Designing for Everyone in the Room
Beyond the Expected: A Lesson in Experience Design from the Circus
Recently, some friends and I took our children to Zippos Circus. Like most parents, I’ve attended countless children’s events– circuses, plays, amusement parks, and more. These experiences are almost always designed with kids in mind, which is wonderful. But let’s be honest—most of the time, we go along for the ride. We take the pictures, enjoy their excitement, and appreciate the occasional moment meant to keep us mildly entertained.
But Zippos was different. It didn’t just captivate the kids– it wowed us adults too.
From the very first act, something unexpected happened. Instead of watching passively, we found ourselves cheering, clapping, and completely immersed. The energy in the tent was electric. This wasn’t just a children’s show– it was a fully realised, high-energy experience designed to engage everyone in the room.
And that’s what made it unforgettable.
Raising the “Wow” Factor
Zippos didn’t just deliver the expected circus thrills– they reimagined them, pushing the boundaries of what a traditional circus could be.
A trapeze artist caught himself solo mid-air, defying gravity with each leap. A ballerina walked en pointe across a tightrope before launching into heart-stopping jumps. Acrobats balanced impossibly on towering ladders, challenging the limits of physics. Every act took something familiar and elevated it to something extraordinary.
But the real game-changer was the ringmaster. Traditionally, the ringmaster is the host, the formal figure introducing each act and guiding the audience through the show. At Zippos, that role was completely transformed. Instead of staying on the sidelines, their ringmaster became the beating heart of the performance.
Initially introduced as a clown, he transitioned seamlessly into nearly every act– flying through the air alongside the aerialist, performing motorcycle tricks inside the death-defying cage, and engaging with the audience at every turn. His versatility, charisma, and skill made him an unforgettable presence, breaking every expectation of what a ringmaster “should” be.
There was another bold choice that made the performances even more breathtaking– these stunts were performed without safety nets.
For the kids, that detail didn’t make much difference. The tricks were dazzling either way. But for us adults, it changed everything. The absence of safety nets added a new layer of tension and amazement, making every leap, catch, and landing feel more real, more daring, more impossible. It wasn’t just about entertainment– it was a testament to courage, skill, and the power of human potential.
The Experience Design Takeaway
What Zippos achieved goes far beyond the circus tent. It’s a powerful lesson for anyone designing experiences– whether in entertainment, branding, marketing, or immersive events.
Zippos has cracked the code for what family-friendly entertainment should be. When you wow the parents as much as the kids, you elevate the entire experience. What we thought would be just another day out became a shared moment of wonder and connection– a memory we’ll be talking about for years.
And when adults leave raving about an experience, you’ve created something much bigger than a one-time event. You’ve created loyalty. You’ve turned customers into advocates. You’ve built something people want to share, return to, and bring others into.
Expanding This Lesson Beyond the Circus
This idea—designing for everyone in the room—applies far beyond live entertainment.
In experiential marketing, the real brand advocates might not be the direct participants but the people standing beside them. In immersive events, the depth of engagement isn’t just about the main audience but about how the entire space feels alive and interactive. In customer experience design, the person making the purchase might not be the person using the product, but their experience still shapes the perception of the brand.
Shifting the focus from simply engaging the “main” audience to designing for connection can be the difference between a good experience and one that is truly unforgettable.
Are You Designing for Everyone in the Room?
Next time you plan an event, craft a brand activation or build an immersive experience, ask yourself:
Who is the “companion” in this experience, and how are they engaging?
Are we providing moments of surprise, delight, or connection for everyone involved?
Will this experience be remembered, shared, and recommended not just by the main audience but by those who came along for the ride?
When you design for everyone in the room, you don’t just create a moment—you create something people can’t stop talking about.
