Just spent a night in downtown Chicago with my wife celebrating my 40th birthday. We splurged and stayed at the W hotel (ok, we Pricelined it, but still...). If you've never stayed at a W, or if you're just a brand junkie, I highly recommend paying a visit to your local W. Not surprisingly, W's are everywhere, and everything ties back to their "Whatever, Whenever" slogan that encapsulates the whole experience.
But one thing that stood out to me was the presentation in the room itself. One wall was dominated with a wall unit that contained the desk, plasma tv, minibar, etc. Most of the doors that covered these items were of the sliding variety, and in a stroke of utter genius, several of them had been opened ever so slightly...enough that you could see something interesting behind, but maybe couldn't tell exactly what. A sucker for a treasure hunt, I opened them instantly. Some were boring...ooh...the outlet strip for your computer. Some were classy...a stylishly lit bottle of wine and some glasses. Didn't matter. The end result was that they got me to interact with the experience. They took that irresistible "What's behind the door?" urge and totally manipulated me into doing something. It worked. It was brilliant.
While most of us don't run hotels...the "peek behind the door" is a strategy we can still use, thanks to the internet. We're drawn to things that seem only partially complete or out of place or intentionally hidden, and when you combine that desire with the internet's ability to hide, show, move, highlight, etc., you can easily get people to engage your site. No...it may not turn everyone into a client...I didn't plug in a computer or buy the wine...but that little level of interaction made the experience stand out from 98% of the other hotel experiences I've had.
