In 2001, ten-year-old Laura Buxton released a helium balloon. On one side she wrote “please return to Laura Buxton”, and on the other she wrote her address. Where would this balloon land? A tree outside her village in Staffordshire, UK? A lake? A field?
It was found by a man in his hedge in Wiltshire, 140 miles away. He read the name on the balloon and took it to the little girl next door. Excitedly she wrote to Laura Buxton to let her know that she had the balloon. The catch? The girl was also named Laura Buxton, and she was also 10 years old.
Understanding how we perceive these coincidences and how they help create a story is vitally important in a world inundated with “messages”. Read more in my latest MarketingProfs post.
