not really in line with the type of material he has released in the past, I don’t think he can just rely on his past releases to sell this one. So this one will need to be sold based on the strength of reviews and recommendations.
Those would be my guesses as to why this didn’t get the response Benjamin might have wanted. Some of these issues can be addressed, some can’t.
As a final note, I actually think the unedited performance he sent me a couple of months ago does a better job of selling the strength of the visual appearance of the card. So for those who are interested in this effect, here’s a clip from that video. (This is all one shot, I just sped up the middle part for the sake of the GIF.)
