A Genuine Experience

I'm on vacation.  Today is Jackson's birthday, and if I still had birthdays, tomorrow would be mine.  We're in Williamsburg at a place called Great Wolf Lodge.  The draw for coming here was Jackson's complete enthusiasm for Magiquest.  I won't go into a lot of detail about either of these two entities, although I'll encourage anyone who has kids, or is a kid at heart, to click through and read about them -- you might find a fun weekend. (Although, as far as Magiquest goes, the one in Myrtle Beach blows the one in Williamsburg out of the water.)  And as an addendum, if you like the idea of blending very cool technology with live gameplay, definitely check out Magiquest.  Ok, on with the point...

Anyone who knows me knows I like stuff like hunting and fishing and boating, and riding motorcycles, and history -- mostly stuff I like to think of as "real" experiences.  Genuine stuff.  I like watching drag races, but I'd rather drive in one.  I like swimming in a pool just fine, but I prefer the ocean.  I don't feel like I've been to China after leaving the China section of Epcot.  I feel like I've been to Epcot.  I like Genuine Experiences.

But...

I also like, and create, and creative direct, experiences for the web.  And one of the most common complaints about the web I hear coming from people who don't yet truly understand the web is that it's not a real, genuine experience.  It's not life.  It's just the computer, and people who spend too much time on the web, or on the computer, aren't participating in real life.

Truth is, nothing could be further from the truth.

The web is as real as the chair you're sitting in.  Because it influences and facilitates physical actions, now more than ever, and more than probably any other medium ever has.  Yes, there is plenty of fantasy -- whether it's an RPG, or a goosed-up social network profile.  But there's plenty of fantasy in the physical space, as well.  When users interact with the things you make, the interaction is as real as any physical interaction.  It's just a different way to go about it.  Which makes the web a genuine experience.  Which makes a giant indoor water park a genuine experience.  And an electronic magic wand that triggers a sound chip and some servo motors and lights.  Real, genuine experiences.  Just, different from, say, standing on the steps of the US Capitol, sitting in the stands at Minute Maid Park, or going to an old-time county fair.

But the question is, are the digitally enhanced experiences any less important than the ones that don't need processors?  I don't think so.  In a way, I think they're more important -- because they're easier for people to experience, and thus, more accessible.  What makes them seem less important, probably, in most people's minds, is content.  But the medium is what we make of it -- and content is the most important thing we can make.

As technology evolves, experiences will evolve, as will our definition of what's "real" and "genuine."  I'll have to think about this more.  And I will.  After vacation.  Because right now, I'm genuinely having a real good time.

 

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Advertising  Marketing   Creative   Interactive   Online Marketing Design  Digital Design Blattner Brunner  Ernie Mosteller  BB Digital 

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Comments

[Ken]

Ernie...I think you can definitely create a genuine experience online and it's not totally dependent on the technology. You should be able to relate to the user through the use of correct imagery and content. If you're going to promote fishing in a creek, you might not want to put a picture of just a trout on there, but probably of someone fly fishing or catching a fish or something...the imagery MUST relate to the user's desires.

It's all about matching up with their desires and being authentic. What holds true about someone who blogs about it is the same for any website. If we put a picture of the US Capitol on www.washington.org, you probably would relate it to DC, but if we put a picture of someone on the top of the Lincoln Memorial looking at the Mall, you'll get more emotion from that picture & want to visit that place and see how you can make it your own.

The content also needs to be relevant to the user. Whomever is writing it, needs to tap into the user's innermost desires for visiting a destination or why they want this product and that'll help give a genuine experience.

[ernie mosteller]

You are absolutely correct, but that's only part of what I'm talking about. You're right in that the selection of content for a site that promotes or represents an offline experience can bring someone closer, emotionally, to that particular offline experience. The right fishing shot can, indeed, help create "fishing" emotions. But where I was going was an even more literal, and elementary interpretation:

Right now, I'm simply typing a response. But I'm experiencing a conversation -- I'm spending physical time communicating with you (and with whoever else reads this), and I'm putting thought into it, and I'm drinking a Dr. Pepper, and -- etc., etc., etc. This moment in time is a valid experience -- a valid exchange -- that is just as real as if you and I were sitting in a physical space, discussing the issue. It's just different, because of time shift and technology. Now, that's really obvious to you, and to me, and to probably anyone who reads blogs regularly. However, it's not as obvious to a larger portion of the population than we (meaning those of us who spend a lot of time on the web) grasp. Unbelievable as it may seem, there is still a huge chunk of people, including clients, including agency people, who discount web interactions as little more than ancillary time-wasters -- or at best, something to do when you don't have anything real to do. The point of the post is to position web (and other tech) interaction for what it is -- actual experience, capable of creating actual emotions, and actual, real results.

In other words, it's not necessary for me to create emotions that mimic real "fishing" in order to create a real experience. Playing a crappy flash game about fishing creates a real experience. It's not fishing, but it's still a real experience.

Years ago, I was watching some of my young brother-in-law's friends play an NHL console game, and they were messing with each other -- physically jostling each other in hopes of creating a screw up. One of them said to the other, "Back off, dude, I'm playing hockey here!" Now, the truth is, he wasn't playing hockey. Had he been, he would have been sweaty, on the ice, in skates and pads. Instead, he was comfortably seated in a Barca-lounger with some cheese doodles by his side. Was that a real experience, though? I say yes. It wasn't hockey. But it was real.