Unusual | Ellora Caves, Maharashtra, India | Dec 2007
This past April I spent a great afternoon with Jay Goldman in Toronto discussing data-driven design decisions and the role of mystery and magic in marketing; we often forget why and how introducing the unknown into our user interfaces, application designs and business models creates the “human collisions” and positive variable intermittent reinforcement baked into successful products and business models.
Mystery provokes questions and creates engagement.
Continuing to discuss David duChemin’s new photography book, a quote from “Within The Frame”:
Leave enough clues to tell the story, and exclude enough to create a sense of mystery. Unanswered questions engage a viewer and create an interaction between the image and the viewer- a deeper level of viewing that allows us to think and feel more connected to the story. Similarly, placing details in the image that are discovered only after looking at it for a while can contribute to a feeling of surprise, even the feeling of being let in on something. It gives the image an extra layer, engaging the viewer longer or more often.
Mystery and discovery create the addictive behaviors underlying successful products.
Highly related regarding introducing mystery, discovery, serendipity and provoking questions through product and business design:
- Stephen P. Anderson on The Art & Science of Seductive Interactions
- Ming Yeow Ng on Discovery is the New Cocaine
An aside.
As a side note, I’ve often wondered why there are so many scripted television shows in the USA about detectives, cops, doctors, lawyers; perhaps the simple reason is that all of these shows are based around tying together clues, unraveling the mystery and solving problems; even if viewers do not engage and participate in trying to solve the problems, the feeling of the mystery and the sense of accomplishment from solving problems second-hand is enough to hook viewers.
