I came across a post by Tom Pestridge that uses a simple “circus” analogy to explain marketing. It’s the kind of refresher you read and immediately think, right, that’s the difference between the tactics and the system.

But reading it in early 2026 also landed differently.

A lot has changed in the past few years, not just channels, not just algorithms, but expectations. And I’m noticing a pattern with strategic leaders: it’s not that they don’t care, it’s that the pace has been so relentless that many teams default to the safest next step. The least risky option. The “we know this works” option. Even when deep down, it doesn’t land the same way anymore.

So below is a short recap of Tom’s circus framing, and then I’m going to overlay it with what I’ve learned building immersive and interactive experiences. Not just XR. Broader than that. Because the real shift isn’t “add a headset.” It’s learning to think in layers, and using the right layer at the right moment to create clarity, confidence, and action.

• Paint a sign: Advertising
• Put the sign on an elephant and walk it into town: Promotion
• Elephant tramples the mayor’s flower bed and it ends up in the newspaper: Publicity
• You get the mayor to laugh about it publicly: Public relations
• You show people around the booths and help them spend money: Sales
• You planned the whole thing: Marketing LinkedIn

It’s clean because it separates “a tactic” from “the system”.

Now here’s the twist.

XR (extended reality, the umbrella term for AR, VR, and mixed reality) does not replace that system. It changes what each part can be.

If classic marketing is “bringing the circus to town”, XR is what happens when the audience doesn’t just hear about the circus, they enter the tent before they buy the ticket.

1) Advertising: the sign becomes a doorway

In the old model, the sign’s job is simple: announce and attract.

With XR, the “sign” can become a preview that behaves like the product.

• A poster that turns into an AR scene (tap, scan, or glance)
• A 3D product teaser that shows scale, options, and context in 10 seconds
• A “mini demo” that answers the first two objections before the click

The shift is subtle but huge: advertising stops being only “message”, it becomes first experience. That first touchpoint with your product or service.

In circus terms, you don’t just read “circus coming Saturday.” You catch a glimpse through a slit in the tent, lights flicker, the crowd roars, and you spot the trapeze team rehearsing mid-air. Now it’s not information anymore, it’s emotion, and a little FOMO about what you’ll miss if you don’t step inside.

2) Promotion: the elephant parade becomes interactive

Promotion is the loud, visible move that makes the town look.

XR turns promotion into participation.

Instead of “look at this thing”, it becomes “do this with the thing”.

• City-wide AR scavenger moments that pull people from place to place
• Trade show activations where the product appears at full scale, and visitors “unlock” features
• A QR that does not lead to a PDF, it leads to a guided experience

In circus terms: the elephant still walks through town, but now people can walk alongside it, point their phone (or glasses) and see the story, the characters, the schedule, even choose which act they want to learn about first.

Promotion becomes less about volume, more about movement.

3) Publicity: the flowerbed moment becomes engineered shareability

Publicity is what happens when the story spreads without you buying the airtime.

XR can create publicity because it produces something rare: a moment people want to show.

Not because it’s gimmicky, but because it’s visually undeniable.

• A volumetric capture clip of someone inside the experience
• A “wow” interaction that looks impossible in 2D
• A dramatic before/after visualization that’s instantly understandable

In circus terms: the elephant doesn’t just step on flowers. It triggers a chain reaction, confetti cannons go off, the crowd gasps, the whole town talks about it.

XR gives you a new lever: design the moment that makes other people do the distribution.

4) Public relations: the mayor doesn’t just laugh, he participates

PR is relationship, reputation, and trust, especially when things get noisy.

XR can strengthen PR because it helps you show your intent and prove your claims.

• Give journalists and partners a virtual walkthrough instead of “trust me” copy
• Let skeptical stakeholders experience the product value firsthand
• Use immersive explainers to reduce fear, confusion, and rumor

In circus terms: the mayor laughing is good. The mayor putting on the ringmaster jacket and introducing the show is better.

XR can turn “we say” into “you saw”.

5) Sales: the booths become guided demos that scale

Sales is where intent becomes revenue.

XR makes sales more effective when products are complex, configurable, physical, or hard to show.

• A rep can place the product in the buyer’s space instantly (AR)
• A buyer can explore variants without needing the physical inventory present
• A team can align internally faster because they are literally looking at the same thing

In circus terms: instead of describing every booth, you hand people a “guided pass” that shows what matters to them, answers their questions, and reduces decision friction.

XR is not “a new sales trick”, it’s a decision clarity tool.

6) Marketing: planning the circus now includes designing the world

Marketing is the system. The strategy. The orchestration.

XR forces marketing to evolve from “campaign planning” to something closer to experience design + measurement.

Because once you add XR, you are no longer only producing assets (ads, posts, brochures). You are producing spaces, scenes, interactions, and journeys.

That changes how you think about:

• content production pipelines (3D assets become reusable building blocks)
• customer journeys (less linear, more exploratory)
• metrics (interaction quality matters more than impressions)
• brand (what people felt becomes what they remember)

In circus terms: you’re not only planning the parade and posters. You’re designing the tent, the flow, the lighting, the pacing, and what people take home in their memory.

The important part: stop debating tech, start designing impact

If the circus is chaotic, immersive layers won’t fix it, they’ll amplify the chaos.

But if your positioning is clear, your story is coherent, and your journey is designed with intent, immersive becomes a multiplier because it upgrades:

• understanding (people “get it” faster)
• confidence (they can see the value, not imagine it)
• alignment (internal teams stop debating hypotheticals)
• shareability (your moments become portable)

And no, you don’t need to throw away everything you’re doing.

You don’t need to “start over.”

But it is time to add new layers that amplify what already works, and expose what no longer does. It’s time for change, an evolution your audience is waiting for.

Yes, they’re waiting for it.

In my conversations throughout 2025, I kept running into the same discrepancy: what you think your audience wants, and what your audience actually wants, are often two very different things.

Leaders assume people want less interaction, less time, less “effort.” Then you give them a well-designed immersive moment, something they can explore and control, and the response is the opposite.

They stay longer. They ask for more. They understand faster.

The conversation shouldn’t be about technology. The conversation needs to be about impact, efficiency, and reaching your audience in a more profound way.

It’s: which part of your circus is still stuck in 2D?